TNAG-1363-FCO40-1809-Hong-Kong-Hansard-reports-and-minutes-of-the-meetings-of-the-1985 — Page 257

Question No. 6

Reply by Dr. the Hon. Rudy Khoo, J.P., Ag. Director of Medical & Health Services, to Question by the Hon. Mrs. Pauline Ng in Legislative Council on 10.7.85.

Question: Could Government inform this Council whether there are

plans to provide more evening clinics in densely populated areas?

Sir,

With the movement of population to new areas, additional day

clinics will be developed in the first instance which are sufficient

for the local need in most cases. In a number of areas, where such

clinics are observed to be over-subscribed, introduction of evening

clinic sessions will be considered subject to the availability of

finance and staff resources. They are provided with the basic objective

of relieving excessive pressure on the day clinics or as the case may

be, on the accident and emergency departments.

There are now 15 Government clinics providing 44 doctor

sessions in the evening. These are divided into -

Five clinics on Hong Kong Island with 15 sessions per evening;

Six in Kowloon Region with 19 sessions; and

Four in the New Territories with 10 sessions.

The Department has monitored the utilization pattern of

Government clinics and there are now evidence that additional evening

clinic service ought to be provided in two densely populated areas,

namely Wong Tai Sin and Shatin. Plans are in hand to introduce evening

clinic sessions in Wu York Yu Clinic in Wong Tai Sin and Lek Yuen

Health Centre in Shatin, hopefully in the last quarter of this year,

subject to availability of resources.