An investigation of basic health care service provided by rural hospitals and community health service centers in Chengdu

Objective: To provide baseline data for the Special Healthcare Program of Comprehensive Reform for Coordinated and Balanced Urban-rural Development in Chengdu. Methods: We selected 7 township/community health institutions and 6 village health posts /street clinics using stratified sampling to take account of the levels of economic development and the distance from the centre of Chengdu We then performed on-site surveys and secondary research. Data were analyzed by using Epidata or Excel. Results: The utilization of health institutions was generally good. The number of visits and number of inpatients in medical institutions increased steadily. The utilization rate of hospital beds and doctors' workload were higher than the national average. The average medical expense per outpatient /inpatient was far lower than the national level. The overall condition of the health institutions that close to the centre of Chengdu was better. Conclusion: We should persist in taking advantage of the rural hospitals' construction to improve village health posts /street clinics and strengthen the national and governmental compensating mechanism for township /community health organizations (village health posts /street clinics), so as to make the basic condition of current township /community health organizations (village health posts /street clinics) better. © 2008 Editorial Board of Chin J Evid-based Med.