3
Local community leaders and District Board or Urban/Regional Council members could be involved in the management of such institutions. This would improve further the relationship with the public and genuinely provide "hospitals without walls".
On the issue of clincis, the specialty clinics which are outpatient departments of various hospitals should continue to be so attached. General outpatient clinics, however, can be run by the College of General Practitioners on a rental basis or at an agreed fee. The College could be delegated with the duty of providing information required for epidemiological and public health sampling purposes or Government could retain some of the strategically placed clinics for those functions.
In suggesting the above changes I may be blamed for stripping the Director of Medical and Health Services and his department of their essential duties. Quite the contrary, by relieving the department of direct primary (outpatient) and secondary (hospital) medical care, greater emphasis and effort can be spent than as at present on public and environmental health, policy and planning, subventing and monitoring the medical service as a whole. This system is not new, it has by and large been the basis for other services such as education
and social welfare in Hong Kong. Nor are we alone, privatization of the medical service has been advocated by the Prime Minister of Malaysia two years ago. Even in China, the Ministry of Health is contemplating private practice for
medical doctors.
I am sure there would be lots of difficulties in the implementation of this new concept but a successful example could be drawn from the privatization of the KCR. If the principle can be accepted we can work in steps gradually towards the goal. Perhaps we could make a start with the new
Tuen Mun or Shaukiwan Hospitals.
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.