Policy Address

Mental Health

227.         In accordance with the preliminary recommendations of the Review Committee on Mental Health, the HA will continue to allocate additional resources to provide new generation psychiatric drugs and strengthen manpower for enhancing psychiatric in-patient and out-patient services.  In addition, the HA and Social Welfare Department will launch a two-year pilot scheme to provide services for elderly persons with mild or mild to moderate dementia through medical-social collaboration at District Elderly Community Centres.  The scheme aims to reduce the waiting time for HA assessment and specialist services, and enhance community care services for dementia patients. 

Implementing the Recommendations of the Review of the Hospital Authority

228.         The Steering Committee on Review of Hospital Authority put forward 10 major recommendations in its report published in mid-2015.  With the introduction of measures such as refining the delineation of cluster boundary and resource allocation model, the waiting time of patients will be shortened and the HA will be better prepared for challenges such as an ageing population and increased prevalence of chronic diseases.  The Government has earmarked an additional one-off provision of over $1.1 billion for  three years starting from this year to facilitate implementation of the recommendations.

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