ENG-2000 — Page 224

HEALTH

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areas and outlying islands. The department also operates 21 methadone clinics, 19 tuberculosis and chest clinics, 10 social hygiene clinics, five dermatology clinics, four clinical genetic clinics, six child assessment centres and other clinic services. About 14 million visits to clinics were recorded in 2000.

Apart from public service, members of the community may seek medical treatment from the private sector, which includes medical practitioners working in private practices, housing estate clinics and 190 clinics registered under the Medical Clinics Ordinance.

Dental Services

The department's Dental Service aims at promoting oral health in the community through promotive and preventive oral health services.

Oral health education and promotion activities are organised throughout the year to increase the general level of oral health awareness of the community. These activities include outreaching programmes delivered through an Oral Health Education Bus and target-specific programmes delivered through maternal and child health centres, kindergartens and pre-school centres to more than 190 000 pre- schoolers every year.

Preventive services are delivered through the School Dental Care Service which provides annual dental examination and basic dental care to about 434 460 children annually. A 24-hour interactive voice response system (hotline number 2713 7028) is available to provide voice and fax information about the School Dental Care Service and oral health. The domestic water supply is fluoridated to reduce dental decay.

Specialist oral health services are provided to hospital patients and those with special oral health needs. An emergency dental service is provided to the general public at 11 designated dental clinics.

Health Care for the Elderly

The provision of medical services for elderly patients is a priority area. Geriatric services are provided in all acute hospitals and in rehabilitation programmes in extended care hospitals. Ten community geriatric assessment teams and nine psychogeriatric teams provide outreach specialist support to elderly persons living in subvented and private residential care homes as well as to their carers. Public hospitals also provide 527 geriatric day places for elderly patients.

The Department of Health provides Elderly Health Services through 18 elderly health centres and 18 visiting health teams to enhance primary health care for the elderly, improve their self-care ability, encourage healthy living and strengthen family support so as to minimise illness and disability. Elderly health centres provide integrated health service including health assessment, physical check up, counselling, curative treatment, and health education to people aged 65 and above. Visiting health teams reach into the community and residential care settings to conduct health education for the elderly and to provide training to carers to enhance their health knowledge and skills in caring for the elderly.

Services for the Mentally Ill and Mentally Handicapped

At the end of 2000, psychiatric hospitals provided 3 775 beds while public psychiatric units of general hospitals provided 1 649 beds. The number of psychiatric day