As Shanghai battles its latest outbreak, some hospitals have suspended regular services for pandemic prevention. And that has more people getting presciptions filled online. CGTN's Wu Bin has more.
Chen Ying has been working for a online medical platform in Shanghai for 8 years. Recently, she's seen a rise in customers.
Most of Shanghai is still under closed-off management, and many hospitals are only keeping emergency departments open. For patients with chronic diseases that require daily medication, online hospitals and drug stores might be a better option for now.
LIU XIAOJUN Chief Medical Advisor, 111, Inc. "During this period, we've seen a 20% increase in online prescriptions. After we opened the channel for free clinics online, we've seen many people from Shanghai and Jilin Province coming for help. Many of them came to consult about their chronic diseases, such as hypertension and diabetes."
The company has a major storage facility in neighboring Kunshan city. Delivery to Shanghai is usually just a day. But due to a shortage of deliverymen, they say the deliveries now take one or two days longer. So they've opened a green channel for the most urgent needs.
LIU XIAOJUN Chief Medical Advisor, 111, Inc. "Once the green channel opened, it's really fast. It takes a day or so to deliver drugs from Kunshan to Shanghai."
The green channel also helps many frontline workers get PPEs and medicines.
YU GANG Co-Founder and Executive Chairman, 111, Inc. "We have a special team to collect the needs of various organizations and groups, and then at least one employee is designated to communicate with each organization. We've also opened a green channel to accelerate the whole process from getting orders to transport. These efforts are to ensure that these materials and drugs can be delivered to the front line as soon as possible."
Yu said the first batch arrived in Shanghai Wednesday night and had been distributed Thursday morning. Wu Bin, CGTN, Shanghai.