The World Health Organization (WHO), the International Society for Prosthetics and Orthotics (ISPO), and two WHO Collaborating Centers (the Centre of Rehabilitation Training and Research at Tongji Medical College and Hospital, Wuhan, Hubei, China, and the Hong Kong Rehabilitation Society, Pokfulam), have launched the Chinese version of the international guidelines for training personnel in developing countries to provide prosthetics and orthotics services.
According to The Beijing Daily, Sun Xiande, the vice director-general of China's Disabled Persons' Federation, stated that "everyone [in need] will share rehabilitation treatment" as part of China's goal, "Rehabilitation for All by 2015." China has a reported 82.96 million people with disabilities, about 6.34 percent of its population.
WHO says that the new Chinese O&P-training guidelines were
"a step toward assisting China to plan its human resource
requirement to meet the emerging demand for prosthetics and
orthotics services within the country." In November, the four
organizations held a workshop around the guidelines. The workshop
was attended by representatives from China's Ministry of Civil
Affairs, Ministry of Health, its universities and institutes that
already provide O&P training, the China Rehabilitation Devices
Association, the China Association of Rehabilitation Medicine, and
the China Association of Prosthetics and Orthotics. At the
workshop, members agreed that China would adopt the guidelines and
upgrade its training facilities accordingly.
