HEALTH
International Action
Hong Kong continued to give active support to international action against drug abuse, drug trafficking and money laundering. Close links were maintained with the United Nations, the World Health Organisation, inter-governmental agencies such as the Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering and the Asia/Pacific Group on Money Laundering, Interpol and the World Customs Organisation, as well as with individual governments. Joint operations resulted in significant seizures and confiscation of drug-related proceeds locally and overseas.
Hong Kong continued to support international co-operation in the provision of training for anti-drugs personnel. During the year, anti-drugs personnel from different countries and international bodies came to Hong Kong on study visits and training courses. The HKSAR also took part in 14 international meetings and seminars concerned with anti-drugs policies, law enforcement, treatment and rehabilitation, and preventive education.
The Beat Drugs Fund
With a capital sum of $350 million as seed money, the Beat Drugs Fund continued to finance and promote worthwhile anti-drugs activities which could help reduce the problem of drug abuse, particularly among the young, and to support community- wide efforts and programmes in the campaign against drug abuse. During the year, $18.10 million was allocated to 45 successful applications, including $7.45 million on treatment and rehabilitation projects and $10.65 million on preventive education and publicity programmes. A review of the Beat Drugs Fund was conducted with a view to encouraging more innovative applications from different fields. Invitations for the fourth tranche of applications to the fund started in November.
Auxiliary Medical Service
The Auxiliary Medical Service (AMS) is a government-financed volunteer organisation with an establishment of 5 258 volunteer members supported by a complement of 101 civil servants. Its main role is to augment regular medical, health and ambulance services during natural disasters and emergencies, and to supplement regular medical services in non-emergency situations.
The AMS equips its operational staff and volunteer members through training on such matters as disaster management, paramedic, casualty evacuation, life saving, and home nursing. To enhance operational efficiency, senior AMS staff and members also attend local and overseas disaster management/medicine courses or conferences. In 1998 two officers received paramedic training in Canada and another officer attended a disaster management course in Thailand. In order to improve the quality of emergency care at disaster scenes, in 1998 the AMS extended its paramedic training programme to cover defibrillation and intravenous injection for all of its 3 000 front-line operational members.
The service offers first aid and paramedic training to public officers, mainly from the disciplined services which may be required to provide first aid treatment to the public. In addition, it designs training modules to suit the operational needs of individual government departments. First aid training is also offered to special target groups such as school teachers. An upsurge in the demand for basic first aid training in both the public and private sectors followed the commencement of the
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