Tianjin's Digital Healthcare Community Recognized on China's Smart Health Social Impact List Amid IPO Filing

Tianjin’s Digital Health Innovation Draws Industry Attention. On December 1, the Second China Smart Healthcare Conference was held in Shanghai, where a series of awards for innovative applications and practices in smart healthcare in China were announced. Among them, Tianjin’s Primary Care Digital Health Consortium was successfully selected for the “Outstanding Social Impact List” due to its innovative explorations in the field of digital health.

It is reported that the 2nd China Smart Health and Medical Conference, hosted by the Chinese Society of Health Informatics and Medical Big Data, was themed “Smart Health, Integrated Prevention and Treatment.” The conference aimed to showcase new technologies, products, applications, and models across the healthcare industry, the entire value chain of the broader health industry, next-generation information technology, biological sciences, new materials, new medical devices and equipment, and Internet Plus Healthcare. It further sought to promote the application of health and medical big data, as well as the development of Internet Plus Healthcare and the broader health industry.

Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, innovative digital health models, exemplified by Tianjin’s Primary Care Digital Health Consortium, have continuously emerged, actively leveraging digital technologies to promote “smart healthcare and the integration of prevention and treatment.” During the pandemic, under the coordinated leadership of the Tianjin Municipal Health Commission, the Healthcare Security Administration, and the Cyberspace Administration of the Tianjin Municipal Committee, WeDoctor Internet Hospital in Tianjin was rapidly launched and deployed for epidemic control efforts. It mobilized 74,000 doctors nationwide to provide free online consultations to over 2.25 million patient visits, effectively alleviating the pressure on offline medical institutions.

To further advance the development of digital health and enhance the equity, accessibility, and convenience of medical and healthcare services, April this year saw the establishment of a close-knit primary healthcare consortium in Tianjin. Spearheaded by Tianjin WeDoctor General Hospital (Tianjin WeDoctor Internet Hospital) under the guidance of the Tianjin Municipal Health Commission, and involving 267 primary healthcare institutions across the city, this initiative leverages a digital platform to accelerate the construction of an efficient, health-centered healthcare maintenance system. This marks a pioneering effort in the digital upgrading of primary healthcare at the provincial administrative level.

It is reported that Tianjin’s grassroots digital health consortium is progressively establishing the “Four Clouds” platforms—cloud management, cloud services, cloud pharmacy, and cloud diagnostics—across all districts of the city. It is also building “Six Service Centers,” namely the Family Doctor Service Center, Diagnosis and Treatment Service Center, Pharmaceutical Care Service Center, Regional Diagnostic and Laboratory Testing Center, Special Needs Service Center, and Health Management Service Center. These initiatives aim to promote the establishment of a regional performance evaluation mechanism centered on health, thereby comprehensively enhancing the service capacity of primary healthcare institutions.

Currently, some residents in Tianjin’s Heping, Nankai, and Xiqing districts have been among the first to experience digital health services available right at their doorstep. Ms. Zhang, a resident of Xiqing District, has suffered from diabetes for many years and requires regular follow-up visits and medication pickups at her community hospital. “In the past, I mainly came to pick up prescriptions. Now, they specifically teach me how to take my medication properly, as well as provide guidance on diet and exercise. The doctor said that if it becomes inconvenient for me to visit the hospital in the future, I can consult with him via my mobile phone, and the medications will be delivered directly to my home.”

These changes stem from the “Standardized Outpatient Clinics of the Health Community” established by Tianjin’s Primary Care Digital Health Consortium in community hospitals. By building a “Four Clouds” platform and six service centers, these standardized clinics have, on one hand, driven the digital upgrading of primary healthcare services around the five pillars of “prevention, diagnosis, treatment, management, and health promotion,” and on the other hand, strengthened the integration of medical care and prevention, using screening to bolster preventive measures. This enables Tianjin residents to access comprehensive services for medical consultation, disease management, and health maintenance at the primary care level.

Yan Jinhong, Executive Dean of Tianjin WeDoctor Internet Hospital, stated that the Tianjin Primary Care Digital Health Consortium has entered a phase of comprehensive implementation and operation. Efforts are being accelerated to deploy the first batch of 29 pilot primary healthcare institutions. By leveraging the power of institutional and technological innovation, the consortium aims to comprehensively enhance the quality of primary care services across the city and improve residents’ health outcomes, thereby driving a shift from a “disease-centered” to a “health-centered” model.