Administrative officials regularly visit rural areas in Zhongshan county in Hezhou, South China's Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, to help those with reduced mobility access to administrative services, including filling in applications and medical forms.

"I have difficulty walking as a result of a stroke," said Qin Ruiwen, a poor villager.

"I appreciate that local officials visit us to help us register for our medical cards, which we need in order to see a doctor."

Qin is one of the beneficiaries of Zhongshan county's channeling both materials and human resources to serve patients with chronic disease down to the community level.

The move is part of the county's efforts to improve medical insurance coverage and the health of residents in rural areas, local officials said.

It has also helped lay a solid foundation for poverty alleviation, local officials said.

Zhongshan county has mobilized its public medical resources, including three hospitals and 12 health centers, to establish a medical system that contributes to equitable access to basic public medical services.

Patients can see a doctor at a designated hospital in the county and they can pay after the diagnosis, according to local officials.

To help patients in rural areas shorten the period of applying for reimbursement for medical expenses, the county has cooperated with Nanxishan Hospital of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in Guilin to establish a collaborative medical system.

This system has allowed patients to be reimbursed before they have to pay medical fees under the government's fund support since July, local officials said.

In addition, Zhongshan county has built 94 medical service teams and has assigned at least one doctor to each clinic in all of its villages, so that all the impoverished population can be included in the basic medical insurance program.