Doctors urge second vote on easing restrictions for foreign-trained medics in Hong Kong
- The Medical Council ballot on Wednesday failed to pass any of four proposals aimed at fully exempting relevant overseas-trained specialists from internships
- Doctors rejected chairman Professor Joseph Lau’s claim that some council members had voted differently to what they had earlier stated
Doctors have called for the medical watchdog to vote again on proposals to attract more overseas medics to Hong Kong, blaming the flawed election method for the failure to agree on the best option.
They have also denied politics was to blame for the Medical Council’s inability to pass any of the four proposals, which aimed to fully exempt internship requirements for overseas-trained specialists who have passed the city’s licensing exam.
Overseas-trained specialists can currently apply for exemptions from part of the 12-month internship after passing the licensing exam. The new proposals aimed to further relax the requirements, to relieve the overburdened public health care system, which is about 300 doctors short at any given time.
Dr David Lam Tzit-yuen, a member of the council and vice-president of the Medical Association, hoped the council might find a way to revisit the issue again, without having to wait another six months to put forward the same item, as its house rules require.
Lam added that, in general, there was a consensus among the medical sector on the need to relax the internship requirements. But he said the voting method – asking council members to declare their stance on each of the four proposals – had prevented the council from coalescing behind one plan.