Sharing knowledge on clinical advances at Hospital Authority Convention (with photos)
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The Hospital Authority (HA) Convention 2023 is being held in both physical and virtual formats today and tomorrow (May 16 and 17), with around 120 distinguished speakers sharing their knowledge and insights on various health topics of interest with over 6 000 healthcare and academic professionals.
The HA Convention this year is focusing on the HA's core values, namely "People-centred Care", "Professional Service", "Committed Staff" and "Teamwork". It aims to promote the sharing of knowledge and experience on clinical advances and approaches to modern healthcare service, and facilitate exploration and discussion of contemporary concepts among healthcare professionals and stakeholders.
The HA Convention 2023 was officially opened this morning by Member, Leading Party Members' Group, National Health Commission of the People's Republic of China and Secretary, Leading Party Members' Group, National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Professor Yu Yanhong; the Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Chan Kwok-ki; the Secretary for Health, Professor Lo Chung-mau; the HA Chairman, Mr Henry Fan; and the HA Chief Executive, Dr Tony Ko.
In his welcome address, Mr Fan expressed gratitude to all HA staff for their dedication to safeguarding the public healthcare system during the COVID-19 epidemic, taking care of patients tirelessly, and successfully overcoming waves of outbreaks, enabling Hong Kong to move steadily forward along the path to normalcy. He said that while the HA was dedicated to fighting the epidemic, it has also been working for a more sustainable healthcare model in Hong Kong. The HA will continue to take forward the first and second 10-year Hospital Development Plans, and modernise existing healthcare facilities to enhance physical capacity. At the same time, the HA is reorientating service models to promote ambulatory care services, and expediting the use of smart care and advanced technologies to improve clinical efficiency and patient experience.
Mr Fan said, "Healthcare is all about people, both the giver and the receiver. Building a stable and competent healthcare workforce is instrumental in achieving the vision of sustainability.
"On top of prioritising the recruitment of all suitable medical graduates from local universities, we have been reaching out for all opportunities to recruit more non-locally trained doctors through limited registration and special registration to strengthen the medical workforce. In addition, a series of Greater Bay Area (GBA) Healthcare Talents Visiting Programmes has been implemented to enhance the experience sharing and learning between the healthcare professionals of the two places," Mr Fan said.
In his speech, Dr Ko consolidated the HA's past experiences and direction of improving the sustainability of public healthcare.
"The demand for public healthcare services has been skyrocketing over the years given the growing and ageing population and rising prevalence of chronic illnesses. The escalating demand is outstripping our service supply, posing a major sustainability challenge to the HA despite our increasing efficiency and capacity," Dr Ko said.
"The HA is focusing on increasing the service supply through human capital and hospital development plans; and decreasing the service demand by moving the service models towards the more efficient 'Smart Care', to keep our patients empowered and healthy in the community and reduce their need for hospitalisation or specialised medical care."
Dr Ko also pointed out that the COVID-19 epidemic has further accelerated the application of digitalisation in healthcare, automation, artifical intelligence and robotics, and the HA will strive to shape quality healthcare through technology. "With the development of the HA's mobile app - HA Go, the 'digital front door' for HA services is gradually opened," he said.
"With further development of a 'virtual hospital' in mind, we foresee the further expansion of domains of telehealth in the HA in the long run to cover tele-consultations for accident and emergencies, outpatients, day patients and inpatients, tele-hospital visits for inpatients, etc."
Dr Ko stated that the HA has been introducing various measures to attract, develop, and retain talent, including refining employment-related policies and procedures, introducing more flexible employment options and enhancing promotion prospects and career ladders. Remuneration packages are also reviewed. The HA has also implemented the Enhanced Home Loan Interest Subsidy Scheme which provides low-interest home loan assistance to HA staff members. Since its launching in late 2022, the HA has already received over 1 100 applications.
Dr Ko emphasised that a strong and reliable workforce is always essential for quality medical care. In addition to retaining and cultivating existing personnel, it is also important to reach out to new talent from the outside.
He mentioned that during the fifth wave of COVID-19, Hong Kong healthcare professionals worked closely with the Mainland Medical Support Team. Leveraging on this successful collaboration, the HA launched the GBA Healthcare Talents Visiting Programmes for various healthcare professionals. "Ten experienced doctors from the GBA have already joined us in April and are working as part of our clinical teams. A total of 300 nurse trainees will also participate in the GBA Specialty Nursing Knowledge-exchange Programme with the first batch of 70 nurses joining us last month. Chinese medicine experts are engaged in integrated Chinese-Western medicine programme, providing clinical consultations and assisting in the training of local Chinese medicine practitioners," Dr Ko said.
In addition, the HA has been seeking new sources of manpower supply from overseas. An HA delegation participated in the recruitment events organised by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government in London in the United Kingdom last month. The event attracted over 500 medical students and practitioners to learn about the latest pathways to work in Hong Kong, along with registration and specialist training arrangements.
"A dedicated team has been formed to provide participants with necessary support, and formal interviews have already kick-started to seal the job matching. We will continue to proactively recruit non-locally trained doctors from different regions around the world," Dr Ko said.
In his concluding remarks, Dr Ko said in the face of new challenges ahead, he looks forward to the concerted efforts of HA staff and partners from various sectors to achieve the HA's mission to provide sustainable healthcare services to help people live healthier and happier lives. As the Hong Kong society gradually returns to normalcy, the HA will learn from its past experiences and cultivate a breakthrough mindset to strive for new heights in the future.
Ends/Tuesday, May 16, 2023
Issued at HKT 14:30
Issued at HKT 14:30
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