In three decades, China has transitioned from a poor farming country the world’s second largest economy.
But China’s “cradle-to-grave system of socialized medicine” is cracking under the weight of 1 billion+ people. China has just 1 general practitioner for every 6,666 people; the international standard is 1 for every 1,500-2,000.
Corrupt doctors and inequities in care breed mistrust, even violence, among frustrated patients. Top doctors pursue cushy jobs as hospital specialists, leaving family doctors with low salaries and low social status.
The government has made pledges to up their salaries, but medical trainer Zhu Shanzhu is skeptical: “Our country’s affairs, you know, they aren’t easy.”