Letters | Leave cure for Hong Kong doctor shortage to the experts on Medical Council
- Many people, lawmakers among them, disagree with the council’s stance on overseas-trained doctors, but it is vital to uphold professional autonomy
Regardless of whether the proposed law amendment contravenes the Basic Law, it is vital to uphold professional autonomy. Even if the proposal is rooted in the public interest, we should leave it to the Medical Council, which is mainly composed of medical practitioners, to make the life-and-death decision. Of course the internship requirements, such as its length and the clinical tasks overseas doctors are asked to perform, should be reviewed – but we may risk a compromise on standards if adjustments are made by acting upon amateurish advice.
It would also be too much to ask that the internship requirement be waived or overseas doctors be exempted from the licensing exam. Unlike some overseas qualifications which can be accredited by the Hong Kong Council for Accreditation of Academic and Vocational Qualifications, the medical qualification should undergo further benchmarking to ensure that overseas-trained doctors have enough familiarity with the local system and their skills are on a par with the local standard.
Rather, the answer lies in the use of 21st-century technology and innovations such as big data, robotics and artificial intelligence, to ease doctors’ workload. The authorities could also consider adopting a model where qualified nurses work in tandem with artificial-intelligence-assisted health care technicians to replace some, but not all, doctors’ jobs. This would effectively alleviate the manpower problem and make public health services more efficient.
John Ng, Lai Chi Kok