Shenzhen Bao'an Launches Internet-Integrated Medical Consortium, Connecting Over 60 Hospitals’ Appointment Resources

“Through the internet, Bao’an has pioneered a new model for Shenzhen’s medical consortiums, empowering them with the wings of digital connectivity.” On May 18, VCBeat learned that the “Internet+” medical consortium model of Health Bao’an was officially launched by the People’s Government of Bao’an District, Shenzhen. Sun Meihua, Deputy Director of the Shenzhen Municipal Health and Family Planning Commission, stated that Bao’an’s “Internet+” medical consortium represents a significant innovation in the development of Shenzhen’s medical consortium system.

The Bao’an “Internet+” Medical Consortium, built upon the Smart Bao’an initiative and the WeDoctor platform, introduces high-quality medical resources and innovative mechanisms. It connects 10 hospitals and 131 community health centers in Bao’an, establishing a four-tier “Smart Medical Grid” service system encompassing large, medium, small, and micro-level facilities. This system provides continuous and proactive healthcare services to over 5.4 million Bao’an residents, facilitating the transition from a disease-centered to a health-centered model of care.

Sun Meihua, Deputy Director of the Shenzhen Municipal Health and Family Planning Commission; Huang Min, Secretary of the Bao’an District Committee of the Communist Party of China; Yao Ren, Head of the Bao’an District People’s Government; Lü Yubo, Honorary President of Guangdong Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine; Liao Sizhao, President of Southern Medical University Shenzhen Hospital; Liao Jieyuan, Chairman and CEO of WeDoctor; Zhang Qunhua, Secretary-General of the Medical Consortium Branch of the China International Exchange and Promotive Association for Medical and Health Care and Dean of Wuzhen Internet Hospital; along with leaders from the four major Bao’an District administrative bodies and presidents of multiple provincial, municipal, and district hospitals in Guangdong Province, witnessed the launch.

The Bao’an “Internet+” Medical Consortium is the outcome of a tripartite agreement signed at the beginning of the year among the Bao’an District Government, Tencent, and WeDoctor to jointly build the Bao’an “Smart Medical Grid.” It upgrades Bao’an’s established “3+2” healthcare service framework into a new online-offline integrated “Internet+” medical consortium service model, establishing a four-tiered “Smart Medical Grid” service system encompassing large, medium, small, and micro levels. This forms the “Bao’an Medical Consortium,” aimed at achieving “lean healthcare and proactive health,” serving all residents in the district.

According to reports, the Bao’an “Internet+” Medical Consortium connects upward with renowned senior TCM experts from China’s largest traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) medical consortium and over 7,300 expert teams across 11 remote consultation centers of WeDoctor. By leveraging specialty alliances with leading domestic and international disciplines, it achieves seamless integration of professional capabilities, thereby enhancing Bao’an’s “Major Medical Framework.” Centered on the integration of hospitals and community health services, it extends hospital-level capabilities to all 131 community health centers in the district through remote consultations, two-way referrals, and remote teaching, establishing a “TCM Framework” with vertically integrated medical resources. Relying on the National Family Health Service Platform, WeDoctor Academy, and medical artificial intelligence technologies, it strengthens the contracted service capacity of more than 740 family doctors across the district, forming a “Minor Medical Framework.” Furthermore, through the “Bao’an Tong” mobile internet platform, it builds a “Micro Medical Framework” providing contracted services to 5.4 million residents.

Furthermore, the Bao’an Medical Consortium will actively explore a multi-tiered payment model integrating basic medical insurance with commercial health insurance, alongside the pooling of basic medical insurance funds. Leveraging the service and bargaining advantages of its “Internet + Medical Consortium” model on the basis of city-wide centralized procurement, the Bao’an Medical Consortium will effectively reduce medication costs and improve medication efficiency for residents in Bao’an District.

“‘Internet Plus’ medical consortia can achieve the ‘five connections’ of data, capabilities, services, payment, and supply, pioneering the establishment of the ‘Bao’an Model’ for medical consortia,” said Liao Jieyuan, Chairman and CEO of WeDoctor. Since launching its medical consortium initiative in April 2016, WeDoctor has developed three core competencies in systems, traffic, and operations. It has assisted Shanghai Huashan Hospital, ranked among the top 10 hospitals in China, in establishing the Huashan Medical Consortium, and helped Guangdong Provincial Hospital of Chinese Medicine, the largest traditional Chinese medicine hospital in China, create the nation’s first TCM medical consortium. WeDoctor will open up its platform capabilities to facilitate the vertical integration of high-quality medical resources within the Bao’an Medical Consortium, thereby enhancing the overall efficiency of the healthcare service system.

“The Bao’an ‘Internet+ Medical Consortium’ represents a major leap forward in the transformative development of Bao’an’s healthcare sector. By leveraging technological tools and harnessing the efficiency and convenience of the internet, we aim to achieve seamless integration of medical resources across all levels, ultimately facilitating the downward flow of high-quality resources and promoting tiered diagnosis and treatment,” stated Liang Minhua, Deputy District Mayor of Bao’an District. He added that Bao’an is committed to exploring a new and effective model for medical consortia, setting an example for Shenzhen and the entire nation.

On that day, as the online service portal for Bao’an’s “Internet+” Medical Consortium, the smart government and public livelihood service platform, the “Bao’an Tong” APP, launched an upgraded version of its healthcare section. The upgraded “Bao’an Tong” enables every family and resident to directly connect with family doctors and access service windows at all 10 hospitals in Bao’an District, 60 hospitals across Shenzhen, and over 2,000 hospitals nationwide, becoming an efficient tool for residents’ self-directed medical care and health management. With “Bao’an Tong” and WeDoctor as entry points, more than 5.4 million Bao’an residents can conveniently obtain five-tier medical and health services ranging from community health centers to district-level, municipal, provincial, and key national hospitals, truly realizing access to medical care at their doorstep.

On that day, appointment slots from over 60 hospitals in Shenzhen were integrated into the WeDoctor platform, and the signing ceremony between Shenzhen Hospital of Southern Medical University and Guangzhou Internet Hospital was officially held.