Editorial | Hong Kong’s recruitment drive for doctors just the tonic
- Hong Kong is in desperate need of more healthcare workers, so government officials are to be commended for making every effort to lure suitable, overseas-trained professionals
Finding talent has become a top priority for Hong Kong’s leaders after a record drop in the size of the workforce across many sectors including healthcare. Doctors and nurses are among the professionals who have left the city or quit amid the economic and social setbacks of the pandemic and civil unrest over the past three years. Public hospitals lost 1,247 doctors between April 2020 and the end of 2022, according to the Health Bureau. Only 15 per cent of those stopped working because of retirement.
Given the essential, life-saving role of healthcare workers, it is encouraging to see signs that authorities are addressing the shortfall earnestly. Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu vowed in his first policy address last October to explore ways to boost flagging personnel numbers. Since October 2021, the city has had a registration scheme allowing graduates from the world’s top medical schools to work in the city without having to sit licensing exams.
More recently, the Hospital Authority’s chief executive ventured overseas to recruit UK-based medical students and doctors. Tony Ko Pat-sing spoke to more than 200 students and practitioners at “Hong Kong Day” held in London on April 2. The event was hosted by the Hong Kong Medical Society of the United Kingdom, which represents students and doctors from the city who live in Britain.
Asked why the public healthcare sector has struggled with retention and recruitment, Ko admitted that private-sector business was “too good”. But he countered that Hospital Authority salaries were “more attractive” than what was on offer in the UK. He said recruits could expect “extremely satisfying” professional growth, including picking up clinical skills and specialist training.
One medical student who attended told the Post he was now seeking a position in Hong Kong, and he was aware of colleagues who secured tentative offers at the event. Authorities must, of course, balance aggressive recruitment with a focus on maintaining high standards. But given staffing shortages and overdue plans to expand primary healthcare, the recent outreach efforts deserve praise. Looking abroad as well as developing local talent may be the best medicine to ensure a robust healthcare workforce.