Staff Welfare
141. The Staff Welfare Association recorded a satisfactory year. marred only by the failure to operate successfully the canteen in the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, In addition to maintaining various welfare schemes to aid the families of members, the Association has been active in many sporting events, the highlights of which were visits to Macau by football teams of the Association and a return visit by a team from the Macau Medical Department.
UNICEF Assistance
142. The UNICEF-sponsored milk feeding programme continued throughout the year. Altogether, a total of 130,729 lbs. of milk powder was distributed to the various feeding centres of both Government and voluntary agencies throughout the Colony.
AUXILIARY MEDICAL SERVICE
143. This branch of the Essential Service Corps has a strength of over 5.000 men and women trained to augment the Colony's hospital and first-aid services during an emergency; approximately half are divided between 42 Ambulance Depot Teams spread over 25 districts throughout the Colony. Their services were in constant demand during the summer of 1964 owing to the abnormal number of typhoons affect- ing the Colony, and outstanding first aid and rescue work was performed by members of the Sha Tin team. During the cholera outbreak other members were employed on administrative duties in the Chatham Road Quarantine Centre.
144. On 17th January, 1965, a parade of nearly 2,000 uniformed men and women of the Service was inspected by the Colonial Secretary, who also presented Civil Defence Long Service Medal to 126 members.
V. GOVERNMENT-ASSISTED HOSPITALS
145. Financial assistance mainly by means of an annual subvention is given by Government to certain voluntary organizations maintaining hospitals in the Colony. Such hospitals, containing a total of 5,221 beds, are either for general patients or cater for persons suffering from certaio specific diseases or handicaps,
38
THE TUNG WAH GROUP OF HOSPITALS
146. The Tung Wah Group of Hospitals is a long-established Chinese charitable organization and is managed by a Board of Directors elected annually. During recent years a programme of modernization and expansion has been undertaken with considerable financial assistance from Government. The main item in this programme has been the re- development of the Kwong Wah Hospital in Kowloon into a modem general hospital of some 1,500 beds; this re-development was completed during the year and was opened by His Excellency the Governor on 23rd March, 1965.
147. The need for subsidiary beds for long-term patients has been appreciated by successive Boards of Directors, and the Group is current- ly undertaking two projects to provide these. One is the phased con- struction of a large infirmary at Wong Tai Sin in Kowloon, the first stage, designed to provide 210 beds and financed partly by a donation from the Australian World Refugee Year Fund and partly by the Hong Kong Government, was nearing completion at the end of the year under review. The second project, to contain 270 beds, is being built at Sandy Bay on Hong Kong Island to replace some existing but dilapidated accommodation and to provide in addition subsidiary beds for the Queen Mary Hospital.
THE ALICE HO MIU LING NETHERSOLE HOSPITAL
148. This hospital which is supported by the London Missionary Society, adopted a new constitution in July, 1964, which confirmed the basic policy of the hospital and re-defined its relationships with the community and with Church bodies. The hospital management engaged in detailed negotiations with other religious bodies, both in Hong Kong and overseas, on the proposal to establish a United Christian Hospital in Kowloon,
149. Important developments were also recorded in the hospital itself. Work commenced on extra quarters for nursing staff and plans were being prepared for a new East Wing to enlarge and modernize certain departments.
POK OT HOSPITAL
150. This charitable hospital at Yuen Long in the New Territories continued a programme of expansion. The new out-patient department, replacing an old and unsatisfactory building, was opened by the District
39
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.