More than 1,600 doctors, health care workers get 5 more years on job as Hong Kong raises retirement age from 60 to 65 amid hospital manpower crunch

Measures to encourage staff in the public health care system to stay on approved at Hospital Authority meeting

Health authorities predict a shortfall of 1,610 doctors by the end of the decade, rising to 1,949 by 2040

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Health authorities have long warned of the staffing crunch facing Hong Kong. Photo: Sam Tsang

Published: 7:24pm, 23 Sep 2021Updated: 11:27am, 24 Sep 2021

More than 1,600 retiring doctors and health care workers at Hong Kong’s public hospitals will be allowed to work for five more years until age 65, as the government is under pressure to retain local talent while opening the sector to foreign-trained medical professionals to cope with long-standing manpower shortages.

Nurses would also be provided with a better career path by adding a new associate nurse consultant position, Hospital Authority chairman Henry Fan Hung-ling said on Thursday, while announcing that measures to encourage staff in the public health care system to stay on had been approved at a general meeting.

The measures, which will incur an additional HK$5.9 billion (US$756 million) in costs in the next 10 years, would take effect immediately, the authority said. It estimated about 1,650 medical workers could be retained in the coming five years, accounting for 43 per cent of retiring staff.

Hospital chiefs say the measures will provide more manpower and lessen the burden on frontline staff. Photo: Sam Tsang

“A lot of professionals in public hospitals are baby boomers entering retirement age soon, and some are still performing well in other institutions in the private sector after retirement,” Fan said, adding senior doctors would help improve clinical services by coaching frontline colleagues.

About 1,000 doctors, 5,000 nurses and 10,000 support staff would reach retirement age in the coming 10 years, the authority said.