Deep Dive delves into hot issues in Hong Kong and mainland China. Our easy-to-read articles provide context to grasp what’s happening, while our questions help you craft informed responses. Check sample answers at the end of the page.
News: China pushes for AI adoption in healthcare industry
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Some say that AI could handle time-consuming data entry tasks for doctors
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China will push for AI-assisted diagnosis and treatment in its primary-level institutions by 2030
Li Bin is a young surgeon at the First Hospital of Lanzhou University in China. Earlier this year, he used the OpenClaw artificial intelligence (AI) agent to develop a medical app.
The app extracts information from doctor-patient conversations and lab report photos. It organises it into structured medical records. This removes the need for dull, time-consuming manual data entry.
He said that because of AI, “a doctor with no coding training can build such applications at very low cost” to meet specific needs.
Li is using AI tools to streamline his medical work. This represents China’s national push to integrate AI into its healthcare industry.
AI can help improve medical service quality across a hospital. It can also help individual doctors be more productive, said Song Yuqin at a recent healthcare industry forum. She is the deputy head of Beijing Cancer Hospital (BCH).
Song explained how an AI system was used in a clinical trial for lung cancer patients at the hospital.
It ran automatically overnight. It matched potential participants against all lung cancer clinical trials. Then, it produced a ranked list of suitable studies for each. Notifications highlighting the top options were sent by 7am the next day.
Song said that another AI-backed database at BCH could slash the time needed to prepare a research proposal from weeks to just one day. Doctors would only need to enter a few key details for a plan to be created. Details could include research priorities and sample data.
“I think this matters to our patients as much as it matters to medical innovation,” she said.
The National Health Commission and four other agencies rolled out a plan late last year. The plan detailed ways to increase AI adoption across healthcare.
Under the plan, China will push for AI-assisted diagnosis and treatment in its primary-level institutions by 2030. This would include hospitals and clinics that mainly provide primary care. The plan would effectively make AI-enabled healthcare available nationwide.
The country will also encourage the use of AI in hospitals at or above the middle rung of its three-tier system. AI would be used to support medical imaging and clinical decision-making. The government will also push for broader integration across patient care, traditional Chinese medicine, public health, research and governance.
In short, the country is betting on the technology to modernise the healthcare sector.
During the “two sessions” annual national meetings in March, about 100 healthcare representatives submitted 42 proposals about AI.
They outlined ways to use AI to enhance the sector. This ranged from drug research and smart hospitals to medical data governance and support for primary healthcare.
Staff writers
Question prompts
1. Which of the following statements is false, according to the information in the news?
(1) Li Bin believes that AI can empower doctors without coding expertise to create apps for specific needs more affordably.
(2) According to Song Yuqin, using AI in the healthcare system can benefit clinical research but would require more time to prepare research proposals.
(3) China plans to implement AI-assisted diagnosis and treatment in primary-level institutions nationwide in 2030.
(4) Proposals regarding the use of AI in medical data governance were submitted to the Chinese government in March.
A. (1), (2) only
B. (1), (4) only
C. (2), (3) only
D. (3), (4) only
2. According to Song, how can AI enhance the quality of medical research in a hospital?
3. Do you think AI could benefit the healthcare system in China? Why or why not? Explain using the news, glossary and your own knowledge.
Illustration
Question prompts
1. What is being shown in the illustration, and how does it relate to the information in the news?
2. Give TWO examples of ways AI is being used in China’s healthcare system.
Glossary
OpenClaw: an AI virtual assistant that lives on your computer and remembers previous commands and conversations. It can operate independently and communicates using a large language model.
primary-level institutions: hospitals and clinics that provide the first point of contact that patients make with their doctors. Primary care often focuses on prevention and the treatment of mild illnesses.
three-tier system: China’s framework for classifying its hospitals and clinics. Tier 1 institutions provide general healthcare and preventive services. Tier 2 refers to regional hospitals that offer more comprehensive treatment, while Tier 3 facilities are large medical centres for complex surgeries and research.
medical data governance: the laws, technical standards and internal policies that dictate how patient information is collected, stored, shared and protected
Sample answers
News
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C
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According to Song, AI can improve research quality by automating processes. One example is a hospital clinical trial for lung cancer patients, where the system automatically matched patients to suitable trials overnight, sending a ranked list of top options by the next morning.
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I think AI could benefit the healthcare system in China by improving the quality of medical research and narrowing the gap between different tiers of healthcare institutions. The use of AI in hospitals can shorten the time doctors spend on medical research and organise medical data. For doctors like Li Bin, AI agents help them work more efficiently by automating tedious tasks, such as converting voice conversations and lab photos into structured records. Consequently, doctors can devote more time to surgery and direct patient care. Furthermore, the widespread use of AI can assist primary-level healthcare institutions in providing essential first-contact care, including the treatment of common illnesses, chronic disease management, and public health prevention for local communities. As a result, the adoption of AI can improve services at Tier 1 institutions in rural China. With better local care, patients would no longer need to travel long distances to city hospitals. In the long term, this would narrow the quality gap across China’s healthcare institutions. (accept all reasonable answers)
Illustration
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The image shows a doctor with a monitor on their head displaying a brain icon labelled “AI.” This represents the integration of artificial intelligence into the healthcare sector. While some fear AI might replace doctors, current news highlights how medical professionals are actually using AI to work more efficiently.
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First, AI is being used to develop applications that manage hospital data, such as extracting and organising information from doctor-patient conversations and lab report photos into structured medical records. Second, AI is being utilised in hospital databases, such as at Beijing Cancer Hospital, to reduce the time needed to prepare research proposals. This process, which once took weeks, now takes just one day, as doctors only need to provide key details like research priorities and sample data to generate a complete plan. (accept all reasonable answers)
