Outpatients usually receive patients with mild symptoms, and after a set of diagnostic methods and auxiliary examinations by outpatient doctors, they get a preliminary diagnosis. Outpatients can be treated symptomatically. If the outpatient doctor has doubts about the patient's condition or is diagnosed as serious and urgent, he will be admitted to the inpatient ward for further examination or surgery or related treatment in the hospital.
Cihai explained that outpatient service is a way for medical prevention institutions to prevent and treat diseases for people who don't need or are not hospitalized. Including the diagnosis and treatment of patients (hospitalization if necessary), health examination and vaccination, prenatal examination of pregnant women, follow-up of discharged patients, etc. Outpatients specially set up for certain diseases are called "specialist clinics", such as cardiology and orthopedics.