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Background: The National Essential Medicine System (NEMS) is a new policy launched by the Chinese government in 2009. The effects of its introduction have been widely investigated. However, little research has focused on individual patients' perspectives. The purpose of this study was to examine current understanding and opinions of China's NEMS of primary care providers (PCPs) and patients.Methods: Providers (n = 134) and patients (n = 175) were examined based on self-completed questionnaire surveys conducted in 16 primary healthcare centers in Ningxia, northwestern China. Questions addressed the topics of: participants' socio-demographic characteristics; awareness of NEMS policies; perceptions of NEMS-related changes; satisfactions with NEMS.Results: The patients had a low awareness of NEMS while a majority of providers were familiar with NEMS. All participants were satisfied with the price and quality of essential medicines, but not satisfied with the quantity. Patients felt there had been a decrease in their total medical expenses per visit and improved pharmaceutical services. Most providers perceived no change in their personal or departmental income. The overall satisfaction rate related to NEMS among providers and patients was 92.54 and 93.31%, respectively. Overall there was a link between knowledge about NEMS and satisfaction with the program: patients who had greater knowledge of reimbursement policy, and the providers with greater knowledge of NEMS, reported higher satisfaction.Conclusions: The findings revealed a high level of satisfaction towards NEMS among primary care providers and patients, which is a reflection of the improvements in the health care system. However, some patients' low awareness of NEMS should be paid attention to, as it could reduce their knowledge of essential medicines and hinder the full potential of NEMS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ether diamine (Fm 2835-2L) was used as a collector for flotation of quartz. It allows flotation of quartz from mica and calcite. The adsorption mechanism of Fm 2835-2L on quartz was investigated by flotation tests, zeta-potential measurements and infra-red (FTIR) spectra measurements. Results show that Fm 2835-2L adsorbs on the quartz surface in physical adsorption with no new products, changing its zeta potentials, and increasing its hydrophobicity. The effect of calcium ions on flotation of quartz was investigated by flotation tests and zeta-potential measurements. Results show that under neutral or weakly acidic conditions calcium cation can adsorb onto the surfaces of quartz, increase the zeta potential of quartz particles, which in turn causes weaker aggregation of quartz particles and lower flotation recovery of quartz. Under the alkaline conditions the hydrolytic components of calcium are also adsorbed on the quartz surface and increase the zeta potential of quartz particles, which causes stronger aggregation of quartz particles and higher flotation recovery of quartz. However, the hydrolytic components such as CaOH+, Ca(OH)2(aq) and Ca(OH)2(s) were not formed in significant amounts in the best flotation tests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background The National Essential Medicine System (NEMS) is a new policy in China launched in 2009 to improve the appropriate use of medications. This study aims to examine the outcomes of the NEMS objectives in terms of the rational use of medicines in primary health care facilities in China. Methods A total of 28,651 prescriptions were collected from 146 township health centers in four provinces of China by means of a field survey conducted in 2010-2011. Indicators of rational drug use were extracted and compared using a pre/post design and then evaluated with regard to the World Health Organization (WHO) Standard Guidelines and data from previous research. Results The average number of drugs per prescription decreased from 3.64 to 3.46 (p < 0.01) between 2009 and 2010. Little effect was found for the NEMS on the average number of antibiotics per prescription, but the percentage of prescriptions including antibiotics decreased from 60.26 to 58.48% (p < 0.01). Prescriptions for injections or adrenal corticosteroids also decreased, to 40.31 and 11.16% of all prescriptions, respectively. All these positive issues were also recorded in 2011. However, each of the above values remained higher than WHO standards. The percentage of drugs prescribed from the Essential Drug List increased after the implementation of the NEMS (p < 0.01). Where the available data allowed changes in costs to be assessed, the average expense per prescription increased significantly, from 25.77 to 27.09 yuan (p < 0.01). Conclusions The NEMS effectively improved rational medicine use in China. However, polypharmacy and the over-prescription of antibiotics and injections remain common. There is still a large unfinished agenda requiring policy improvements. Treatment guidelines, intensive support supervision, and continuing training for both professionals and consumers are the essential actions that need to be taken. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses a study that evaluated the impact of Chinese essential medicines policy implementation on the use of rational medicine in primary health care. Topics covered include data on prescription of medicines such as antibiotics, hormones and injections from four health care institutions in Chinese provinces including Anhui, Shandong and Zhejiang. Results showed decrease in prescription of antibiotics and injections after the essential medicines policy was implemented in China.

Introduction Differences between women and men in education, employment, political and economic empowerment have been well-documented in China due to the long traditional culture that male is superior to female. This study is to explore whether the similar gender differences exist in the use of health care by analyzing hospital admission, duration of hospitalization and medical expense of both genders in a Chinese hospital. Methods This cross-sectional study evaluated the gender differences in clinical and epidemiologic characteristics of patients who were admitted for any reason to hospital in Zhuhai Special Economic Zone, Southern China, from January 1, 2003, through December 31, 2009. Chi-square test was used to calculate differences between proportions and the t test was used to test differences between means. Results A total of 156,887 patients were recruited in the analysis, with a male/female ratio of 1.1:1.0. The average age and the duration of hospitalization were significantly greater among men (p < 0.05). A larger proportion of hospitalized female underwent surgery compared to male (p < 0.05). The total medical expense per inpatient indicated important differences between genders, with higher expenditures observed among men (p < 0.05). Furthermore, gender differences were observed in length of hospitalization and medical expense for five common conditions respectively and most differences favoring men were significant (p < 0.05) while differences favoring women were not significant (p > 0.05). Among all the self-paid patients, men were also superior in all investigating variables compared with women. Conclusions Gender differences in the use of health care do occur in China. Despite of demographic factors, the differences between female and male can be in part explained by social power relations. China should increase attention to gender and equity in health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a study which examines the health status of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and their access to health services in the U.S. Several cultural barriers combined with lack of health insurance prevent subpopulations from achieving optimal health status and receiving quality care. It is said that it is important to increase the amount of funding available for the research on Asian Americans to address the health care issues among the subgroups of Asian Americans.