Barefoot Doctors: Historical and Institutional Perspectives

The phrase “barefoot doctors,” as a synonym for rural grassroots health workers, vividly depicts the dual identity of this special medical team. The term “barefoot” symbolizes farmers, while the term “doctor” implies that these individuals shared the historical mission of guarding the health of farmers. This group of “both farmers and doctors” was active in fields that made outstanding historical contributions to solving urgent medical and health problems in rural China at that time. At present, China’s rural medical and health services remain in a period of transition, and establishing a rural medical security system to address the health problems of farmers will be a long-term strategic issue. In this context, studying the emergence of and changes in “barefoot doctors” undoubtedly has important practical significance and theoretical value for understanding and interpreting reform and social relationship changes in contemporary rural China.