Medical device industry titan Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) launched a new partnership with Chinese national healthcare regulators to gather data and inform a national program of care for patients with Type I diabetes.
Medtronic and the National Institute of Hospital Administration, a division of China’s National Health and Family Planning Commission, hope to develop a pilot program of integrated care for patients with Type I diabetes, beginning with 10 to 12 regional children’s and general hospitals around the country.
"Type 1 diabetes patients are more susceptible to serious complications compared to Type 2 diabetes sufferers, often leading to huge financial burdens for patients’ families and the society as a whole," NIHA director Liang Huiming said in a press release. "To control the consequence and alleviate the impact of this disease, we need a systematic social engineering approach, which involves efforts from medical professionals, government agencies, communities and patient families."
"If successful, this initiative could even potentially set the goalposts for future chronic disease management efforts in China," he added.
The duo will carry out a series of research projects in the interest of gathering data on the economic an clinical value of various diabetes therapies and their best use in patients.
"In this joint endeavor to help China prepare a nationwide Type I diabetes integrated pathway, we will share with the Chinese government the extensive experience we have accumulated through dealing with similar mechanism in other countries around the world," Medtronic Greater China president Chris Lee said in prepared remarks. "This is the advantage of being a multinational medical technology company and part of our global objective to bring clinical effectiveness and value around the world."
