The Hospital Authority has given an assurance that a reform to cut doctors working hours will not be a 'numbers game', saying it will secure adequate resources to assure patients' safety.
Health-care workers have expressed fears that the reform to cap doctors' working hours at 65 a week by the end of 2009 could mean poorer services for patients.
An authority source said pilot programmes to be run at seven public hospitals would provide a clear picture of what additional resources and manpower would be needed.
The source said the authority would spend HK$31 million in the coming year at seven hospitals, hiring 100 more health-care workers and opening three emergency wards to reduce hospital admissions.
A steering committee on the reform recently completed its final report, which recommends extending the hours operating theatres function during the daytime, and opening more theatres, to make up for the drop in night surgery. Surgeons at public hospitals will operate on patients after 10pm only if they have life-, limb- or sight-threatening conditions.
The proposals are among 30 contained in the 115-page report, which will be submitted for approval on Thursday. They are the result of a year-long effort launched after doctors successfully sued the authority for depriving them of rest days and statutory holidays for six years.