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Health
Security Assistance Scheme exempted from paying. Other needy groups (including low-income patients, the chronically ill, and elderly patients with financial difficulties) are assisted through a medical fee waiver scheme.
Private Hospitals
Hong Kong's 11 private hospitals served 405,211 inpatients in 2012, representing 20 per cent of the total number of inpatients in the territory. Spending on private inpatient services amounted to $11.4 billion in 2010-11, accounting for 32 per cent of overall expenditure on inpatient services in the public and private sectors.
Healthcare Service Development and Infrastructure
Public Hospital Development Projects
A number of public hospital development projects are in progress to help improve healthcare services in different parts of Hong Kong. In 2013, North Lantau Hospital Phase 1 came into operation; and the remaining works of the Tseung Kwan O Hospital expansion project and the new ambulatory/rehabilitation block of Caritas Medical Centre were completed. Other ongoing projects include the redevelopment of Yan Chai Hospital, and the construction of Tin Shui Wai Hospital and Hong Kong Children's Hospital.
Public-private Partnership Projects in Healthcare Services
The government has launched a series of public-private partnership projects through the HA, including the Cataract Surgeries Programme which subsidises patients for cataract surgery performed by private ophthalmologists. By the end of 2013, 109 ophthalmologists had participated in the programme and more than 18,900 patients had enrolled, of whom over 14,600 had received cataract surgery.
Under the HA's Tin Shui Wai Primary Care Partnership Project, chronic disease patients living in Tin Shui Wai who need long-term follow-up treatment at the HA's general outpatient clinics can choose to receive subsidised treatment from private doctors. As at the end of 2013, 11 private doctors and 1,618 patients had enrolled in the programme.
The Haemodialysis Public-Private Partnership Programme provides private haemodialysis services to eligible patients with end-stage renal disease currently under the HA's care. The programme will provide 128 haemodialysis places in 2013-14.
The Pilot Project on Enhancing Radiological Investigation Services through Collaboration with the Private Sector subsidises patients from selected cancer groups for Computed Tomography and Magnetic Resonance imaging services at private healthcare service providers. By the end of 2013, five private healthcare service providers had participated in the project involving 3,450 attendances with 7,690 investigations completed.
Developing Electronic Health Record (eHR) Sharing
The government's Public-Private-Interface Electronic Patient Record Sharing Pilot Project, launched in 2006, aims to enhance continuity of care for patients by enabling participating private healthcare providers and other registered institutions to view the HA's records, subject
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