As the eldest child in the family, Wang Changhe is over 60 has been taking care of her 93-year-old mother for more than four years; she's wheelchair-bound due to a stroke. She received a lifeline in April from a free government pilot program called Respite Care. A nurse comes to her home one day a week, alleviating Changhe temporarily from her responsibilities.

having started in Beijing's Fengtai district last October, the program has provided care services to 614 households, but the free nursing services are only provided four times a month, and strictly confined to families caring for disabled seniors and those with dementia.