Shared solutions are undertaken by other countries such as America, with his personal experience in a veteran’s hospital that is similar to the rural conditions in China as there is less awareness of COPD. We then discussed how COPD might not be a China-specific problem but might affect countries that are underdeveloped. However, we did remake China’s centralized healthcare with only hospitals and no family physicians giving less incentive to see the doctor when someone suffers from COPD. However, he also remarked that qualified doctors in hospitals such as Upenn would definitely make quick diagnostics of a patient’s lung conditions and whether they have COPD. This statement brought us to reality as Dr.L suggested that healthcare providers in rural areas might also need to raise their awareness of COPD or receive better equipment for diagnostics.
Dr: COPD has always been a problem but it is indeed less prevalent in the US than in China. Here at Penn, we have the veteran’s hospital for which we provide free service with highly trained doctors. If those doctors are suspicious that there might be signs of COPD, we would just use one of the machines we have to get results and form a diagnostic based on lung function. However, COPD might be a more prevalent problem in China.
Interviewer: yes, that is often because of the medical situation in China. Due to the lack of private clinics a lot of the healthcare is concentrated and centralized in hospitals. This makes healthcare in rural areas highly underdeveloped and it is often the case where
Dr: I see. Because in the US, there are clinics for the less fortunate. For example, I have worked in a clinic specializing in the treatment of populations that are economically challenged. Now I understand why you guys are doing this project. What I am curious about is whether the doctors in those rural places are able to make such a diagnosis since we do not know a lot of the training that happens, and if there is one of the only doctors for a whole village or area, maybe your project needs to be centered on how we can help out doctors to come to the conclusion of COPD.
interviewer: What do you think of our project?
Dr: This is obviously a student project so I am pretty sure that you are aware of how big of a gap there is between the project itself and your aspirations for it (ie: launch it in the market and allow it for public use) But I do know that there are those miniature devices that would test your lung function and predict your risks of having COPD.
interviewer: yes, but our goal is to provide a different and even timelier response. If a patient were to go to the hospital or clinic to get tested, their lung function might have already declined by quite a bit. But if it is a diagnostic method based on miRNA, we would be able to beat symptoms and come up with a diagnosis before the patients have any impact on their quality of life.
Dr: One thing I feel should be mentioned though is that the use of those diagnostic devices may not do as well in other more developed countries. Not only are the smoking rates actually going down, but having easy access to a family physician may really lower the risks of not being able to find COPD symptoms early. But from what you are saying, there definitely is a community of people that would need this kind of device.
Dr: I see I see… Well, good luck! I hope that your project functions well. I do believe that there is a campaign to be made for this cause. Just keep on spreading awareness and doing a lot of community work.