Hospice care sector needs more sustained efforts for development, say experts

Hospice care, which had a relatively late start in China, is now seeing rapid development and strong momentum, but still needs more sustained growth efforts, experts said.

Hospice care, which aims to tend to the physical, emotional and sometimes spiritual needs of the terminally ill and help them die with dignity, is now catching attention.

Statistics released at a national hospice care pilot promotion meeting held in Chengdu in June showed that in 2018, 283,000 patients nationwide benefited from hospice care. Compared to the situation in October 2017, when the country's first batch of hospice care pilots were launched, institutions that offer hospice care increased from 35 to 61, the number of beds surged from 412 to 957, and practicing physicians in the sector grew by 113 percent to 204 in number.