Science and Technology Daily News (Reporter Ye Qing) “The key to the prevention and control of infectious diseases lies in having a sound public health system.” On July 25, at the “2020 Multi-Party Support for Public Health System Construction Forum and Launch Ceremony of the Integrated Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases Public Welfare Action,” Chinese Academy of Engineering Academician Zhong Nanshan stated via video.
Zhong Nanshan stated that infectious diseases such as hepatitis, AIDS, influenza, and COVID-19 remain the primary illnesses posing a significant threat to the general population, exerting a profound impact on various aspects of society. The key to the prevention and control of infectious diseases lies in early detection and early diagnosis. China’s ability to effectively curb the spread of the COVID-19 epidemic is primarily attributable to its robust public health system, which enables early protection, early detection, early diagnosis, and early isolation at the community level.
At the conference, the Guangdong Medical Association launched an initiative to establish a public welfare alliance for infectious disease prevention and control. Multiple stakeholders, including medical institutions, pharmaceutical companies, and medical testing organizations, responded actively. By pooling multi-party efforts and integrating resources, they aim to explore mechanisms that combine prevention with treatment, implement joint prevention and control, and promote community-based prevention and control, thereby supporting the development of the public health system.
KingMed Diagnostics Group Co., Ltd., Gilead Sciences, Inc., and China Resources Guangdong Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. jointly announced the launch of a public welfare initiative for integrated diagnosis and treatment. The initiative is expected to collaborate with over 2,000 medical institutions at all levels across China to provide nearly 2 million free hepatitis C antibody screening tests and offer free high-sensitivity HBV DNA testing to 100,000 hepatitis B patients. This effort aims to extend integrated diagnostic and therapeutic services for viral hepatitis to grassroots regions, promoting early screening, precise diagnosis, and standardized treatment for hepatitis B and C, while raising public awareness and emphasis on the prevention and control of infectious diseases.
Yao Zhibin, President of the Guangdong Medical Association, stated that multiple stakeholders jointly participated in this public welfare initiative. By integrating resources, they aimed to establish a public health prevention and control system characterized by joint prevention and control as well as coordination between medical treatment and disease prevention, thereby enhancing the public’s awareness and capacity for infectious disease prevention and control.