Inpatients write and draw to express their New Year's wishes. Every morning, it is the peak period of human flow in the Chengxiang Health Center of Anxi County, Fujian Province. The children's health department on the second floor of the main building in the hospital is filled with the sounds of children and footsteps. Every few minutes, parents bring their children to the clinic of physician Lin Yanqi. Lin Yanqi asked a 3-year-old boy what his name was and asked him to imitate himself by drawing a circle on paper, and then learn "how a little rabbit jumps". When the boy was jumping around with a "V" gesture, Lin Yanqi asked the parents if the child could communicate normally with the children. After receiving a positive response, Lin Yanqi said, "Okay! No problem." Next was an 11 month old baby, and Lin Yanqi used a bell shaker to shake and observe her ear while asking her parents for detailed information about the baby. Lin Yanqi told reporters that what she just did was the initial screening of autism that all children aged 0-6 must complete, led by the Third Hospital of Anxi County (hereinafter referred to as "Anxi Third Hospital"). The initial screening was conducted on children at 3, 6, 8, 12, 18, 24, 30, and 36 months of age, as well as at 4, 5, and 6 years of age. This is one of the key tasks of the Anxi County Spiritual Specialist Alliance. The Chengxiang Health Center, Chengguan Community Health Service Center, Chengxi Community Health Service Center, and Shennei Health Center in Anxi County can all conduct initial screening for autism in eligible children within the county's jurisdiction. If the initial screening is abnormal, it is necessary to go to Anxi Third Hospital or Anxi County Maternal and Child Health Hospital for re screening. If the re screening still does not rule out abnormalities, formal diagnosis and intervention rehabilitation should be carried out as soon as possible. On the afternoon of January 20th, the reporter followed Su Yuhua, the director of the Rehabilitation Department of the Child Mental Health Department at Anxi Third Hospital, who is responsible for the diagnosis and intervention of autism in children, into the rehabilitation department. The cultural column on the wall is decorated with handmade clippings of "Joyful Welcoming the New Year", and parents are watching from the door. If the words "Cognitive Function Room" and "Sensory Integration Training Room" are not written on the door, it looks like a regular kindergarten classroom. In fact, on both sides of the corridor are corrective treatment rooms for children under 8 and a half years old with autism and various developmental delays, and parents are waiting for their children to finish their corrective courses. Bai Ming (pseudonym)'s 7-year-old daughter has been diagnosed with autism. After staying at a private institution with unknown teaching staff and unable to follow the reimbursement process of the Disabled Persons' Federation for a year and a half, the effect was not good, "Bai Ming said. After reimbursement by medical insurance and subsidies from the Disabled Persons' Federation, the annual self funded expenses of a family with a sick child are generally between 8000-10000 yuan. If the child is diagnosed with first or second degree mental disability, there is additional medical assistance to subsidize 70% of the self paid portion of special outpatient and hospitalization expenses after medical insurance reimbursement, with a maximum of 60000 yuan per person per year. This medical assistance and medical insurance reimbursement are settled in a "one-stop" manner. Our child was almost 3 years old when he first came to Anxi Third Hospital, and his mother couldn't even call him. Now we can communicate easily A parent of a sick child said. Her 6-year-old daughter has also been diagnosed with autism. Her family lives in Hutou Town and works in a factory there. She takes the morning bus for about an hour every Monday to Friday to bring her child over, picks them up after class, and then goes to work the night shift. Many parents treat their children as speaking late and believe in a folk saying - 'a nobleman speaks late', believing that their children speak late and are smarter and more talented, while ignoring the problems in their children's language development, resulting in missing the best time for treatment and intervention Su Yuhua said. The early "Five Nos" of children with autism include not speaking, not responding, not pointing, not looking, and inappropriate behavior, such as delayed language, turning a deaf ear to calls, ignoring people, and inappropriate use of objects. Many children miss the best time for early intervention, making later correction and life more difficult. Su Yuhua said that among the hospitalized patients now, some may have had early autism combined with later mental disorders. Some children who are judged as abnormal in the initial screening may have objections from their parents regarding the results. Lin Yanqi displayed the registration forms of the initial screening abnormal list of Chengxiang Health Center in 2023 and 2024. In the "reasons for not re screening" section, the words "parents stated that they were normal and refused to re screen", "phone refused", and "do not recognize the screening results" can be seen in many places. If there are really no problems, that's a good thing, but I'm afraid there may be overlooked signs of autism, "said Lin Yanqi. Eliminating the sense of shame and illness is a daunting task. Anxi is a large county with a population of one million, located in southern Fujian and a mountainous area. People here, especially the elderly, still have certain biases and misunderstandings towards mental illnesses. Apart from autism, this is also true for most other mental illnesses and disorders. Some people want to eliminate mental illness by doing 'rituals', "said Yu Qinqi, the director of Anxi Third Hospital." A more common situation is that when it comes to Anxi Third Hospital, many people's first reaction is that it is a mental hospital and they are ashamed to mention it. "In October 2019, led by Anxi Third Hospital, four county-level hospitals, 25 township health centers (community health service centers), and two private hospitals in the county jointly established the Anxi County Psychiatric Specialist Alliance to carry out various work. The initial screening of autistic children began at this time. In 2024, the initial screening rate of eligible children in Anxi County will reach 99.03%. Among them, there were 1004 individuals with initial screening abnormalities, with an initial screening abnormality rate of 1.79%; 696 people were re screened, and 536 people showed abnormal results; Diagnosed 381 people. In addition to autism, the Anxi County Psychiatric Alliance also organizes member units to carry out screening for maternal depression and promote mental health among children and adolescents. For patients with severe mental disorders, considering that some patients and their families are unwilling to seek medical treatment at specialized psychiatric hospitals or live in remote towns with inconvenient transportation, Anxi Third Hospital has cooperated with multiple hospitals in the county to jointly establish a mental health clinic, sending psychiatrists and psychotherapists to various units for consultation and visiting households in villages for diagnosis. When encountering patients who have no children, spouses, or parents and find it difficult to take care of themselves, medical staff will contact the village committee and police station to apply for disability certificates for them in order to obtain medical subsidies. In severe cases, they will be sent to hospital for treatment. Xiao Jianshu, the head of the Medical Department at Anxi Third Hospital, introduced that since April last year, the hospital has been cooperating with the County Disabled Persons' Federation to promote the 'only one trip' service for processing disability certificates, which can also be mailed to homes for free. In December 2019, Anxi Third Hospital passed the evaluation of the Municipal Health Commission and was recognized as the first county-level secondary psychiatric hospital in the province; At the same time, Anxi Third Hospital is also the earliest psychiatric hospital in Quanzhou to carry out autism intervention and treatment; If hospitals in Quanzhou and Xiamen treat autistic children in Anxi, they will also recommend parents to seek treatment nearby in Anxi. Minnan people attach great importance to the reunion during the Chinese New Year. When interviewed by reporters, it was already approaching the Spring Festival, and most hospitalized patients with mild or controllable mental illnesses and disorders were taken home. Chen Xiaoli (pseudonym), who was hospitalized due to a manic episode last year, has been discharged from the hospital and returned home. On January 21st, when the medical staff in the hospital came to visit her home with food and oil gifts, she had just finished her work that day. Psychiatrist Weng Quemei reminded her to take medication on time, maintain emotional and sleep stability, and have regular outpatient visits. Some patients who cannot be discharged from the hospital may have the idea of going home when they are conscious. Medical staff distribute them Chinese New Year snacks and candies, chat and encourage them. The doctors showed the reporters rabbits, paper cranes, pagodas made of paper folded by hospitalized patients, as well as their written words and paintings. Many origami cards have their wishes written on them: "New Year, new atmosphere" and "Early discharge from the hospital". (New Society)