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New Student Health Service
The Department of Health announces today (Thursday) the launching of a new Student Health Service which provides a comprehensive range of promotive and preventive health services to students.
Introducing the new service at a press conference, the department's Consultant of Student Health Service, Dr Tse Lai-yin, said all primary day school students could now enrol in the service through their schools.
Dr Tse said: "The Student Health Service is an integrated service with emphasis on health promotion, disease prevention and continuity of care.
"The new service, which is free of charge, aims to promote self-reliance and self-care in the maintenance of health through adoption of healthy life-styles.
"The service will also help prevent ill health and detect diseases early through regular health screenings and physical examinations," she said.
On the scope of the service, Dr Tse said: "Each enrolled student will be given an annual appointment to attend a Student Health Service Centre for health 'programmes which include physical examination, health screening, individual counselling and health education.
"These programmes will identify health problems such as obesity, visual defect and mental stress.
"Students found to have health problems will be referred to the Special Assessment Centre or appropriate medical specialities for further assessment and follow-up," Dr Tse added.
Dr Tse explained that all primary day school students are eligible to join the service and the enrolment exercise will be carried out on an annual basis at the beginning of each school year with assistance from schools.
Letters to parents inviting primary day school students to enrol in the current school year have been sent through schools.
The new service is a centre-based programme. There are seven Student Health Service Centres and one Special Assessment Centre set up at the initial stage.