Lei Jufang: Leveraging the distinctive techniques of ethnic medicine to address the shortcomings of modern healthcare.

　　In the current reform of the medical and healthcare system, it has consistently been a challenge to ensure that doctors can earn dignified incomes from their clinical practice while simultaneously implementing the separation of medicine and pharmaceuticals in public hospitals. Moreover, with the rollout of the three-tier healthcare system, another significant challenge is how to rapidly enhance the clinical skills and technical expertise of primary-care physicians so that they can effectively handle the large volume of patients suffering from common and frequently occurring diseases.

　　The promotion and application of appropriate technologies in traditional medicine should play a crucial role in addressing the challenges mentioned above. In recent years, the State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine and the China Association of Chinese Medicine have carried out extensive efforts to promote and implement TCM’s appropriate technologies for common and frequently occurring diseases at the grassroots level, achieving remarkable results and demonstrating the feasibility of this approach. We believe that while promoting TCM’s appropriate technologies nationwide, we should also pay close attention to the nationwide dissemination of appropriate technologies from ethnic minority medicine, particularly in the areas of rehabilitation for chronic diseases.

　　First, promoting and applying simple, easy-to-implement, and culturally distinctive ethnic medical techniques nationwide will help preserve and carry forward the traditional medicine culture. Ethnic medicine represents the crystallization of health wisdom from ethnic regions. Over the course of thousands of years of development, ethnic medicine has not only accumulated numerous prescriptions and unique medicinal substances but has also developed a wealth of “simple, effective, and affordable” therapeutic techniques that are distinctly characteristic of ethnic medicine—for example, the topical application method and medicinal bath therapy in Tibetan medicine, as well as the herbal acupuncture therapy used by the Miao people. These therapeutic techniques have stood the test of thousands of years of clinical practice and constitute an important part of the treasure trove of Chinese medicine. By promoting these appropriate techniques, we are taking a crucial step toward both preserving and developing ethnic medicine and fostering ethnic unity.

　　Second, the appropriate technologies of traditional medicine can help make up for the shortcomings of modern rehabilitation techniques, thereby highlighting the nation’s strategic initiative of giving equal importance to both Chinese and Western medicine. Compared with modern rehabilitation techniques, traditional rehabilitation methods place greater emphasis on aligning with the natural order, balancing yin and yang, nurturing both body and spirit, harmonizing movement and stillness, unblocking and regulating meridians, bolstering righteous qi while expelling pathogenic factors, and providing comprehensive care. Traditional rehabilitation approaches are rich and diverse. Take, for example, the Tibetan medical therapies of applying ointments to the “white channels” and medicinal baths—these traditional external treatments operate on principles that differ from those of modern medical rehabilitation theories. They do not require mastery of complex medical theories, are simple to perform, and do not add to the burden of clinical diagnosis and treatment. Moreover, they do not necessitate specialized therapists or rehabilitation specialists; instead, they can be administered by patients’ family members or caregivers, thus saving substantial human and material resources in healthcare settings. When used in combination with modern rehabilitation methods, these traditional approaches can enhance the effectiveness of clinical treatment—a fact that has already been confirmed by clinical research.

　　Third, the appropriate technologies of traditional medicine are particularly well-suited to addressing the current shortage of rehabilitation services at the primary-care level. Although modern rehabilitation technology—a relatively new discipline—has seen extremely rapid development in China in recent years, compared with more established disciplines such as internal and surgical medicine, rehabilitation techniques still have much room for learning and improvement at the primary-care level. There is still a long way to go before these techniques can be widely adopted and applied across the country. However, thanks to the promotion of the three-tier medical care system, an increasing number of patients requiring rehabilitation now must receive rehabilitation treatment at community-level primary-care facilities. To bridge the gap between this growing demand for rehabilitation and the current reality, the appropriate technologies of traditional medicine can play a crucial role. Before modern rehabilitation techniques were introduced to China, Chinese physicians had already been using these traditional rehabilitation therapies to treat patients and achieve remarkable health outcomes. These therapeutic approaches are simple to perform, easy to master, and do not require sophisticated equipment or facilities; they can be learned without extensive training. They also involve low infrastructure investment and are inexpensive to deliver, making them highly suitable for use in primary-care and rehabilitation settings.

　　The state encourages the development of traditional medicine in ethnic minority regions. Today, ethnic medicines have gone beyond these regions and are now reaching not only the entire country but also the world at large. While effectively alleviating patients’ suffering, they have also gained recognition from both traditional Chinese medicine and Western medicine practitioners on the mainland. Facts have proven that ethnic medicine can be effectively utilized in non-ethnic minority regions as well. In light of this, we recommend that the state promote the use of simple, easy-to-implement, and highly effective ethnic medical techniques in clinical diagnosis and treatment on the mainland—especially in the rehabilitation of chronic diseases—so that the health wisdom of ethnic medicine can benefit an even greater number of patients.

　　(Lei Jufang, Member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and Chairwoman of Qizheng Tibetan Medicine)

　　Reporting media: NetEase Finance

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