To enhance the quality of children's health care, the government is promoting a children's health care improvement program (2022-2024) that will invest NT$2.8 billion (US$101.4 million) over four years to implement eight major strategies. By devoting more resources to the system, it is hoped that this will lower the child mortality rate and protect the lives and health of the children of Taiwan.
Eight major strategies
■ Develop a comprehensive perinatal (i.e., prenatal to neonatal) health care system: Assist every city and county (or community life circle) to convert at least one hospital into a perinatal maternal and infant health care center. The centers are to be responsible for intensive and follow-up care of high-risk pregnancies and newborns.
■ Establish an emergency children's medical network divided into levels and zones: Establish a children's referral network mechanism that provides round-the-clock emergency patient medical services for children.
■ Enhance care capabilities and quality for severe and rare diseases: Establish an intra-hospital cooperation mechanism to provide each region with uninterrupted, comprehensive care for severe and rare pediatric diseases.
■ Form a network of professional transport teams for children with severe diseases: Support the formation of one to two demonstration teams to enhance transportation safety.
■ Design a national platform for difficult-to-diagnose pediatric diseases: Use high-end medical technology for integrative medical assessments to reduce access-to-care obstacles for children with difficult-to-diagnose diseases.
■ Train pediatric medical care professionals, promote innovative R&D and translational applications: Draft plans to train pediatric medical professionals in response to population trends and distribution. Encourage investments in innovative R&D and translational applications for the medical situations and needs of children with severe and difficult diseases.
■ Develop a family-centered dedicated pediatrician system: Designate pediatricians at basic or community hospitals and clinics to serve as dedicated physicians caring for toddlers under 3 years of age, using a case-management approach to provide more proactive care for infants and toddlers.
■ Promote parenting guidance services for vulnerable families: Strengthen parenting abilities for families of women with high-risk pregnancies and vulnerable families with children under 6 years of age by providing childrearing guidance services (including thematic courses and growth groups) or visiting homes to provide parenting demonstrations, meal preparations or parental counseling.