"Patients no longer need to ask for an entire day off and then have to queue for one or two hours to see a specialist," said Xie Hua, director of the Health Bureau's information center. "The process can be significantly shortened if an appointment is made through the Website or hot line."

The service, he added, should be particularly helpful for people with busy schedules or who are from neighboring provinces.

Participating in the program are city-level Renji, Shanghai Chest, Shanghai Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai Lung Disease, Shanghai Western and Traditional Chinese Medicine hospitals as well as the outpatient department of Shanghai Traditional Chinese Medicine Research Institute.

The district hospitals are Shanghai East and Shanghai Jing'an District Central hospitals.

City-level hospitals are ranked at the top in the city's three-tier medical facility classification system. District-level hospitals comprise the middle tier.

Health officials said they intend to widen the service to 33 city- and district-level hospitals later this year, but they did not provide a target date.

Before scheduling an appointment, local residents should consult a medical guide available on the Website and through the hot line's voice prompts to select a specialist, officials said.

After selecting a doctor, patients register through the Website or hot line by providing his or her name, contact phone number, identity card number and requested appointment time.

If the appointment is confirmed, usually within two days, a registration number is provided.

(eastday.com January 4, 2002)