Liu Minxia

    mllmx@msn.com

    CONSTRUCTION on a new public hospital started yesterday in the Bantian area of Longgang District. The new hospital is part of Shenzhen’s efforts to meet the demand for medical care in the city.

    Located south of Jihua Road in the Bantian area, where telecom giant, Huawei Technologies, is based, the hospital will be named Shenzhen Jihua Hospital.

    It is an expansion of a project previously called Baohe Hospital, which was later renamed the Shenzhen Hospital of the Chinese Academy of Medical Science Cancer Hospital after sealing a cooperation deal with the academy last year.

    The city decided to rebuild the cancer hospital to meet the highest standards for Chinese hospitals, according to Luo Lexuan, director of the city’s health and family planning commission.

    The Jihua Hospital, which is expected to open in December 2019, will cover 98,000 square meters with a floor area of 540,000 square meters.

    Shenzhen’s health-care facilities have long been considered insufficient and the city government has pledged to invest more money to remedy the problem.

    More than 20 hospitals, mostly outside the city center, will be built by 2020, increasing inpatient beds by roughly 20,000, through an estimated investment of 100 billion yuan (US$15.39 billion), the city pledged late last year. The city has also been trying to attract established medical institutes and respected doctors to Shenzhen.

    About 10 hospitals are under construction, including the Xinming Hospital in Guangming New Area and the Shenzhen University-affiliated Xuefu Hospital in Nanshan District.