Bringing a family practice model of health to the People's Republic of China

The health care system in the People's Republic of China (PRC) is undergoin g a major transition that has made the government revise its approach to ho w medicine is taught and practiced. Family medicine, which provides a gener alist approach to medical care, is at the forefront of this transition. Thi s article reviews the recent history of medical education in the PRC, inclu ding the establishment of the discipline of family medicine in the mid 1980 s, and factors promoting development of family medicine. These include the movement away from government-subsidized health care in hospital settings, the aging population, increased urbanization, increasing incidence of infec tious diseases, and rising health care costs. We conclude from observations made in the PRC and from a review of secondary sources that family medicin e in China is in its infancy. The value of understanding the role that fami ly medicine plays within China's changing health care system is that we gai n a broader perspective of the variety and growing international importance of family practice as a profession.