Health watchdog confirms use of unlicensed staff, urges Meinian to reform

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After a three-day investigation, local health authorities in Guangzhou have confirmed accusations that health checkup provider Meinian Health 100 forged doctors' signatures on health reports, and urged the company to reform its management and staff workflow.

The Tianhe Commission of Health and Family Planning issued a notice on Sunday after it carried out a three-day investigation at a health checkup center in Tianhe district in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou.

The notice issued by the local health authorities and the letter of apology of Meinian Health 100 /Weibo Photo

The authorities, in the notice, confirmed some accusations, including employing unlicensed doctors and forging the signatures of real doctors on reports. The accusations were widely spread on Chinese social media, but were earlier denied by the company.

In the notice, the health watchdog required that all doctors should review any test result in person and sign it by hand. The checkup center was asked to employ licensed doctors to conduct radiological tests.

At the end of July, articles criticizing the company for employing unlicensed doctors to perform checkups and firsthand accounts of bad experiences put the healthcare company in trouble, causing its share price to drop 25 percent.

VCG Photo

With the incremental concern and queries from the public, the Shenzhen Stock Exchange also ordered the company to immediately re-check the credentials of all of the staff and paramedics.

Following the notice, the Health 100 published a letter of apology via its verified Weibo account, promising to review its operation and workflow. It also offered a deep apology to the public.

However, for many, the promises ring hollow.

“I want to ask whom I should find to solve the wrong testing result?” @Xiangruyimo-uu asked the company.

“Only one doctor and anyone can use his signature. Therefore, you can only employ one doctor and then employ more temporary workers. Then your [company] is legal,” @Renjianrenaichejianchezaidepang sarcastically questioning the company's services.

“Yes, there’s no unlicensed doctor but there’s only one licensed doctor and used by all departments. There’s no wrong test but actually the company has no qualification of testing. You may sue the health department then,” wrote @Wudewucaixiaopangzi making fun of the company’s previous threats against the media for what it called attempts to smear its reputation.

Ciming Checkup was acquaired by Meinian Health 100 in 2017. /VCG Photo

Established in 2004, Meinian Health 100 under the Meinian OneHealth Healthcare Group is one of the country’s two leading private health checkup companies, the other being Ikang. There are around 400 centers in about 200 cities across the countries.