Tourists visit Great Tang All Day Mall in Xi'an, capital of Northwest China's Shaanxi province, Dec 30, 2022. [Photo/Xinhua]The past three years have been a steep learning curve in handling COVID-19 patients for Dang Shuangsuo, an epidemiologist in Xi'an, Shaanxi province.At the outset of the pandemic, when the deadlier variants of the virus were sweeping the globe, just a few antivirus drugs and herbal medicine prescriptions commonly used for seasonal flu were available for Dang to treat COVID patients.He and his colleagues were then not so sure about what parameters to monitor in patients so that they could intervene before mild symptoms morphed into life-threatening conditions.In the beginning, he recalled, no diagnosis and treatment plans had yet been tailor-made for specific age groups, such as elderly patients and young children.Adhering to the country's consistent principle of always putting people's lives and health first, Dang and his peers have witnessed the systemic evolution over the past three years of measures in terms of virus containment, treatment knowledge, response procedures, drugs and vaccines, thanks to tremendous resources mobilized by the authorities at all levels.By the time China optimized its COVID-19 control measures at the end of last year in light of the decreasing virulence of Omicron subvariants, Dang, the director of the infectious diseases department of the Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University in Shaanxi province, said that the Chinese medical community was much better equipped and experienced to tackle novel coronavirus infections compared with three years ago.COVID medicines such as the domestically developed Azvudine, the Pfizer-made Paxlovid, and Molnupiravir manufactured by Merck& Co have been approved for clinical use in China, while more efficient and convenient vaccines, including an inhalable one, were made available last year for people seeking an extra layer of protection.Rules have been clarified over when antibiotics can be used on COVID patients, promoting the proper use of drugs and reducing antibiotic resistance.Meanwhile, efforts to add more critical care beds and to raise the inoculation rate among older adults were also picking up.In addition, a newly released diagnosis and treatment plan for severely ill COVID patients listed blood oxygen saturation under 93, among other body indexes, as a warning sign of a deteriorating condition, making it easier for doctors to take action before it's too late."Over the past three years, COVID-19 changed from an unknown virus into a better-known one," said Dang, who is also vice-chairman of Shaanxi's expert panel for the prevention and treatment of major infectious diseases.Dang was well aware that being cautious in terms of COVID-19 control policy is an inevitable choice for the Chinese government, given the country's vast population, fast-aging demographics and the uneven distribution of medical resources.Due to the country's large population, China's hospitals are susceptible to being overstretched if outbreaks spread unchecked.In addition, National Bureau of Statistics figures showed that China had 280 million people aged 60 and over by the end of last year, and this is the age group that the National Health Commission said this month accounts for almost 90 percent of severely ill COVID cases.For much of the past three years, China was under tremendous pressure to abandon its stringent COVID-19 control measures.As the virus' lethal variants interrupted life worldwide, some Western - countries, where factories were forced to shut down as workers fell sick - attempted to shift the blame to China, where lives largely returned to normal due to strict controls over infections - for disrupting global supply chains.However, China stood its ground and kept its border controls in place until January. By this time, the dominant Omicron subvariants were much less deadly than their predecessors, and more than 90 percent of the Chinese people were vaccinated.On Jan 8, China downgraded the management of the virus, so that inbound travelers no longer have to undergo quarantine or take a nucleic acid test upon arrival.The three years of strict control of international travel, together with efforts to nip every domestic outbreak in the bud, have bought precious time for experts such as Dang to learn more about COVID-19 as they approve new treatments, develop more effective vaccines and make new diagnosis and treatment plans for COVID-19 patients.Fine-tuning?measures"China has taken very small steps, but it has never stopped fine-tuning its COVID control measures as the virus mutates," he said, echoing comments made in November by Vice-Premier Sun Chunlan.The authorities in China have maintained that the nation was taking "small but nonstop steps" in fine-tuning its COVID response strategy, while staunchly adhering to the ultimate mission to safeguard people's health and lives.The gradual nature of the change was manifested in the 10 editions of pandemic control plans released over the course of three years, as well as the landmark documents colloquially known as the "20 measures" and the "10 new measures", unveiled in November and December, respectively.Since February 2020, the first six of the contagion control plans were published in slightly more than a month, when understanding of the virus was still unclear and little clinical data was available.On Jan 7, China released the 10th and latest edition, highlighting vaccination and personal protection.Just two days ahead of the eve of Spring Festival this month, health officials appeared at a news conference on Jan 19 with an encouraging message.Guo Yanhong, director of the National Health Commission's medical emergency department, said the number of COVID-19 patients had declined significantly at health facilities nationwide, from fever clinics and emergency centers to critical care wards. Meanwhile, the overwhelming majority of outpatients and hospitalizations were seeking treatment for conditions other than COVID-19.Data provided by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention showed that the positive test rate dropped from 29.2 percent to 5.5 percent between Dec 25 and Monday. The number of deaths from COVID-19 infections in hospitals nationwide dropped 79 percent from the peak on Jan 4 to 896 on Monday.To bolster the treatment capacity in rural regions, Dang had championed a simplified treatment plan for grassroots doctors, so that they can quickly identify COVID patients and ensure their condition does not worsen.His efforts, coupled with the central authorities' moves to bolster investment in the healthcare system in the countryside and beyond, managed to tide the rural population over a surge of infections last month, and helped contribute to China's success in keeping its COVID death rate among the lowest in the world.According to the National Health Commission in July, despite the intense challenges resulting from the pandemic, China's average life expectancy continued to rise amid the pandemic, from 77.93 years in 2020 to 78.2 years in 2021.Meanwhile, according to the National Center for Health Statistics, which is part of the United States' Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, average life expectancy in the US fell over the same period from 77 years in 2020 to 76.1 years in 2021. The total number of COVID-related deaths in the US reached 1.1 million by January, according to the CDC.Pointing to China's record in handling the pandemic over the past three years, Dang pointed out that,"Protecting vulnerable groups is a mission for a socialist society." 編輯：王瑜
Technicians check power transmission facilities in Suzhou, Jiangsu province. SHI JUN/FOR CHINA DAILYChina's economic recovery is expected to drive up electricity consumption with an estimated growth of 6 percent this year amid the optimization of COVID-19 control measures, according to recent forecasts from the China Electricity Council.Power consumption data can reflect situations of enterprises' production and economic operation, and thus become a key barometer of economic activity, experts said."Macroeconomics and climate are important aspects that influence the growth of electricity consumption. In 2023, China is expected to see its economy rebound, driving the growth rate of electricity consumption higher than that in 2022. Under normal weather conditions, it is estimated that the country's electricity consumption will be 9.15 trillion kilowatt-hours, an increase of about 6 percent compared with 2022," said CEC Secretary-General Hao Yingjie.According to Jiang Debin, deputy director of statistics and data at CEC, electricity consumption in the primary industry is expected to maintain rapid growth momentum this year, and the growth rate of electricity consumption in the secondary industry will gradually pick up.Jiang said that under the influence of favorable policies, the gradual recovery of the real estate market will promote the recovery of electricity consumption in industries such as steel and building materials.In addition, buoyed by the production of and investment in high-tech manufacturing and high-tech service industries, electricity consumption in related industries will continue to grow rapidly, Jiang said."The optimization of COVID-19 pandemic prevention and control measures will also create favorable conditions for the recovery of sectors including services and offline consumption this year. Electricity consumption in sectors such as accommodations, catering, transportation and tourism will become an important driving force for the recovery of electricity consumption in tertiary industries this year," Jiang said.As power consumption is likely to increase this year, the CEC proposed a series of measures to ensure energy supply, which include increasing the ability to supply coal, reducing the cost of coal-fired power generation, and accelerating planning, investment and construction of power grids.The CEC's predictions followed a power consumption growth last year. In 2022, the high-tech and equipment manufacturing industry's electricity consumption increased by 2.8 percent year-on-year, which was 1.9 percentage points higher than the average level of the manufacturing industry in the same period, according to the CEC.Among them, electricity consumption in the areas of electrical machinery and equipment manufacturing, pharmaceutical and electronic equipment manufacturing increased by more than 5 percent. Electricity consumption in the new energy vehicle manufacturing sector increased by 71.1 percent, it said.According to Jiang, electricity consumption in the photovoltaic equipment and component manufacturing sector has increased by more than 70 percent year-on-year. Electricity consumption in the areas of medical equipment manufacturing, aviation and aerospace has also achieved double-digit growth. Electricity consumption in power charging and battery-swapping service sector has continued to grow rapidly in recent years with the growth rate in 2022 at 38.1 percent. 編輯：王?
