June 21-22, 2020, the AstraZeneca China Ecosystem Conference 2020 and the Third Commercial Innovation Partner Conference were held in Wuxi.Centered on the theme "Boundless Collaboration," the conference brought together over 500 innovative enterprises, more than 800 leaders from government, industry, academia, research, healthcare, and investment sectors, and 50 top-tier investment institutions across multiple fields including medical devices, diagnostics, digital health, and AI through a hybrid online-offline format.
Beyond the main summit, the event featured dedicated sessions including one-on-one meetings between investment institutions and enterprises, innovation park empowerment and investment forums, a Digital Health New Ecosystem Summit, and a Mobile Screening Ecosystem Conference. Attendees explored topics such as comprehensive disease management solutions across therapeutic areas, AstraZeneca's innovation strategies, new cross-sector collaboration models, and the evolving digital healthcare ecosystem.
As China's leading one-stop chronic disease management and smart healthcare platform, Zhiyun Health was invited to participate. Founder and CEO Ming Kuang attended the conference, delivering in-depth discussions on innovation trends in the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries and the emerging digital healthcare ecosystem during both the main summit and the Digital Health New Ecosystem Summit.
1. Responsibility Without Borders: Corporate Duty During the Pandemic
During the outbreak, Zhiyun Health leveraged data and internet technology to revolutionize medical efficiency, playing a critical role at a pivotal moment. Upon learning of Huoshenshan Hospital's need for a chronic disease management system, Zhiyun Health immediately mobilized staff and resources to the frontlines in Wuhan to support pandemic response efforts.
Establishing an internal management system within a hospital is no simple task, testing an enterprise's core capabilities and strategic deployment.Within three days, Zhiyun Health completed system deployment. By leveraging big data and internet technology, it helped medical staff improve diagnosis and treatment efficiency, significantly alleviating the pressure on Huoshenshan's medical personnel and providing the hospital with authentic data and reliable medical evidence. Simultaneously, it launched free online consultations and lectures, connecting doctors and patients through its internet hospital to address the difficulties chronic disease patients faced in accessing medical care during the pandemic.
Kuang Ming stated: "Thanks to everyone's efforts, Zhiyun not only weathered the pandemic's impact but also saw our innovative chronic disease management system and convenient internet hospital services adopted by more hospitals, pharmacies, doctors, and patients. I believe that striving to shoulder greater social responsibility embodies the tenacious resilience of business operators and commercial service providers. It is also the hope that will ultimately enable China's economy to overcome challenges and turn crisis into opportunity."
2. Digital Innovation: The New Normal in Healthcare Post-Pandemic
While the COVID-19 pandemic inflicted immense societal disruption, it also subtly reshaped people's lifestyles.From late January to February, Zhiyun Health saw a dramatic surge in online consultations—nearly 15 times the volume from the same period last year. Even as the pandemic gradually eased, Zhiyun Health's order volume did not experience a significant decline but only a slight adjustment. This demonstrates that people have begun to embrace online medical diagnosis and disease management. Chronic disease management systems and boundary-based internet hospitals will gain broader acceptance in the future.
Beyond offering convenience to the public, online healthcare effectively supplements offline medical services, contributing to savings in national healthcare expenditures while also facilitating regulatory oversight and management.
Kuang Ming noted that the information revolution has yet to deeply penetrate the healthcare sector, where digital medical technology remains relatively underdeveloped—presenting significant opportunities for corporate innovation. Simultaneously, big data will substantially accelerate drug R&D processes and improve data processing and sharing methods. Ultimately, technological reform also drives ideological transformation, extending beyond patients to encompass regulators and healthcare practitioners alike. The principles of openness and sharing will increasingly take root in society.
3.Digital Health: Empowering the Future Healthcare Ecosystem
At the Digital Health New Ecosystem Summit, Kuang Ming acknowledged that the chronic disease sector is vast yet highly challenging, particularly due to the human factors involved in chronic disease management. However, he emphasized that without viable solutions for chronic diseases, any attempt to address healthcare issues would be futile. Chronic disease management thus holds greater potential for impact and social value—a key reason Zhiyun Health has chosen to focus on this domain.
Currently, Zhiyun Health's core mission is "paving the way"—building digital healthcare infrastructure. By adopting a middle-platform approach to data collection, the company integrates vast amounts of data from both within and outside hospitals to establish a chronic disease big data center. This leverages technology and information systems to enhance the overall efficiency of the healthcare system, extending patient services across hospitals, pharmacies, online platforms, and other scenarios.
Kuang Ming also noted that regulatory standards in China's digital sector require strengthening. To address this, Zhiyun Health is collaborating with China Electronics Data Service Co., Ltd. to co-build a national big data center. This initiative aims to standardize data usage, ensure compliance and flexibility in data application, and ultimately improve the entire digital healthcare ecosystem.
Data has emerged as a new factor of production, and it will form one of the core foundations of future healthcare. Kuang Ming stated: "Zhiyun Health holds a vast chronic disease database and maintains a constant sense of reverence, respecting patient privacy. We will continue to dedicate ourselves to innovation in internet healthcare, further refining services like online physical examinations, in-depth consultations, and contactless delivery to support the new healthcare ecosystem."