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Letters | To ease Hong Kong’s doctor shortage, expand licensing exam quota
- Because the Medical Council cancelled licensing exams last year for doctors trained overseas, there is a backlog of candidates
- The council should increase the number of candidates allowed to take the exam in each sitting
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I am a fully qualified doctor from Australia trying to return to Hong Kong to help ease the shortage of doctors, only to find that I have not got a seat for the licensing exam.
The licensing exam is the only way to obtain a full registration as a doctor in Hong Kong. It consists of three parts – professional knowledge, medical English, and a clinical exam. You are required to pass the first two parts before applying for the clinical exam.
The licensing exam is usually held twice a year. However, both licensing exams scheduled for 2020 were cancelled. The first clinical exam of the year will be held later this month.
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I had passed the written papers earlier this year but was not given a chance to sit the coming clinical exam because there is a quota for the number of candidates. There is a limit of 72 candidates for each sitting.
Owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, travelling to Hong Kong to sit the exam is no longer as easy as just flying in, taking the exam and flying out. With all the travel restrictions and quarantine requirements in place, it would entail a ridiculous five-week quarantine in my case – three weeks in Hong Kong and two weeks in Sydney.
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This would have made it impossible for me to keep my job in Australia, so I made the decision to uproot my life in Sydney to move back home. Now I am basically stranded in Hong Kong with a temporary job while living here until the next exam.
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