Policy Address

Healthcare Reform

Healthcare Manpower Planning and Professional Development

235.         To maintain quality healthcare services and to ensure the sustainable development of the services, the Government will soon complete the strategic review of healthcare manpower planning and professional development and implement the recommendations in phases.  This will serve to meet the future demand and keep the regulatory regimes for healthcare professions in pace with the times. 

236.         Based on the preliminary results of the strategic review, the Government will increase the number of publicly-funded degree places in medicine, dentistry and other healthcare disciplines by 50, 20 and 68 respectively in the 2016/17 to 2018/19 triennium.  It will gradually implement other regulatory proposals including launching a voluntary accredited registers scheme for supplementary healthcare professions. 

237.         The Government plans to introduce a bill to this Council in the first quarter of this year for amending the Medical Registration Ordinance, which will cover, among other things, the proposal made by a Legislative Council Member to increase by four the number of lay members appointed to the Medical Council of Hong Kong (MCHK).  The proposed increase aims at improving the MCHK’s mechanism for complaint investigation and disciplinary inquiry.  Moreover, the Government will review the organisation structure of the MCHK in detail to ensure that there is sufficient professional representation and public engagement, and to enhance its administrative flexibility in admitting non-locally trained professionals to meet local demand. 

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