I observed this practice first-hand in Shenzhen when I was treated for sports-related back pain. The physician I encountered had acupuncture needles and the glass suction cups on my back in no time, and after an hour's worth of treatment charged me 50 yuan. A deceptively low fee, I discovered, as the back patches he prescribed me cost almost ten times that amount.

Even worse cases are commonplace. A Chinese friend of mine broke her ankle in Beijing last year, and following treatment at her university hospital was subsequently prescribed extortionately expensive medicine. To add insult to injury, she subsequently discovered later the drug prescribed was not even related to her condition.

3. Distrust of general practitioners

With people questioning the experience and competence of general practitioners in China, minor illnesses will continue to bring patients directly to hospitals. This leads to the unsustainable situation in which doctors find themselves in – seeing patients in a factory-like atmosphere, often fitting 40 patients into an average morning, with insufficient time allowed for proper diagnosis.

Even if they have access to care, patients expect to wait for extended periods of time before receiving an appointment to subsequently receive a surface diagnosis that might not fit their specific needs, before finally being extorted with costly prescriptions on the way out.

Reforms instituted in 2005, which pledged over 20 billion yuan to renovate clinics and hospitals in rural areas, has aimed to counterbalance inequalities in the health care system. Even with these measures, China bears the additional pressure of having the largest population in the world and a rapidly widening per capita income gap.

While restructuring facilities in rural areas is a step in the right direction, China's health care situation calls for larger, systemic changes which include both public and private investment. We need to modify the prescription-based incentive system, offer greater flexibility for the country's increasingly mobile population, and restore a sense of trust in the profession we entrust our lives to.

The author is a French-American, currently living and working in Beijing.

Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors, not necessarily those of China.org.cn