One Year After Internet Healthcare Policy Launch, Two Hospitals Emerge as Model Institutions

On the morning of April 1, the National Health Commission held a press conference at the Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University to introduce progress in the development of “Internet + Healthcare” and initiatives designed to facilitate public access and deliver tangible benefits. This marks the first presentation of achievements since the General Office of the State Council issued the “Guiding Opinions on Promoting the Development of ‘Internet + Healthcare’” in April 2018.

At the conference, Mao Qun’an, Director of the Department of Planning Development and Informatization of the National Health Commission, and Xi Yan, Director of the Shandong Provincial Health Commission, delivered speeches in succession, fully presenting and affirming Shandong Province’s achievements in advancing “Internet + Healthcare,” accelerating the development of a telemedicine service system, implementing applications of health and medical big data, and promoting informatization initiatives that provide convenient and beneficial services to the public.

As a leading representative in the development and construction of internet hospitals in Shandong Province, and one of the first medical institutions in the province to obtain practice qualifications for internet hospitals, Dong Qian, President of the Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University, and Lü Yongtao, President of Shandong Provincial Third Hospital, respectively introduced their institutions’ exploratory experiences with “Internet+” at the press conference.

As the deep “Internet+” partner of the above two hospitals, WeDoctor has demonstrated outstanding performance in the construction and operation of tiered diagnosis and treatment platforms and internet hospitals. In early 2018, Qingdao University Affiliated Hospital and WeDoctor’s Wuzhen Internet Hospital jointly established Lingshan Island as a designated poverty-alleviation unit for intelligent medical centers, empowering primary healthcare institutions through technical support such as remote consultations and remote electrocardiography provided by the internet hospital. As the lead institution of a medical consortium comprising 49 medical institutions at various levels and types, Shandong Provincial Third Hospital collaborated with WeDoctor to jointly build and operate an internet hospital, a medical consortium, and a family doctor contract service platform, benefiting a population of 61,000 people.

At the consultation point of the Internet Medical Consortium of the Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University, local residents and experts from the hospital conducted remote consultations via the WeDoctor internet platform.

In his address, Lü Yongtao, President of Shandong Provincial Third Hospital, specifically highlighted the hospital’s strong emphasis on establishing a long-term operational mechanism for its internet hospital. He stated, “We have established operational mechanisms in six key areas: allocation of responsibilities, decision-making and implementation, quality control and supervision, operations and promotion, performance assessment and incentives, and multi-party collaboration. This approach fosters an internet healthcare culture across the entire hospital, ensuring the sustained and healthy development of internet-based medical services.”

At its launch, the Internet Hospital of Shandong Provincial Third Hospital established a joint operations team comprising hospital staff and members from Weiyi. Guided by the hospital’s internet-based diagnosis and treatment regulations and incentive policies, the team carries out foundational operational activities. It also provides specialized, end-to-end off-site management for discharged patients, ensuring seamless integration with in-hospital services in terms of service content and clinical data. This has resulted in a disease management model that covers the entire care continuum while maintaining controllable costs and quality.

As a pioneer in the internet healthcare industry, WeDoctor has established a presence across medical care, pharmaceuticals, and health insurance. Leveraging its prior operational experience in “Internet + Healthcare,” WeDoctor will focus on chronic disease management to drive the integration of medical, pharmaceutical, and insurance service systems. This entails coordinated full-cycle chronic disease management, hybrid payment models, and integrated drug supply chains, thereby assisting local governments in implementing the “Three-Medical Linkage” reform and building a value-based healthcare system centered on health.