Policy Address
Healthcare Manpower
133. The Government has been adopting a multi-pronged approach to enhance healthcare manpower, including increasing continuously the local healthcare training places offered by the University Grants Committee (UGC)-funded universities and self-financing institutions, and admitting non-locally trained healthcare professionals, with a view to supporting the development of various healthcare services.
134. The healthcare system in Hong Kong is renowned for its quality and reliability. Nevertheless, just like other advanced economies, our healthcare system is facing many challenges, including an ageing population, increasing number of diseases triggered by lifestyle and rising public expectations towards healthcare services. To cope with these challenges, sufficient healthcare manpower is a must. While the number of locally trained places for healthcare professionals will be increased, the LegCo has finished the scrutiny of the relevant amendment bill to enable qualified non-locally trained doctors to practise in Hong Kong, thereby increasing our overall manpower supply of doctors.
135. In addition, we have to strengthen the roles of other healthcare professionals in the local healthcare system, especially in the primary healthcare setting. The FHB will follow up with the statutory Boards and Councils of various healthcare professions on the recommendations in the Report of the Strategic Review on Healthcare Manpower Planning and Professional Development promulgated in 2017, including proposing legislative amendments to allow patients to have direct access to healthcare professional services (e.g. physiotherapy and occupational therapy) without a doctor’s referral so as to avoid delay in treatment. Furthermore, to ensure the professional competency of healthcare personnel, we will legislate to make continuing professional education and/or continuing professional development a mandatory requirement for supplementary medical professionals under the relevant ordinance, as well as nurses and dentists. Drawing on the experience in implementing the ongoing voluntary Accredited Registers Scheme for Healthcare Professions, the FHB will also explore the feasibility of introducing a statutory registration regime for those healthcare professionals who are currently not subject to any statutory registration requirements, such as clinical psychologists, speech therapists and dietitians, with a view to protecting public interest.
Chinese Medicine
136. Having affirmed the positioning of Chinese medicine in the development of medical services in Hong Kong, the Government has rolled out various measures, including the construction of the Chinese Medicine Hospital and the Government Chinese Medicines Testing Institute, the provision of Government-subsidised out-patient services and integrated Chinese-Western medicine in-patient services, and the establishment of the Chinese Medicine Development Fund. To promote the long-term development of the Chinese medicine sector, the Government will explore empowering Chinese medicine practitioners to prescribe diagnostic imaging (such as X-ray) and laboratory tests for their patients.
