Disease Control and Big Data Platforms for Health Policy in China: Experiences from Zhejiang Province
Tuesday, October 17, 201712:00 PM - 1:30 PM (Pacific)
Encina Hall, Third Floor, Central, C330
616 Jane Stanford Way, Stanford, CA 94305
Co-sponsored by the Center for East Asian Studies and the Asia Health Policy Program
With rapid economic development, changes in lifestyle, epidemiologic transition and the ageing of the population, China’s primary health challenge has become Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs). Zhejiang province—one of the wealthiest and longest-lived—illustrates how China is responding to this challenge. In Zhejiang, NCDs account for 85% of deaths; the prevalence of hypertension and diabetes are 26.7 % and 7.4%, respectively; and the age of onset of diabetes is getting progressively younger. This seminar will focus on two inter-related strategies: strengthening primary care management of chronic disease, and leveraging newly created regional “big data” platforms to improve policy. Drawing on collaborative research with Stanford’s Asia Health Policy Program, Dr. Zhong will discuss management of hypertension and diabetes patients in community health centers, as well as how Ningbo City of Zhejiang exemplifies the experience of many local governments (municipalities or counties) in building their own regional health information platforms. By gradually collecting all administrative data and other health-related information for their residents from birth to death, including medical claims, vaccination records, lifestyle behaviors, environmental and meteorological factors, and so on, more and more local policymakers seek to analyze big data to explore potential risk factors, pilot targeted interventions, and support evidence-based health policies.