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Mary Ann Benitez

The University of Hong Kong's top surgeons earned HK$13.77 million for their department through private patient consultations in 2005-06.

Of this, 85 per cent was spent on their department's research and development, and overseas academic exchanges. The remainder went into other department expenses.

The numbers were given to the Legislative Council yesterday by the Health, Welfare and Food Bureau in 19 pages of statistics in answer to a question from medical sector legislator Kwok Ka-ki. They were provided by the surgery departments of the  faculties of medicine at the  HKU and Chinese University.

The HKU surgery department spent HK$9.6 million on academic research and HK$2.13 million on sending  professors to overseas seminars.

Dr Kwok has been critical of  private patients' fee sharing arrangements of the teaching professors' since it was revealed that  HKU had set up an internal inquiry into billing irregularities for private patient services at its faculty of medicine.

HKU announced  last month that a four-member committee of inquiry  was set up in January to investigate complaints. The Hospital Authority also is investigating bills dating back over three years.

The moves came after the announcement of the resignation of the dean of medicine, Lam Shiu-kum.

Chinese University surgeons earned HK$14.6 million in the financial year  to March  last year, but spent HK$10.9 million of that on the department of surgery. Its faculty of medicine did not provide a breakdown  for how the income was used.

HKU's obstetricians came  second in  income-generation, with HK$5.68 million  from 2,428 private consultations.  HK$4.2 million was  put back into academic research and  HK$133,330 spent on  overseas seminars.  Chinese University's second earner was its department of opthalmology and visual sciences, with income  of HK$7.35 million. The department spent HK$5.3 million.

A spokesman for the HKU faculty of medicine said any department spends money on overseas exchange 'according to academic needs'.

Dr Kwok said he was  disappointed  at the lack of transparency and accountability by both faculties.



HKU's surgeons earned HK$13.77m