Chinese doctors need to focus more on clinical practice rather than writing papers, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said, calling for reform in how doctors in training are evaluated in exams.

Li made the remarks during a State Council executive meeting on Wednesday, which outlined plans to boost consumption for an economic recovery, advance medical education and build up the medical workforce.

The professional assessment of doctors in China has been too heavily skewed towards the number of papers they have published, Li said, meaning doctors spend less time on clinical practice, according to an article published by the State Council’s official WeChat account.

Li said the evaluation of trainee doctors should be more “ability oriented” and with a stronger emphasis on clinical practice, citing the importance of fieldwork.

Some mainland Chinese institutions have allegedly designated the number of papers required for doctors to pass exams or even secure job promotions, which has led to doctors submitting fake peer-reviewed journals, according to previous media reports.

More than 480 Chinese doctors and academics were punished for submitting fake research papers in a massive scandal in 2017.

Li’s comments however were not reported in the state-run Xinhua news agency on Wednesday, which only mentioned a need to plug the shortage of medical personnel and to establish clinical practice-oriented evaluation.

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