Huangshan eyes more female-friendly public health system

Huangshan city in Anhui has been ramping up efforts to promote the female-centric parts of its public health system to further safeguard the health of women and girls in the area.

Huangshan Maternal and Child Health and Family Planning Service Center, for example, has been acting to protect maternal and infant health by promoting free screenings of cervical carcinoma and breast cancer.

It has also been strengthening the tertiary prevention for birth defects, and working to preventing the transmission of diseases such as AIDS and syphilis.

Moreover, the service center has accelerated the development of a new platform that integrates big data, cloud computing and AI to improve women's health.

Last year, Huangshan city completed 15,977 cervical cancer screenings and 22,458 breast cancer screenings for rural women of an appropriate age.

Some 11,356 free premarital medical examinations were completed and 7,477 people benefited from the free distribution of maternal folic acid supplements.

Meanwhile, the Women and Children's Branch at Huangshan City People's Hospital has recently completed its main structure. Covering about 43,000 square meters, it is expected to be finished in June 2024. When completed, it will greatly improve and enhance the women's and children's health care services that the city has to offer.

What's more, a total of 74 individual rooms for mothers equipped with sofas, seats, cribs, diaper tables, refreshment tables and hot-water wash pools have been built in the city's buildings that are over 10,000 square meters and frequented by children as well as traffic hubs, attractions and shopping malls with more than 10,000 daily visitors.

Moving forwards, plans have been drawn up for Huangshan city to continue carrying out women-friendly programs and take advantage of Xin'an medicine, providing women with one-stop health care services integrating Chinese and Western medicine.