Drug Discov Ther. 2013;7(5):209-211. (DOI: 10.5582/ddt.2013.v7.5.209)

Standardized clinical pathways may potentially help to reduce the opacity of medical treatment in China – Reflections on the murder of a doctor in Wenling, Zhejiang.

Mei L, Xu LZ

A doctor was murdered at Wenling First People's Hospital in Zhejiang, China on October 25, 2013. During the incident, a patient assaulted three doctors, resulting in the death of one of the doctors. This incident has led to a heated discussion about the unhealthy doctor-patient relationship in China. There are complex reasons for the strained doctor-patient relationship in China, but one aspect that helped lead to this situation is the opacity of medical treatment. Research has shown that implementation of clinical pathways reduces the variability of clinical practice and improves outcomes. Standardized clinical pathways can provide a standard for evaluation of the rationality of treatment and also suggest a recommended treatment, potentially reducing the opacity of medical treatment in China. However, the standardized clinical pathways that are currently in use in China still need to be improved. The implementation of clinical pathways needs to be increased, those pathways need to be formulated in detail, a supervisory body needs to be established, and the public needs to be better informed. These aspects should be studied further.

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