In an alarming breach of medical ethics, medical staff have been notifying funeral companies of their dying patients in exchange for cash. more ›

In the last five years, many patients have come up to me to ask: I don't smoke, don't drink, and I pay great attention to my diet. Why am I getting liver cancer, stomach cancer, or intestinal cancer? My house is very clean, why is my child getting leukemia? I can't help but think: If we're living in an environment where the air is polluted, the water is poisonous, the food is toxic and even the furniture is tainted, you'll fall ill no matter how health your habits are. more ›

"A LOCAL hospital yesterday was told to compensate a man who was given a glass of wine a day as part of treatment for his alcohol-damaged liver. The patient, Le Changjiu, claimed the daily 200-milliliter ration of rice wine - a Chinese alcoholic drink brewed from rice - worsened his cirrhosis of the liver. The hospital, which was not named, was ordered by Jing'an District People's Court to compensate Le almost 100,000 yuan (US$15,450). Le, in his late 40s, was hospitalized on July 28, 2008, and diagnosed with alcoholic hepatitis and alcohol withdrawal syndrome. Wine was included in the treatment to wean Le off alcohol. Le's liver deteriorated further. The court ruled the hospital was partly responsible." [Shanghai Daily] more ›

We love documentaries about China, especially old ones. Though this one is a bit academic, it's got beautiful footage of the Chinese countryside from 1975, and contains a ton of really interesting information about the history of the medical industry in China. The barefoot doctors, who we're sure still exist around the country, are a fascinating subject: we're shocked at how vastly different society was during the Cultural Revolution, but after watching this, we have a feeling that their trade hasn't changed much since the fall of Mao. more ›

To be wrongly put into an asylum has been a staple of horror fiction, but this nightmare actually happened to a woman in Xiamen. Mrs. Wu, who originally went to her hospital to cure her high blood prolactin (PRL) was identified as "mentally challenged" and forced into an asylum for 22 days, according to Netease. more ›

China's Health Minister, Chen Zhu, has cautioned medical workers to quit smoking, in order to “set a good example for their patients and others who look up to them,” according to China Daily. About 320 million people are smokers right now, and growing rates of lung cancer and emphysema have become a major health concern. But without laws, taxes and other regulations in place, we can't help but think Mr. Chen won't have much luck seeing an end to smoking doctors. After all, it's not like they haven't been trying to get them to quit for years already. more ›

Sad news for anyone hoping to play the role of laowai doctor #3, China has issued a law effectively banning actors and celebrities from appearing in medical ads. A new notice posted by SARFT bars people without medical qualifications from making health claims in an attempt to cut down on the snake oil sales tactics rampant throughout the country. The restrictions come after an internet hunt exposed at least 12 fake experts selling medicine under different pseudonyms in Shandong alone. Source:Reuters more ›

Dai Longquan, a 19-year-old man from Jiangxi Province is currently recuperating at Renji Hospital after having a 28cm drill bit removed from his brain by surgeons. He was adjusting the drill when a tiny little accident happened — the bit shot into his right eye socket and was embedded 18 centimetres into his brain. By the time Dai was rushed to the hospital, he was already in a critical condition and was lapsing into a coma. Doctors made two small openings on each side of his brain and not only removed the bit (three centimetres of which had been bent into a right angle), but also saved his eye. more ›

Too much of a good thing, as they say, is bad. China is supposed to have the world's highest rate of antibiotics abuse and the problem, apart from killing an estimated 80,000 a year, is leading to an increased resistance of bacteria to drugs, resulting in a rising number of recessive syphilis cases, among others. An ambitious two-year project has now been launched to train over 30,000 medical staff across China in the responsible use of antibiotics. more ›

A friend of ours went to the Huashi Pharmacy, at the Portman, to purchase the inhaler she uses due to asthma. She didn't have a prescription, but she never needed one before. As long as she had lived in Shanghai, such meds were always over-the-counter, perhaps because of the excellent air quality found in the city. But on Saturday, the workers at the pharmacy told her she could no longer buy the inhaler she needed to breathe without a prescription. Why? "Because of the Olympics," she was told. A little more digging shows that certain inhalers are considered stimulants by the International Olympic Committee, and thus new regulations were put into effect. Luckily, our friend had health insurance and walked to her doctor's office, got a prescription and her meds — the expenses were all covered, but for uninsured asthmatics, this policy change could be quite a surprise hit to the pocketbook. Just thought we'd warn you: Don't wait until the middle of an asthma attack to get all your paperwork in order. more ›