China to provide more equitable and accessible rehabilitation services for people with mental disorders

In the next three years, China will improve community rehabilitation services for people with mental disorders, providing them with equitable, accessible, systematic and continuous basic rehabilitation services, according to a notice issued on Dec 29, 2022, by the Ministry of Civil Affairs, the Ministry of Finance, the National Health Commission, as well as the China Disabled Persons' Federation.

The move is one of the measures to improve the social security system and the care service system for people with disabilities, and to promote the all-round development of the cause of people with disabilities.

It will also help achieve the goals that by 2025, more than 80 percent of county-level regions in China will have provided community rehabilitation services for people with mental disorders, and over 60 percent of home-based patients will have access to community rehabilitation.

The notice clarifies the concept of community rehabilitation services for people with mental disorders in terms of objectives, priorities, methods and contents.

Community rehabilitation services are an important way to improve and enhance the self-care ability, the ability to adapt to society, and employability of patients with mental disorders. They are professional social services that facilitate the return and integration into society of patients with mental disorders.

The tasks of the three-year campaign are to optimize the service system, promote the integration of resources, and promote the improvement of service content and efficiency, clarifying annual assignment indicators, such as the service coverage rate and the standardized service rate in the county-level regions that offer community rehabilitation services.

According to the notice, concrete action plans have been made that focus on the service system, treatment and rehabilitation referrals, service supply capacity, professional talents, sustainable development, and service support.

In addition, the working mechanism has been established, making a clear division of responsibilities and promising policy support.