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Editorial
Improving population health and eliminating health inequity are of growing importance to China. Anyone who opens an online Chinese news portal are likely to stumble on headline news related to health, be it mental health (the series of suicides among Foxconn workers), or food safety (contaminated baby formula), or health systems (the new rural cooperative medical insurance). Existing news portals and online communities rarely offer an opportunity to examine the social and economic roots of these problems or issues, to discuss the possible consequences and policy implications, or to debate on potential solutions. The need to establish a forum for discussions and reviews, and to provide a portal for health research, policy and practice updates in China is noted by members of the nascent China Health Policy and Management Society (CHPAMS). And voila! You are reading the very first issue of China Health Review -- the official magazine of the CHPAMS
China Health Review, hereafter referred to as The Review, is devoted to discussions of population health issues in China. It is a collective effort of many members of CHPAMS, of which the brief history will be laid out by Dr. Jian Li later in the section About CHPAMS.
A key component of the Review is an overview on a population health topic from a subject expert. In this issue, Dr. Youfa Wang of Johns Hopkins University brings us a thought-provoking review on the emerging obesity epidemic in China. As China is going through an economic transition, nutrition and epidemiology transitions are to follow. The direct and indirect consequences of such changes are discussed in the section Topical Review.
During the opening ceremony of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, an NBC commentator had the following comment on the amazingly synchronized drum and moving block performances powered by thousands of actors. "They did it with people! ... It's unbelievable." Yes, people is the immense resource that was harnessed at the ceremony, has been harnessed in the everyday lives of human kind, and will be harnessed in the process of making Chinese people healthier and stronger. We had the honor to interview Dr. Lincoln Chen, President of the China Medical Board, on the issue of human resources for health. Readers can find his incisive comments and visions in the Interview section.
In a world with zillion pieces of information swooping around, you probably do not have time to read every piece of news or every scientific article. Rather, you will probably like the contents in Research Twitter, which summarizes academic papers on China's health issues, and Policy and Practice Updates, which provides you latest news on health policy and practice in China. In this issue, we have summarized recent research papers on population health topics in China and updates on essential drug system and public hospital reforms.
In a world with zillion pieces of information swooping around, you probably do not have time to read every piece of news or every scientific article. Rather, you will probably like the contents in Research Twitter, which summarizes academic papers on China's health issues, and Policy and Practice Updates, which provides you latest news on health policy and practice in China. In this issue, we have summarized recent research papers on population health topics in China and updates on essential drug system and public hospital reforms.
Bon reading!
TABLE OF CONTENTS
About CHPAMS - A Brief History of the China Health Policy and Management Society by Jian Li, PhD MS
Topical Review - The Growing Obesity Epidemic and Its Health and Financial
Consequences in China by Youfa Wang, MD PhD
Interview - Interview with Dr. Lincoln Chen by Zhuo Chen, PhD MS
Research Twitter
Policy and Practice Updates
News and Announcements
Special Acknowledgment