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reconstructive surgery or who are suffering from intercurrent disease. No new buildings were constructed during the year, but extensive repairs to several existing ones were required owing to damage caused by Typhoon "Ruby'.
159. In therapy, di-amino-diphenyl-sulphone remained the drug of initial choice, but vadrine has been used with effect in patients who have chronic reactions or who are not responding to other drugs. A combina- tion of di-amino-diphenyl-sulphone or of intra-muscular sulphetrone with thiamcarbasone has proved effective for a number of patients who show little response to a single drug.
160. The severe drought of 1963-64 caused a great reduction in the number of surgical operations undertaken. However, the summer rains of 1964 remedied the position and a wider variety of surgical procedures, particularly in the reconstructive field, is now possible. Mr. Harold RIDLEY, of St. Thomas's Hospital in London, visited the island in February, 1965, and performed ten ophthalmological operations, of which five were corneal grafts.
HONG KONG SOCIETY FOR REHABILITATION KWUN TONG
REHABILITATION CENTRE
161. This centre, accommodating eighty patients, has occupational workshops and facilities for physiotherapy and for manufacture of prostheses. It is designed to assist in the quick return to employment of those who have been injured, particularly in industrial accidents.
VI. DEVELOPMENT
FORWARD PLANNING
162. Reference has been made previously in this report to the un- paralleled hospital development of the past fifteen years. However, the population has also been increasing very rapidly and there is still con- siderable pressure on most categories of hospital beds, particularly on those for general and mental patients. The White Paper on Development of Medical Services in Hong Kong, which was tabled in Legislative Council in February 1964, outlined the medical problems of the Colony and made suggestions to remedy the most pressing deficiencies. To
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ensure as far as practicable the implementation of these recommenda. tions, the Working Party which prepared the White Paper was recon- stituted by His Excellency the Governor as the Medical Development Plan Standing Committee; with the Director of Medical and Health Services as chairman, the committee comprises two nominated members of Legislative Council and representative of the Medical and Health Department and of the General and Finance Branches of the Colonial Secretariat. The task of this committee, which met on fourteen occasions during the year, is to keep the recommendations of the White Paper under continuous administrative review and to report its conclusions on all major matters to Government through the Medical Advisory Board. The activities have fallen into five main categories, namely development of medical institutions; staffing of such institutions; improved utilization of existing medical facilities; subventions to Government-assisted institu- tions; and fees and charges. Details of these activities can be found in the Committee's annual report to the Legislative Council.
COMPLETED PROJECTS
163. The year 1964-65 saw the completion of a number of major additions to the Colony's medical and health services. Although most of these have been mentioned elsewhere in this report, it is appropriate to review them once more in this chapter.
164. Complementary to the Government's Queen Elizabeth Hospital, which attained full function during the year, there were notable achieve- ments in hospital development by both Govemment-assisted and private agencies. The Caritas Medical Centre was opened in December, 1964, and the completion of the final stage in the re-development of the Kwong Wah Hospital was celebrated in March. 1965. Other completed projects, which have not requested Government assistance, were the Baptist Hospital and the Evangelical Medical Centre, both in Kowloon. and the Seventh Day Adventists Hospital in Tsuen Wan,
165. The interest of the Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club in medical and health matters was well demonstrated during the year by the opening of the Jockey Club Health Centre at Kwun Tong, the Jockey Club Institute of Radiology at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital and the Jockey Club Polyclinic, Shau Kei Wan. A standard rural clinic, donated by the Government of the United States of America, was opened at Sha Tin in February, 1965, and a maternal and child health centre adjacent to the Li Kee Memorial Dispensary was opened in May, 1964.
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