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Barefoot Doctors

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During that time, Chinese doctors were employees of the state. In rural areas, the caretaker of the health care system was the commune, which was the central institution in rural life. Communes managed all aspects of agricultural life, from planting to harvesting. It also supplied social services, including health care, which was provided through the Cooperative Medical System. The Cooperative Medical System operated village and township health centers that were staffed mostly by medical providers who had only basic health care training — the “barefoot doctors”, who received much publicity in America and Europe for their effectiveness in meeting rural healthcare needs. Although the standards of care were minimal (village doctors usually had

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