The First Diabetes Digital Management Conference Kicks off! Pioneering a New Trend in the Industry

According to the latest data from the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), China has over 140 million diabetes cases, marking a 56% increase. This figure, coupled with the fact that one-third of the Chinese population is in a pre-diabetic state [1], positions China as the nation with the highest number of diabetes cases globally. Consequently, the management of diabetes has become a critical challenge for China’s healthcare system. In recent years, the advancement of information technologies such as the internet, big data, and artificial intelligence (AI) has led to a digital transformation in diabetes care and management.   Building on this context, the first Diabetes Digital Management Conference was successfully convened in Changsha, Hunan, China on June 1, 2024. The event was co-chaired by Academician Weiping Jia from the Institute for Active Health Strategy and Development at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, and Professor Lutz Heinemann, Co-founder of GM, Science & Co GmbH, Profil Institute Germany. The conference agenda was packed with cutting-edge topics in digital diabetes management, such as the latest global trends, the role of AI in diabetes care, precision management strategies, and innovative approaches to reversing the disease. It proved to be an outstanding academic event, rich in insights and knowledge sharing. Let’s take a look at the key takeaways from this remarkable gathering.   Positioned Globally, Exploring New Trends in Digital Diabetes Management   The worldwide prevalence of diabetes keeps escalating, and conventional management approaches are increasingly strained by the sheer number of patients and the demand for personalized care. The swift advancement of information technology has spurred a digital revolution in diabetes management. Professor Lutz Heinemann has taken a panoramic view of the evolution of diabetes care, from its past to its current state and future prospects. Professor Heinemann acknowledges that while traditional methods have made strides in blood glucose control and complication prevention, they still confront challenges such as the lack of real-time patient information for doctors, limited doctor-patient interaction, and the difficulty of implementing individualized treatment plans. The integration of AI, big data, and internet technologies holds the promise of overcoming these obstacles. AI can analyze vast patient datasets to offer predictive models and tailored treatment suggestions; Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM) allows for instantaneous tracking of glucose levels and agile adjustments to treatment; telemedicine and online consultations are enhancing interactions between patients and healthcare providers, leading to improved treatment outcomes. Professor Heinemann stresses that while technological advancements bring considerable benefits, the application of these technologies must prioritize data security and privacy protection, ensuring they operate within an ethical and regulatory framework. Armed with these technological tools, the future of diabetes management will be characterized by greater precision and efficiency, significantly enhancing the overall quality of life for those living with the condition.   Professor Lutz Heinemann   Professor Juliana C.N. Chan of The Department of Medicine & Therapeutics at the Chinese University of Hong Kong provided an in-depth discussion on precision management and prospects for diabetes in the Asia-Pacific region. Professor Chan highlighted that diabetes, a multifaceted metabolic disorder, arises from the intricate interplay of genetic and environmental factors. The advent of precision medicine has opened new avenues for diabetes care, enabling physicians to craft personalized treatment regimens based on individual genetic profiles, which can enhance treatment outcomes and diminish the risk of complications. Despite this progress, the majority of research to date has been centered on Western populations, failing to fully account for the higher incidence of diabetes among Asians. Advances in big data analytics and the marked improvement in the accuracy of genetic testing, coupled with the expanding Asian-specific genetic databases, are not only facilitating the discovery of diabetes-related genes unique to Asians but also shedding light on the origins of the disease—whether they are rooted in genetic mutations or immune system disorders—allowing for the development of more targeted treatment strategies. In conclusion, Professor Chan underscored that the overarching objective of research in this field is to prevent and manage diabetes effectively, reducing the likelihood of severe complications, avoidable hospitalizations, and premature mortality. The vision is to translate clinical data into technological innovations and services that can benefit a broader spectrum of patients.   Professor Juliana C.N. Chan   The evolution of technology, coupled with the growing demand for personalized healthcare and heightened awareness of health management, is driving innovation and fostering the transition towards digital diabetes management. Dr. Jiangfeng Fei, Chief Executive Officer of Sinocare Meditech Inc. based in the United States, represented the industry at the conference, sharing insights into the company’s journey in digital diabetes care. Dr. Fei elaborated on an integrated diabetes management system that includes four devices: blood glucose monitoring (BGM), Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM), Continuous Subcutaneous Insulin Infusion (CSII), and a Patient Education Platform (PEP). This holistic system, merging hardware and software, is designed for versatility, catering to diverse scenarios including in-hospital care (both inpatient and outpatient services) and post-discharge care (at-home management). It offers a comprehensive and evidence-based approach to monitoring and managing patients’ blood glucose levels, ensuring seamless and effective diabetes care across different healthcare settings.   Dr. Jiangfeng Fei     AI Empowerment: Innovating Diabetes Management   As AI technology advances by leaps and bounds, its application in diabetes monitoring technology and diagnosis and treatment development has shown great potential. AI technology can intelligently process patient data through means such as big data analysis and pattern recognition, improving the accuracy and timeliness of blood glucose monitoring. Additionally, AI can provide doctors with auxiliary diagnostic and treatment recommendations, assist in the development of personalized treatment plans, and enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of diabetes management.   Professor Jian Zhou from the Department of Endocrinology at the Shanghai Sixth People’s Hospital shared the latest advancements in AI and CGM at the conference. Professor Zhou pointed out that AI has numerous potential advantages in processing CGM data. For instance, AI can perform clustering and classification analysis on large-scale continuous blood glucose data, revealing diabetes characteristics and corresponding patterns, thus guiding personalized treatment. Additionally, AI can identify abnormal events and periodic patterns, predict future trends and drug responses, evaluate treatment effectiveness, and uncover causal relationships. It is important to emphasize that in practical applications, factors such as data quality, privacy protection, and clinical validation need to be considered to ensure the effectiveness and safety of AI technologies.   Professor Jian Zhou   With the rapid development of science and technology, diabetes digital diagnosis and treatment based on Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM) is increasingly becoming a focus of research and attention. At the conference, Professor Wei Liu from the Department of Endocrinology at Peking University People’s Hospital summarized the current status and prospects of CGM in digital diabetes diagnosis and treatment. The application of CGM technology covers multiple fields. In patients with Type 1 diabetes, CGM can provide continuous blood glucose monitoring, help adjust insulin doses, and improve blood glucose control. For patients with Type 2 diabetes, whether or not they use insulin, CGM can provide more accurate blood glucose data, guiding medication therapy, and lifestyle adjustments. In addition, CGM has also shown a wide range of application prospects in particular types of diabetes and non-diabetic populations, providing strong support for personalized treatment and health management.   Professor Wei Liu   Currently, the standard diabetes treatment relies on insulin injections, with insulin dosage adjustments primarily relying on the subjective judgments of doctors. This traditional approach struggles to dynamically meet the individualized insulin regulation of patients' needs, which is one of the pressing clinical issues that must be addressed. Professor Ying Chen from the Department of Endocrinology at Zhongshan Hospital Fudan University shared insights on AI and new strategies for insulin treatment in Type 2 diabetes populations. Professor Chen introduced the Type 2 Diabetes Insulin Decision AI Model——RL-DITR[3], which uses reinforcement learning algorithms to precisely control insulin regimens for Type 2 diabetes patients, potentially reaching the level of mid-to-senior doctors. Clinically, it has been demonstrated to effectively control blood glucose levels and reduce the risk of hypoglycemia. In the future, we hope the integration of CGM and wearable device data will establish a more precise patient-centered blood glucose management system, and its application will be extended to outpatient and home care, achieving comprehensive and closed-loop intelligent management for diabetes patients.   Professor Ying Chen     The Path Forward: Focusing on Precision Diabetes Management   Data-driven hospital-wide blood glucose management is a significant innovation in modern healthcare. Through big data analytics and information technology, it can enhance patient blood glucose control, reduce complications, and optimize medical resources. However, the complex conditions of inpatients and uneven management levels are issues that urgently need to be addressed. Professor Lilin Gong from the Department of Endocrinology at the First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University shared practices of data-driven hospital-wide blood glucose management, emphasizing interdisciplinary collaboration and the integration of information technology to drive innovation and optimization in hospital blood glucose management models. The Sinocare Hospital-Wide Blood Glucose Management (Proactive Consultation) System can connect portable blood glucose meters directly to the Hospital Information System (HIS) and Laboratory Information System (LIS), transmitting data in a timely manner. This system actively assists other departments in consulting for diabetic patients, and formulating precise and personalized blood glucose plans for patients, thereby improving the hospital’s average blood glucose compliance rate, bed turnover rate, the ability to treat complex and critical cases, patient satisfaction, and the hospital’s regional influence, as well as the revenue of the endocrinology department. Additionally, it can reduce the average length of hospital stay, medical risks, and disputes.   Professor Lilin Gong   Diabetes is not a disease with a single cause but a group of highly heterogeneous clinical syndrome populations with various etiologies and pathologies, resulting from the complex interaction of genetic, environmental, and behavioral factors. Accurate etiological typing is the foundation and key to individualized precision treatment. In response to this situation, the “Chinese Expert Consensus on Diabetes Typing Diagnosis (2022)” was formulated. Professor Xia Li from the Department of Metabolic Endocrinology at the Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University provided an interpretation of the “Chinese Expert Consensus on Diabetes Typing Diagnosis (2022)” (Consensus) at this conference.   Professor Li pointed out that the consensus, combining domestic and international evidence and the trends in modern medical development, proposes new recommendations for diabetes typing based on etiology and precision medicine. It suggests canceling the category of “special types of diabetes” and independently categorizing “monogenic diabetes” and “secondary diabetes.” It also introduces the new concept of “untyped diabetes,” which requires tracking and observing patients, continuously attempting new typing methods until a precise diagnosis is achieved. Additionally, the consensus proposes an operational standardization process for diabetes typing diagnosis, which involves collecting medical history, physical examination, basic testing, pancreatic β-cell function, islet autoantibodies, and genetic testing to achieve precise diagnosis of various types of diabetes. The precise etiological typing diagnosis of diabetes is a clinical need that has not yet been met. With the advancement of science and technology and the continuous improvement of clinical medical standards, the typing of diabetes is expected to surpass existing typing models, providing clinicians with more refined typing strategies and more convenient typing diagnostic tools.   Professor Xia Li     Diabetes Reverse, Management is the Key   Currently, the medical community both domestically and internationally has reached a consensus that Type 2 diabetes is “preventable, controllable, and reversible.” Reversing diabetes at an early stage can significantly reduce the exposure time to high blood glucose levels, thereby decreasing the risk of developing complications related to diabetes. Against this backdrop, Director Liao Yu from the Sinocare Diabetes Reversal Center highlighted the introduction of the first specialized diabetes reversal outpatient clinic in Hunan Province——the Sinocare Diabetes Reversal Center——at this conference.   Professor Yu Liao   The Sinocare Diabetes Reversal Center is based on the MIT intensive intervention approach——multidisciplinary (Multi-Disciplinary Treatment), individualized (Individualize), and behavior tracking (Trace to the behavior)——to help patients reverse diabetes. The team at the Sinocare Diabetes Reversal Center, in conjunction with Sinocare’s years of accumulated diabetes big data, digital intelligent management platform, and Sinocare’s CGM products, enables patients to receive comprehensive interdisciplinary interventions centered on “repairing the islets,” minute-level blood glucose monitoring services, and full-life cycle one-to-many MDT diagnosis and treatment services. This approach, carried out safely and within a standardized framework, truly achieves effective reversal of Type 2 diabetes.Lifestyle intervention is the core method of medical reversal for diabetes. Studies have shown that lifestyle management is also the most fundamental aspect of diabetes management, with research confirming that lifestyle interventions can reduce the risk of developing diabetes by 58% [2]. Professor Xue Feng from the Cardiac Rehabilitation Center of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences Fuwai Hospital shared insights on lifestyle medicine and diabetes reversal. Professor Feng pointed out that lifestyle medicine can achieve more precise risk assessment, clearer guidance prescriptions, and more definitive outcomes. She discussed the effectiveness of interventions such as nutrition, exercise, sleep, psychology, smoking cessation and alcohol limitation, and social support in the prevention, treatment, and reversal of chronic diseases. The promotion and implementation of lifestyle medicine is of great significance for the prevention and reversal of diabetes, as it can not only significantly reduce the incidence of diabetes but also improve the quality of life for diabetes patients, thereby reducing the healthcare burden. The comprehensive intervention strategies of lifestyle medicine provide a scientific and feasible path for the comprehensive management of diabetes.   Professor Xue Feng   Reference： [1]https://diabetesatlas.org/data/en/country/42/cn.html [2]Knowler WC, Barrett-Connor E, Fowler SE, et al. Reduction in the incidence of type 2 diabetes with lifestyle intervention or metformin. N Engl J Med. 2002;346(6):393-403. [3]Wang G, Liu X, Ying Z, Yang G, Chen Z, Liu Z, Zhang M, Yan H, Lu Y, Gao Y, Xue K, Li X, Chen Y. Optimized glycemic control of type 2 diabetes with reinforcement learning: a proof-of-concept trial. Nat Med. 2023 Oct;29(10):2633-2642. doi: 10.1038/s41591-023-02552-9. Epub 2023 Sep 14.

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If your loved one has diabetes, these are 4 things you need to do!

"For diabetic patients, preventing complications is crucial for controlling the condition. Relevant studies have shown that regular monitoring of relevant indicators and efforts to control blood glucose levels can significantly reduce the risk of diabetes complications. However, many individuals with diabetes do not pay enough attention to chronic complications and only seek medical treatment when symptoms appear. By that time, the condition may already be severe, missing the optimal treatment window and increasing the difficulty of later treatments.In fact, regular check-ups for diabetic individuals can help detect abnormal indicators early, which is meaningful for delaying the onset of complications. Today, we will introduce several items and intervals that need frequent monitoring for preventing complications, hoping to be helpful to everyone.Chronic Complications Prevention Check-up Items:Fundus examination: Fundus examination is an important method to assess diseases related to the vitreous body, retina, choroid, and optic nerve. Diabetic eye complications are mainly related to the duration of the disease and blood glucose status. Common complications include retinopathy, cataracts, and retinal hemorrhage, which can lead to vision loss and even blindness. It is recommended to have this examination every 6 months.Diabetic nephropathy: Kidney disease is a very common complication in diabetes. Approximately 30-40% of type 1 diabetes patients and around 20% of type 2 diabetes patients develop diabetic nephropathy. The gold standard for early diagnosis of diabetic nephropathy is a urinary albumin excretion rate of ≥20 mcg/min or 30 mg/24 hours. It is recommended to have a urinary albumin test every 6 months.Lipid profile: Diabetes often coexists with lipid metabolism disorders. Through lipid profile testing, patients with decreased high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and increased cholesterol, triglycerides, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol can be identified. These patients should take lipid-lowering medications under the guidance of a doctor. It is recommended to have a lipid profile test every 3-6 months.Oral examination: Among oral diseases in diabetic individuals, periodontal disease is the most common, with an incidence rate of around 30%. Chronic gingivitis can lead to alveolar bone atrophy, resulting in loose teeth or tooth loss over time. Therefore, oral examination should not be neglected. It is recommended to have an oral examination every 6 to 12 months.Urinalysis: Urinalysis can provide multiple indicators such as urine glucose, ketones, protein, and white blood cells. These indicators can indirectly reflect blood glucose levels and help identify conditions such as diabetic ketoacidosis at an early stage. Additionally, it can also detect diabetic nephropathy at an earlier stage. It is recommended to have a urinalysis every 3-6 months.Peripheral vascular disease examination: High blood glucose levels can damage blood vessels throughout the body, and the lower limbs are the most commonly affected. Symptoms may include cold feet, foot pain, intermittent claudication, increased susceptibility to skin infections, non-healing ulcers, and, in severe cases, gangrene leading to amputation (toes). Hospital color Doppler ultrasound examination can help detect peripheral vascular diseases in the early stages. It is recommended for patients to have this examination every 6 to 12 months.Neuropathy examination: Diabetic neuropathy symptoms can vary widely and are not easily detected, making treatment challenging. Approximately 60-70% of individuals with diabetes will experience varying degrees of nerve damage symptoms, such as reduced sensation, numbness, tingling in the limbs, bloating, diarrhea, constipation, urinary retention, erectile dysfunction, decreased sexual function, hearing loss, swallowing difficulties, etc.The diagnosis of diabetic neuropathy is based on nerve conduction studies, including nerve conduction velocity measurement and electromyography. It is recommended to have a neuropathy examination every 6 to 12 months."

With Love and Responsibility, Stay with Thousands of Diabetes Every Day

    “Hello, Sinocare, how can I help you?” As the phone rang, a smiling young lady responded immediately with a clear and friendly voice.   The phone rings hundreds or even thousands of times every day, and it has been lasting since 2005, that is, the third year after the foundation of the company. For every answer, there is a customer service staff who listens carefully and gives explanations patiently, and the service team who provides silent support has developed from one member at the very first to 53 people.   Over the past 17 years, Sinocare customer service staff has served tens of millions of users, with a satisfaction rate of 99.3%, and won numerous honors, such as the Excellent Service Team of 2017 and the Best Service Team of 2020.The service work is not only piecemeal and cumbersome, like dealing with daily chores, but also very tense and full of pressure, just like on the battlefield. In this ordinary position, every customer service staff devotes their love and responsibility to building a heaven for users with a “sense of security”. Besides, many touching stories happened these years.   No matter how many times customers have broken our hearts, we will always treat them like our first love Yao Wei joined the customer service department in July 2013. She has taken this position for over 9 years and is still enthusiastic and energetic. There has been a famous saying in the customer service department: “No matter how many times customers have broken our hearts, we will always treat them like our first love”, which means we practice customer-oriented philosophy, and we are obliged to address everything important for customers. We will make every effort to solve problems for customers when they think they have concerns. We all have to “love” our customers and care about them as we “love” our first love, which is our attitude and mindset!   “Then, how can we manage to treat customers like our first loveno matter how many times they have broken our hearts?” Yao Wei thought it over and believed that treating customers is just like when we are chasing a girl. Let's see how she handles it. Conversation 1—Customer consulting test strips   Customer service: Hello, Sinocare, how can I help you?   Customer: Hey, Sinocare, I want to buy some test strips, could you please send me a box of them?   Customer service: OK, Sir, do you have any instruments with you? Let me help you check which blood glucose meter it is.   Customer: It is a Sinocare device.   Customer service: Sorry, Sir, Sinocare is the brand name of our company, and our company has many different models of glucometers on which test strips cannot be shared.   Customer: It is just Sinocare, why are you so difficult? (“Snap”, the customer hangs up) Although differentiated names of the brand name and the instrument are provided on the packaging of test strips, sometimes the customer is anxious and does not give enough accurate information in the conversation, which is common to see in our work. In this case, we have the responsibility to call the customer again to help him solve the problem and get the product successfully. Then we come into the next round of communication.   Conversation 2—Verifying the model of test strips   Customer service: Hello, sir, may I ask if you have the glucometer or the instruction manual by your hand? Does it say safe or safe code-free blood glucose meter or other instruments?   Customer: It says safe code-free blood glucose meter.   Customer service: OK, thank you for your cooperation. I got it. Could you please provide your specific address so that I can find the nearest pharmacy for you and give you its contact information, then you can call the pharmacy to make a purchase, is that OK for you? Customer: OK, thanks, sorry for the trouble.   For our customer service staff, we need to accept and understand customers' emotions, attentively listen to and patiently answer them; while it is a test for us to improve our capability by solving problems with wisdom and being professional and service-oriented. “We will always treat customers like our first loveno matter how many times they have broken our hearts”, it is not only a kind of mindset development but also a demonstration of our professional and excellent image as required by our great products. The number of customers has been increasing yearly, and we have also been growing. We hope to have long-term “love” and maintain a long-lasting relationship with our customers.  One can also reap achievements and surprises on ordinary posts    Huang Lan joined the user center in 2013. Looking back on the past of serving users, what she feels most is that she can have many surprising moments even in an ordinary position. Her job was to call back customers who purchased blood glucose meters to see how they used the instruments when she came to work in the customer service department on the first day.   She made the first call with worries: “Hello, this is the customer service department for the Sinocare glucose meter. I’m just calling for after-sales. May I ask if you are satisfied with the operation of the Sinocare Blood Glucose Meter you bought at the Great Forest Pharmacy?” Then a hearty and kind voice came out of the phone: “ Oh, Sinocare, the one we bought at the Great Forest Pharmacy works very well. I appreciate your call back to ask, sweet girl. Thank you so much, I really appreciate your excellent service!”   Just at that moment, all Huang Lan's worries were dispelled and she switched back into a perfect mood. It is excellent to feel recognized by customers, needed by society and thus accumulate a strong sense of value. Another example is that she once received a call from a customer in Changsha asking for guidance as he didn't know how to operate the Sinocare blood glucose meter. As the older man has poor hearing, Huang Lan tried four or five times on the phone at the highest volume before getting him to understand how to use the blood glucose meter. She was so relieved the moment when she heard his positive feedback. At the end of the call, he asked whether Sinocare was in Changsha, and he would like to invite Miss Huang to visit his family at her convenience as they live in Tianxin District, Changsha, Hunan Province. Although she declined, she felt so warm in her heart.   Huang Lan recalled that a predecessor once had asked her during an interview if she would feel like a loser when being only an ordinary employee for her whole life. “No, there is no distinction between high and low occupations. As long as it is an industry needed by this society, it is a great cause.” Huang Lan said firmly. For the customer service that Huang Lan is working for now, being able to solve all kinds of problems raised by customers and embracing surprises and a sense of accomplishment is enough to make her feel happy as always. Though it is an ordinary position in the eyes of peers, it may be a “savior” and “hope” for customers who seek help.        It is fantastic to be moved by users as we go in both directions   Xia Jing joined the customer service team in 2022. She always takes her as the one who sowed love serving users, but it is proven that the users on the other end of the phone also gave her many touches with love. There’s an elderly in his 80s. He called for the Sinocare Safe+ blood glucose meter he bought for the first time. He encountered some difficulties in operation and was not satisfied during the phone communication, and then he proposed to add a WeChat account to ask for guidance on the operation of the instrument.   When she first added the older man as a WeChat friend, she just regarded him as an ordinary user, but later found in the communication that everything was quite different from what she thought. As it is not easy for the older man to type and speak through WeChat, Xia Jing used video calls to instruct him to use the blood glucose meter. During the video conversation, she realized that the older man was learning how to operate the blood glucose meter for his wife instead of testing for himself.   The older man carefully followed her instructions step by step on the small screen. He was slow and a little “clumsy”, but always patient and gentle. He also politely explained that he was too old to move fast and asked for Xia Jing’s understanding. Xia Jing replied immediately: “It's OK, take it easy! It’s easy to operate this blood glucose meter and you will learn it soon.” Standing by his wife, the older man took the test strips from here and picked the alcohol cotton from there, then carefully disinfected her fingers. From installing the blood lancet and taking blood samples to check the test results, the old nanny just sat in the chairs, being cared for like a little princess.   Just imagine the view, it feels full of romance and love! Not to mention that Xia Jing had witnessed the whole process with her own eyes. The older man's love and care for his spouse made her truly understand the meaning of the sentence “every test is love”! Because of these loving users, she has a new understanding and impression of her occupation. A small blood glucose meter is not only a “supervisor” for diabetes to monitor their blood sugar but also a “helper” for family members to express love.   From this seemingly ordinary customer service, she understands that it is never unilaterally solving users’ problems but to win trust, respect and a sense of accomplishment in customer service, and more deeply felt the most simple love from users. Every year, the customer service department receives hundreds of letters from customers all over the country, telling their experience in using Sinocare blood glucose meters, expressing their recognition and gratitude to Sinocare and the customer service staff, and also putting forward pertinent suggestions, all of which condense the joint efforts of all Sinocare people. As one of the bridges connecting the company and users, the customer service team will continue to shoulder the heavy responsibility, move forward with love and determination, and spread the warmth.   “We have stayed side by side and moved forward among trials and hardships for 20 years. I wish the company to forge ahead with persistent efforts, being pioneering and innovative, and make more achievements!” said Zhu Jie, a senior staff who have been joined the company for 19 years and worked in the customer service department for 10 years, delivering a blessing speech on the 20th anniversary to encourage all customer service staff to make progress together and write a lifelong growth story with love!  

Love and Technology Make Health Management Warmer for Chronic Diseases.

  In July 2004, the 2-year-old Sinocare launched its first product - the SXT-1 blood glucose meter, of which Li Shaobo, Chairman, still keeps a sample in his office and he will share the story about the birth of the product and the corporate with happiness whenever a friend or business partner visits and notices it.   "I started my business twenty years ago. My friends take me as an entrepreneur, but I am the one selling blood glucose meters. Initially, I just wanted to help popularize blood glucose meters in China, making them affordable and accessible for Chinese diabetics. For now, I am so proud that Sinocare blood glucose meters are welcomed by Chinese users and have been sold to 135 countries and regions worldwide. That is, we have influenced millions of diabetics in the development of the blood glucose industry." said Li Shaobo proudly.   Not far from his office, there is a clock with Sinocare testing products as the time scale in Sinocare Wenxuan Bookstore and Sinocare Health Bookstore. On the milestoned clock, a black instrument with double test strip sockets was put at the 12-clock position, which is the first Sinocare uric acid tester EA-11, and it tells another story for its birth.   “Testing uric acid like blood glucose”   Sinocare uric acid tester was developed as Li Shaobo wished to "enable people to test uric acid just like blood glucose anytime and anywhere." A decade after his startup, Li Shaobo and his team discovered the uric acid testing demand in the Chinese market: As people became affluent, their lifestyle and dietary structure changed, and the population with high uric acid incidence got larger and larger and younger and younger. "People with high uric acid will develop into gout, which attacks people just as its name sounds like, bringing unbearable pain and ache. Some patients describe it as the pain when being bitten. Many people around me have no idea about their uric acid status until the gout attacks. For this reason, I wanted to make a product for uric acid testing at home. That is, uric acid testing can be done in daily life. People can quickly and easily test their uric acid, whether at work, studying, or even after dining out with friends, boiling hot spots and drinking beers to learn their physical condition and care more about their health and family.”   In 2011, Sinocare launched the first licensed uric acid tester EA-11, in which "11" was taken from 2011. For its release, the research and development were started in 2009. Ten years later (in 2019), Sinocare began to develop upgraded uric acid products, and UA-I was launched in August 2022.   "Given that more and more younger people become uric acid users, our newly released uric acid tester has a look with a stronger sense of technology. It is added with "non-inductive Bluetooth" for digital uric acid testing and to provide users with high uric acid health management solutions. Besides, given that about 25% of people with diabetes have high uric acid, our company wants diabetic users to prick their fingers once for blood glucose and uric acid testing. Our company keeps this one-tester-for-two-tests feature to ease people with fewer times for pricking their fingers and less pain.” Peng Xielan, Sinocare product manager, talks about uric acid testers he is in charge of with great familiarity. One tester for both blood glucose and uric acid and with data connection for uric acid health management through the Internet is the feature that Sinocare offers now and will continue to upgrade.   "No liberty is for more freedom"   When it comes to the word "management", many people are prone to resentment, but Li Shaobo takes management as an expression of love. "For example, when we drink and smoke or don't wear more clothes in cold weather, our family members are the ones who give us the most advice and reprimands, which often make us not moved but uncomfortable at first. If we are over-managed, some family conflicts may arise. Likely, everyone wants to eat and drink as they like, but this seemingly free and unfettered lifestyle poses a great challenge to their health. Therefore, we must accept some proper 'management' if we want to live healthy and happy lives.   Li Shaobo also has a lot of experience being "managed" as he has been convinced by Li Xinyi, assistant to the chairman and his daughter, to eat less to keep a low uric acid. For this, he felt cared for at the beginning but later disliked the “gabbling” out of concern after he was reminded too many times. In this regard, he made a self-reflection: "We always leave the worst temper to our most loved in life, including the worsening body, but those things that are easily overlooked are exactly the most precious existence in our life. Therefore, we need to make some proactive changes and develop the habit of self-discipline. We have to learn self-management before bringing in family members to make "management" more interesting, and then it won't be so boring as you are doing interesting things."   Seeing his father's change from resisting to accepting "management", Li Xinyi couldn't help feeling: "It is interesting to do business in the health industry, and it is also very interesting to do health management. You can help yourself, and your family keeps healthy, and I believe this is the thing that everyone cares about."   “The horrible part is knowing nothing."   Dr. Hiroshi Nakajima, former Director-General of the World Health Organization once said: "Many people do not die of diseases but ignorance. As long as preventive measures are taken, the number of deaths can be reduced by half." The importance of "early detection, intervention and treatment" is self-evident. Chronic disease management needs long-term data accumulation. With more concentrated data for accurate analysis, our company can provide more valuable medical advice and even achieve "prevention before disease onset."   For this purpose, Sinocare has also developed a unique digital intelligent management platform for chronic diseases while continuously innovating and developing intelligent testing equipment, which can provide a complete closed loop of management by "collecting data, establishing health records and making excellent monitoring - using health record data for health risk assessment - conducting targeted health guidance interventions based on the health risk assessment - dynamic follow-up and assessment and adjustment based on results therefrom”.   Besides, Sinocare has a professional diabetes-specialized Internet hospital and a team of specialist doctors in Beijing and Changsha - Sinocare Jianheng Diabetes Clinic (Beijing) and Sinocare Health Diabetes Clinic, as well as a health management team of more than 150 people. A "Five-division co-management" of chronic diseases model has been created: Specialists to make the diagnosis, treatment and manage the plan, health managers, nutritionists, exercisers and psychological counselors to help execute the plan under the guidance of doctors, e.g., to provide chronic disease health risk assessment, health education and lifestyle intervention for patients with bad behaviors and follow-up.   Talking about the original intention of developing professional diabetes management services, Li Xinyi shared a short story: one of her relatives was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes during a physical examination two years ago. He was very anxious and nervous after learning the diagnosis, but with no motivation to control his blood glucose as he has little awareness of the hazards of diabetes complications. He didn't realize the importance of blood glucose control until he discovered that someone close to him had cardiovascular and cerebrovascular complications due to long-term high blood glucose levels.   "From the very beginning, he taught himself diabetes knowledge and took blood glucose control as "eating less", which led to unstable blood glucose control and worsening conditions; later, he participated in the sugar control training camp organized by Sinocare and systematically learned the knowledge of sugar control and how to use it. Now, he is very satisfied with his blood glucose control. When dining out, he will take pictures of the food to eat being picked up with a dining plate and send them to a Sinocare health manager to ask for dietary guidance. He almost has every meal with professional guidance. It is easy to do in this way and also brings good experience." Li Xinyi was also very happy to see this relative has gradually "controlled" his blood glucose.   Li Xinyi was also very happy to see this relative has gradually "controlled" his blood glucose. From knowing nothing after being diagnosed to staying in "peaceful coexistence" with diabetes, the said patient sighed: "As a matter of fact, getting diabetes is not horrible. It just allows you to choose a healthier lifestyle." Yes, "it's not horrible to get sick, but the horrible part is knowing nothing". The key lies in early detection, early diagnosis, early intervention and early treatment, especially for the management of chronic diseases.   “Every test is about love” More and more studies have confirmed that lifestyle intervention   is one of the most effective ways to manage chronic diseases. Still, it is also a most difficult thing for people to develop and stick to a healthy lifestyle. "This is what we often say easier said than done, and it is essential to accept "being managed". "Li Shaobo stressed. Therefore, Sinocare is committed to customizing personalized solutions based on users' individual conditions for better compliance, subtly producing positive effects in life and helping users develop self-health management habits. In this way, users can keep stable metabolic indicators such as blood glucose, uric acid, blood pressure, and blood lipids for a long time, with less occurrence of complications and later and even no development of diseases.   To make more users accept "being managed", Sinocare has carried out various live streaming events regularly since 2019, e.g., the themed live streaming on "World Gout Day" on April 20 every year and benefits offering live-streaming in cooperation with Tmall Health and JD Health during the Double 11 promotion (China's biggest shopping festival). What’s more, the "Talking about Sugar by Sinocare" diabetes education platform was established to guide users to pay attention to the learning of diabetes knowledge when they are learning about multi-indicator testing products for chronic diseases.     It is worth mentioning that Sinocare holds "Closer to Users" activities every year: directors and employees at a higher level join the live streaming, and employees in different positions engage in e-commerce delivery and packaging for logistics. "These activities make our employees closer to our products and understand our terminals and user requirements, and our company improves our products and services through contact with users and their feedback. Similarly, bringing bosses and directors in the live streaming is not to highlight their position, but to accept more trust and needs with the identity and to be closer to users' hearts." Li Xinyi introduced.   Today, chronic diseases have become a major public health issue that seriously affects the health of Chinese residents and the economic and social development of the country. Therefore, it is our responsibility and mission to accelerate the "specialized, standardized, and scientific" management of chronic diseases in China and make contributions to "Healthy China 2030".Just like the slogan "Every test is about love" advocates, Sinocare wants to make products that reassure users and hopes to make the public attach more importance to their health with better awareness of preventing diseases and complications and practice early awareness and early control.   "This is the value of the existence of an enterprise. It is our mission and also every Sinocare people’s direction of work to help patients with diabetes and other chronic diseases to improve their quality of life. Sinocare hopes everyone will care about their health and love themselves, their family, and others. When you are healthy, it is the best love for your family." Li Shaobo wished.   Sinocare Diabetes Foundation once helped a person with type 1 diabetes who grew from a timid and withdrawn girl into a confident woman in a happy marriage because of love. She was diagnosed with diabetes at the age of 14 and had been worrying about being discriminated against, even more anxious and fussing over the issue after meeting the boy attractive to her. Fortunately, the boy took the initiative to confess to her when she was still building her courage, comforted and encouraged her, and often helped her with blood glucose testing and the little things for care in blood glucose control in life. As with love, she understands the meaning of "every test is about love": it’s not just the care of her spouse but also her responsibility and sense of contributing to their relationship and family.   Sinocare can't give diabetes friends tender and sweet love like their spouses. Still, our company always stays by their side, protecting their health and providing tools, knowledge, and services for scientific prevention and control of diabetes and other chronic diseases worldwide. "I hope we can enjoy a healthy and happy life with our families when we are 80 or even 100 years old!" Li Shaobo is looking forward to it.  

Bearing the Ambition of a Student, Gathering Gleams into Rays of Lights

Li Xinyi, gentle but determined, has grown with Sinocare for 20 years   In 2013, Li Xinyi drew up a blueprint in her last leadership class at the university: to make a Chinese blood glucose meter company step into the top five ranks in the world in the coming five years. To hand over this class assignment, she mentioned Sinocare Inc. (Sinocare for short), founded by her father, Li Shaobo, in 2002 and went public in 2012.   In 2016, as the assistant to the chairman, she engaged in and witnessed the merger of two U.S. companies, making Sinocare become the fifth-largest blood glucose meter company in the world. The armchair strategist in the student days has become a ranger to lead the way by shouldering responsibilities and having passion.   A seed of the dream   When Li Xinyi was young, she only knew Sinocare was her father's enterprise that involved his painstaking efforts and existed like her "brother or sister". When she was a junior school student, she always went to visit every corner of the corporate during her off-school time, being curious about everything in the laboratory and production workshops. In that small laboratory, she received her first salary in her life - 13.5 yuan for washing test tubes.   In 2009, Li Xinyi went to the United States alone to study international trade. When she returned to China during the holidays, she worked as an intern in the International Sales Department to make further "intimate contact" with the company. From a conversation with a college classmate, she began understanding her father's original intention of founding the company.   "I studied nutrition as an elective course in college. A U.S. student majoring in nursing once asked me why I chose it as it is far from international trade. I told her this was because my father is running a company committed to helping people with diabetes. To my surprise, she told me very unaffectedly that she has type 1 diabetes." Her knowledge and calm attitude towards diabetes reminded Li Xinyi of the opposite situation in China as high incidence, low awareness rate, low discovery rate, and low sugar control rate are seen among diabetics.   As a result, her father's "dream of diabetes management" gradually emerged from the pretty girl’s childhood memories, and she began to understand his father's dedication to realizing the "early prevention, early detection, and early intervention" of diabetes in China. After graduating from the university, she chose to work and study at the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF). Founded in 1970, the nonprofit organization funds researches on type 1 diabetes, provides extensive community and rights activists services to people with type 1 diabetes, and advocates for regulations that favor medical research and the discovery of new treatments and the approval of drugs.   After Sinocare entered the global leading camp of blood glucose meters, Li Xinyi "encountered" Sinocare products in Times Square, New York   "My work experience in JDRF helps me understand that the awareness of diabetes in the United States is much higher than that in China. Since the United States improved its awareness rate through popularization and education, Sinocare can help popularize blood glucose meters and improve the effectiveness of self-blood glucose management of diabetics in China by "allowing every Chinese diabetic to have a blood glucose meter." Unknowingly, the same dream was rooted in Li Xinyi's heart.   A Journey of the Brave   Having set her goals, Li Xinyi resigned from JDRF and returned to China to join Sinocare. It was in December 2014 when Sinocare moved to the new location, an independent industrial park, on Guyuan Road in Changsha High-tech Zone as it saw 2-years of steady business growth after being listed. The brand-new corporate greeted her with the first cross-border M&A negotiation. For six months, she had been in all-night meetings and maintained a state of mental tension all the time as intense negotiations went on every day. However, her wholehearted devotion did not bring the expected results, and the M&A failed. Instead of being upset, she reflected on the case: "We have learned the advantages of other companies in this process, and we also get to know it is more meaningful to give up than to persist blindly when we have to make some choices. As a blood glucose meter company rooted in China, Sinocare needs more planned and holistic growth if we want to go global.”   In 2018, Li Xinyi (the third from the left in the front row), Li Shaobo (the third from the right in the front row), and the Sinocare team went to the United States to negotiate the acquisition of Johnson & Johnson's diabetes business Later, Li Xinyi started a half-year tour of the Chinese market. From south to north, she has set foot in 23 provinces, 4 autonomous regions, and 4 municipalities. Wherever she went, she assumed the user role of communicating with local salespersons and pharmacy clerks, collecting problems and facing actual user requirements. When the trip ended, she returned to the headquarters in Changsha with more than 300 problems and summarized them into 60 for communication and resolution at the business meeting one by one.   Bearing in mind “facing up to and solving a problem whenever it occurs", Li Xinyi, who humbly believes that she is "not courageous enough", showed her great courage in taking over the marketing in 2018: "I took up this challenge without hesitation, though I was not fully prepared. Later I began to think about how to start from our long-term interests instead of being confined to the present." She had taken the pressure of poor growth on data in the short run when she made the decision not to base on data growth and led Sinocare to a user-centered development path as guided by her expectations, which fits with the enterprise mission of "providing superior products and services for patients with chronic diseases like diabetes and helping them improve their quality of life". From managing the design at the beginning to the brand and marketing later, Li Xinyi’s believes different jobs are of the same nature, although she leads a team with completely different duties: “Brand management and the design aim to establish a brand image and convey to users that Sinocare is a company committed to the health management of diabetes and other chronic diseases. Sinocare's marketing team is also positioned as a "health consultant" and "education advisor" to provide products and services for people with diabetes and other chronic diseases in an all-around way. " Being a new helm of Sinocare is undoubtedly enviable for others, but there are not always flowers and cheers along the way as people imagine. For Li Xinyi, it has more significance in overcoming all obstacles and moving forward.   Becoming the shining beam of light   " I grew up with Sinocare, and Sinocare grows with me." When Sinocare develops and grows, Li Xinyi has been sparing no effort but preoccupied with something else: hope to establish a public welfare foundation for diabetes.   Li Xinyi is a volunteer with long-time service history. As the Hunan Honghui Education Development Foundation (“Honghui Foundation”) focusing on rural education was launched in 2008, Li Shaobo, co-founder and vice chairman, presented in some charity activities, and his practice drove his family to join. Li Xinyi was deeply moved during face-to-face contact with rural children: "These children can't choose their birthplace and family, but they are not burdened by it and still strive to pursue their dreams with hope."   After studying in the United States, the "confession" of a classmate with type 1 diabetes and the work experience at JDRF reminded Li Xinyi of the rural children he had been in contact with: "Type 1 diabetes mostly occurs among teenagers, and those children cannot choose to have it or not. I hope that diabetes education will be popularized in society and people will correctly understand diabetes. Besides, they can live a happy and healthy life like those rural children who are chasing their dreams and freely talk about diabetes they have like my classmate without worrying."   In January 2019, with the mission of "helping people with diabetes live a happy and healthy life through education and innovation", Li Xinyi united Li Shaobo, Cai Xiaohua, and Sinocare had registered and established the first foundation for diabetic groups in mainland China- Sinocare Diabetes Foundation (“Sinocare Foundation”), who advocates "caring for diabetics together".   Over the past three years, Sinocare Foundation has provided psychological services, diabetes knowledge training and peer support for newly diagnosed patients with type 1 diabetes, and basic economic support for families of patients with type 1 diabetes who are in financial difficulties; It worked with many Chinese hospitals and volunteers from all over the world and hold a variety of summer camps and patient education activities; It also called on well-known news media to jointly popularize diabetes knowledge and published a comic book about type 1 diabetes "Who Took my Insulin", etc. Volunteers from Sinocare Foundation painted a picture scroll with children with type 1 diabetes   On Children's Day in 2021, Sinocare Foundation and the Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University co-produced and released the first science animation about type 1 diabetes Sweet Diary. This cartoon explains "what is type 1 diabetes?", "How to use insulin?", "how to better control blood glucose in school?" and other common questions for people with type 1 diabetes to face in life. A smart, cute and eccentric AI elf "Tang Xiaochao (Little Glueclose Superman)" was created and sprang out to give prompt help and answers whenever the type 1 diabetic protagonist encounters a problem in the cartoon.   "It is difficult for children to understand popular science content, so we just explain type 1 diabetes through simple and interesting animations, helping them understand and learn about diabetes entertainingly." Giving charity with empathy, Li Xinyi hopes she can cover everything.   Leonard Cohen wrote in "the Ode": "There are cracks in everything, and they are where the light comes in." Only with cracks can there be light entering, and only then can we look forward to the existence of light. The gleam of Sinocare Foundation is illuminating the health dreams of more children with type 1 diabetes.   "A Young person" who keeps walking   The Little Mermaid is her favorite Disney animation character. "She knows what she wants to become and what she wants to achieve in the end. She is a character with a strong sense of goals. Of course, she is also beautiful." Li Xin said with a smile.   Li Xinyi was overwhelmed as she had been shouldering the weight of the dreams of two generations early on. Whenever it occurs, she puts aside her work for the moment and stays with her beloved Disney and Lego. If what she gained from Disney is childlike innocence and happiness, then what she gained from Lego is calmness and persistence, as well as a slight sense of accomplishment in constantly completing Lego works, all of which gave her the courage to move forward and the joy of looking back at ease.   After a proper "blank" period, Li Xinyi, who returned to work, set off again with ease and energy, and she hopes that Sinocare will always maintain a "young" status: "Enterprises must have ambitions and realize their social value in addition to corporate value. Sinocare has never been a company that is content with the status quo and sticks to the established rules. Because of the thousands of employees joining and kept motivated, Sinocare has been able to maintain its vitality."   Li Xinyi, who recalled the past, was very touched at the Sinocare 20th Anniversary Ceremony In 2022, Sinocare will be 20 years old, and Li Xinyi will also "Unlocked" her new role as a mother. She named her daughter Li Nuona, who was born on Sinocare’s 20th anniversary, hoping the little girl would "maintain the enthusiasm of shouting and become the person she wanted to be" just like what she received from her parents.   The business planning blueprint of her student days has been realized ahead of schedule. Li Xinyi and the "young" Sinocare are still on the road to pursuing their dreams: "I hope that Sinocare will develop into a company that brings benefits to mankind. Just like our vision changes from "being a driver in popularizing blood glucose meter in China” at the beginning to "becoming a leading diabetes management specialist in the world” today, we hope that people with diabetes can live a happy and healthy life. I will work toward this goal together with Sinocare! "