Birth defect prevention in Beijing

Source: en.nhfpc.gov.cn

Updated: 2015-09-16

China opened its annual birth defect prevention campaign for 2015, in Beijing on Sept 12, Birth Defect Prevention Day, to publicize birth defect prevention and treatment awareness with the focus on medical treatments and bringing down the disability rate.

Sponsors of the event are the National Health and Family Planning Commission and the China Disabled Persons Federation, with Jiang Zhenghua, vice-chair of the 9th and 10th National People's Congress Standing Committees, Wang Guoqiang, deputy director of the Commission, Jia Yong, vice-president of the Federation, Zhai Ligong, executive VP of the March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation of China, and GuoYucheng, its deputy secretary general, taking part.

In addressing the gathering, Jiang explained the significance of birth defect prevention and the great achievements in recent years, while emphasizing the need for greater awareness of eugenics and improvements in birth defect prevention and treatment. He pointed to the difficulties in preventing birth defects, which require a great effort by the government and related departments as well as society and he asked everyone to get public welfare organizations and social groups involved in the prevention and treatment measures to improve the lives of the new-born.

In his speech, Wang pointed out that birth defects do serious damages to a child's health and undermine the nation and that China’s birth defect prevention and controls have improved in recent years, thanks to the effort of health and family planning departments. There are preventative measures and good work methods gradually established, with some significant results, Wang said, but added that everyone should increase eugenics awareness through various approaches, with the focus on pre-or-early pregnancy, pregnancy and neonatal periods, and improved medical support for sick children.

Jia described how the Federation has prepared disabled children reports and improved early recovery work while pushing an action plan to help poor disabled children and has explored every approach to early prevention, screening, referral, treatment and recovery for disabled children. Jia also said that the Federation will continue its cooperation with other departments in pushing treatments and recovery of children with birth defects and basic medical insurance for a healthier aid system.

Beijing’s health and family planning commission also explained approaches to birth defect prevention, with experts helping explain, and officials presented money gifts to children with birth defects at the event, which is the responsibility of the March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation, the Beijing health and family planning commission, and the China birth defects supervision center, and which had more than 340 people present.