China needs more general doctors to ensure that people at the grassroots level will have better access to health and medical care, according to experts.

Statistics from the National Health and Family Planning Commission, China's top health authority, show that there are currently about 60,000 registered general practitioners in the country.

"That's far short of the number needed to extend the system to every Chinese citizen," said Du Xueping, head of the Chinese Medical Doctor Association's general practice committee.

According to a national health plan released by the State Council last year, a medical system built around general practitioners should be in place by 2020, offering two or three GPs for every 10,000 people.

However, given that China's population is forecast to be 1.4 billion by 2020, the country will require 280,000 doctors for the initiative to be successful.

Zeng Yixin, president of the Beijing Hospital, said general practitioners are all-around talents, unlike doctors in the nation's big hospitals who specialize in certain fields.

GPs are most needed at the grassroots level because they can treat a range of illnesses and provide a safeguard for local residents.

Zeng said there are many reasons for the scarcity of qualified GPs, including insufficient training and underperforming medical faculties at colleges.

Du, from the doctors association, suggested that all physicians who work in medium - or high-level hospitals could be trained to work as family doctors and could be deployed as circumstances dictate.

wangxiaodong@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 08/05/2016 page6)