Healthcare and Chronic Disease

I dove into the world of healthcare providers. According to Marketline (2018) Healthcare providers is defined as the total expenditure on healthcare in a specific country. Expenditure in china has increased by 12% in recent years and expected to continue to grow with double digit rates until 2022. There are demographic and economic changes occurring in china related to these changes. They include, an aging population, increased urbanization, a larger demand for healthcare services, and increased incomes. Healthcare industry growth is currently growing at a faster pace than the Chinese economy.

Currently there are a few drivers affecting the health care system megatrend in china. After reading One Hour China (Towson & Woetzel, 2017), I learned about these factors in depth. The first key concept that has led to a booming health care industry in china is urbanization. Specifically, in China urbanization is equivalent to wealth. China’s population has grown by 450 million from 1980 to 2015. Relatedly, the GDP has also increased by over 300%. Urbanization has occurred in other countries in Latin America and they did not see a positive correlation with wealth. With the increase in overall GDP, the Chinese population now has access to larger incomes thus creating a need for additional health care providers and facilities. Urbanization has also had a social affect. Not only are people desiring things outside of their needs. They also are fulfilling their desires and wants. The quality of health care has all increased with urbanization. It not only has affected health, but it affects family, culture, politics, and environment. One of the things that has hindered china from reaching its full growth potential is its issues with intellectual property theft. This factor inhibits companies from committing to china for further research and developments, specifically in the medical field.

Originally, China operated on a public healthcare system. However, in recent years private health insurance has created a rising demand in quality healthcare. The middle class now has the income to afford the quality childcare instead of having the issues of long waiting lists and poor-quality care provided in the public system. Unfortunately, it has been difficult for china to keep up with the increased demand. In 2015, the Health Strategy 2030 program was announced. This program aimed to improve quality of healthcare and increase the life expectancy to 79 years of age! The actions included a push for research and development and an expansion in health coverage specifically in rural areas. The top segments in health care providers were outpatient care, inpatient care, and medical goods for a total of over 50 % of the health care sector.

One factor that always increases the cost of healthcare is chronic disease. The prevalence of BMI of 25+ is expected to increase in the next 10 years. Men from 34 to 57%, and women from 30-46%. In china, chronic disease accounts for near 79% of all deaths (WHO, Facing the Factors, 2015).

I personally don’t believe the Chinese medical system will be successful without much needed changes. There needs to be a shift in focus to preventative care to drive down the cost of medical care. We have seen the detriments of focusing on care after the onset of chronic disease. It is very expensive in the long term. Also, they will need to build trust and alliance with other countries so that they can become involved in research and development efforts. The involvement can help increase the quality of healthcare available to the Chinese population. Overall, I think the industry will have to grow with demand. However, the quality will most likely suffer.

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