An AI robot specialized in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) provides health check service at the service robots exhibition area of the 2020 China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS) in Beijing, capital of China, Sept. 7, 2020. (Xinhua/Cai Yang)
BEIJING, Dec. 23 (Xinhua) -- China is expected to see the traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) industry enter the fast lane during the 14th Five-year Plan period from 2021 to 2025, the Xinhua-run Economic Information Daily reported on Wednesday.
During the period, efforts will be made to promote the vitalization and development of the TCM industry, strengthen construction of the TCM service system and talent teams, and enhance the TCM service capacity, according to industry insiders at a seminar on the TCM industry development held recently in Beijing.
The key is to build a basic TCM service system covering all the people and the whole life cycle during the 14th Five-year Plan period, according to Su Qingmin, executive deputy director of the Research Center for Development of TCM under the China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences.
Su added that during the period, efforts will also be made to significantly enhance the TCM inheritance and innovation, improve its health quality and effectiveness, and build a more complete system for the healthy development of the TCM industry.
Statistics from the National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine showed that the number of TCM medical institutions totalled 65,809 in the country by the end of 2019, up 41.4 percent from 2015.
As of September 2020, the number of registered TCM clinics had reached 19,000, rising from 195 in 2017, thanks to a favorable policy released in December 2017 to streamline the process for qualified TCM doctors to open clinics. (Edited by Hu Pingchao with Xinhua Silk Road, hupingchao@xinhua.org)