Market credo tarnishes healing arts as profit comes before people
- By Wan Lixin
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Shanghai Daily, December 9, 2011
Professor Shen Mingxian said that underlying all these untoward developments is the unconditional embrace of market forces at the beginning of the reform of the planned economy three decades ago.
At that transitional period "there was a crying need for promoting correct values and code of conduct," he said.
Unfortunately, for a long time, economic growth, material gains and enjoyment are portrayed as the only things worth aspiring to, as money became the sole yardstick for judging performance and success.
By viewing medical entities as businesses, the state shed the burden of having to fund hospital operations, leaving it to the caprices of the market.
Selling medicine at a markup has become a chief source of revenue for all hospitals.
For unknown reasons, in the heat of physician-patient confrontations, the state and media until recently have chosen to throw their weight behind the patients in accusing hospitals of being cold-blooded money grabbers.
Policy overtures
When money, growth and efficiency become the new religion of the whole nation, our medical professionals are blamed for lacking a charitable spirit.
Media and critics pretend not to see that Chinese doctors are a group of people generally very well educated, overworked, and underpaid.
China's more than 6 million doctors have to minister to the health of 1.3 billion people. Some doctors have to treat the complaints of more than 100 patients a day.
Disappointed and disillusioned professionals are leaving the profession to work as pharmaceutical representatives.
A recent state document on medical reform clearly characterized "public goods" as the nature of medical service and emphasized the "social benefits" of public hospitals. That's progress.
The challenge is how to make that happen.
In view of the havoc wrought by the market credo, the healing profession needs to undertake a long healing process.
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