Instead of "prevention", China has taken multiple measures to strengthen the protection of key groups

Chinese authorities have issued a notice to deploy dynamic services and "pass forward" work for key COVID-19 groups. "To prevent and reduce the occurrence of severe cases of COVID-19 infection, and to ensure a smooth and orderly transition of epidemic prevention and control," the circular said.

Since the release of the "New Ten" measures, the focus of epidemic prevention and control has shifted from infection prevention and control to medical treatment, with the elderly, children, people with underlying diseases, pregnant women and other key groups receiving particular attention. Protecting key populations and providing them with health services and medical treatment is crucial to the smooth transition of epidemic prevention and control in China.

How to strengthen the protection of key groups of COVID-19? One is health management. China's epidemic prevention and control has focused on "protecting health and preventing severe diseases," and the functions of grassroots medical and health institutions have been transformed to focus on health services and medical treatment at different levels.

On the basis of finding out the basic numbers, the key population is divided into three categories: key population (high risk), sub-key population (medium risk) and general population (low risk), which are marked with red, yellow and green respectively. Medical services are differentiated by color.

For example, for those infected with yellow markers, grassroots medical and health institutions should follow up every three days, and the frequency of follow-up can be encrypted according to needs until the end of at-home treatment and observation. For those infected with red flags and those with urgent medical needs, community (village) and primary health care institutions should assist in referral, and those with urgent medical needs can also seek treatment through emergency.

It can be seen that local governments are acting accordingly to strengthen the protection of key COVID-19 groups.

For example, since January 2, Guizhou Province has distributed free health kits to 1.33 million people in key and sub-key areas of the province. Tianjin asked to speed up the expansion of contracted family doctor services for the elderly aged 65 and above in rural areas. Hunan Province has recently set up 166 emergency response support teams and 105 professional emergency response teams to strengthen the safety net of epidemic prevention.

It is worth mentioning that vaccination is also advancing in parallel. China has launched the second dose of enhanced immunization, starting with high-risk groups, people over the age of 60, people with serious underlying diseases, and people with low immunity, to provide another layer of protection for key COVID-19 groups.

On the other hand, we need to strengthen protection and continue to provide medical treatment.

According to statistics, China now has more than 16,000 fever clinics in secondary hospitals and above, and more than 41,000 fever clinics and consultation rooms in grassroots medical and health institutions. Medical institutions at all levels should "open and set up fever clinics as much as possible", and at the same time simplify the treatment process, increase the supply of drugs, and improve the efficiency of medical services. This has also made it more convenient for key COVID-19 groups to seek medical treatment.

Chinese authorities also require that elderly patients who are at high risk of severe diseases, such as underlying diseases, be referred to competent hospitals if they are found to be infected.

"Such elderly people are required to be transferred immediately to a tertiary hospital, as it is only at this time that it is possible to reduce the severity of severe treatment." In a recent media interview, the National Health Commission medical Administration director Jiao Yahui said so.

The reason why it is classified as "key" is that the elderly and basic patients are at high risk of severe illness or death after contracting the novel coronavirus. The treatment of critically ill patients has also become an important part of China's epidemic prevention and control efforts. Local governments are actively upgrading designated hospitals and sub-designated hospitals, increasing the reserves of secondary and tertiary medical institutions for critical care, and expanding their critical medical resources.

Emergency room capacity has also been expanded. On the basis of "all medical institutions shall not refuse to treat patients for any reason", the National Health Commission requires that the critical patients kept in the emergency room be treated within 24 hours, the emergency resources be recycled more quickly, more serious patients are admitted, and the maximum extent of the critical patients should be accepted and treated.

In a few days, China will implement a "Class B tube" for COVID-19 infections. It is worth noting that the implementation of the "Class B and B tubes" itself is to strengthen the protection of key COVID-19 groups.

At the previous press conference of the joint prevention and control mechanism of The State Council, Chang Jile, deputy director of the National Disease Control and Prevention Bureau, said that after the adjustment to the "Class B and B management", the goal of China's epidemic prevention and control has been set as "protecting health and preventing severe diseases", and the focus of the work has shifted from preventing the infection of the whole population to protecting key groups and reducing severe diseases and deaths. The goal is to maximize the protection of people's lives and health and minimize the impact of the epidemic on economic and social development.

The adjustment of China's epidemic prevention policy from "prevention" to "treatment" will help gather more resources for key groups in need of protection and treatment. By providing health services, promoting vaccination, expanding medical resources and strengthening treatment for severe cases, China is taking multiple measures to protect and treat key groups of COVID-19 patients, and stepping up efforts to protect the "most serious" of the epidemic prevention and control.