Opinion | Relaxing the rules on doctors trained overseas will ease Hong Kong’s shortages, but only in the short term

The government’s proposal to allow more foreign-trained doctors is expedient but, ultimately, Hong Kong has to train more doctors of its own and explore technology to complement the city’s health care

Reading Time:3 minutes

Medical staff outside Princess Margaret Hospital in Hong Kong on February 4, 2020. The city is struggling with a shortage of health care workers. Photo: AFP

Published: 6:45am, 10 Feb 2021Updated: 8:36am, 10 Feb 2021

Hong Kong’s lack of doctors is once again at the forefront of public debate. After a private member’s bill to relax the rules admitting foreign-trained doctors was introduced by Executive Council member and Liberal Party lawmaker Tommy Cheung Yu-yan, Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor weighed in on the issue.

At a Legislative Council question and answer session, Lam said the government would soon table a bill to amend the law to allow more foreign-trained Hongkongers to return to the city to practise.

Doctors are indeed in short supply, especially in Hong Kong’s public sector. The city has a much lower doctor-to-population ratio than other mature economies, with about 1.9 per 1,000 residents.

This is not only lower than Singapore’s ratio of 2.4, but also the lowest among the world’s mature economies. A minimum ratio of 3.4 doctors per 1,000 residents is recommended by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). In other words, we should double the number of doctors we have.

Hong Kong’s public hospitals are short of about 660 doctors but our annual number of medical graduates barely totals 500. If the exodus of public hospital doctors to the private sector witnessed in past years continues, the cumulative shortfall may result in a major crisis.

A continuing shortage of doctors – and for that matter, nurses and auxiliary health care workers – can deal a big blow to the city, with our ageing population heavily reliant on the public health care system.

Select Voice

Choose your listening speed

Get through articles 2x faster

1.25x

250 WPM

Slow

Average

Fast

00:0000:00

1.25x