What after elections?

Arrival of New Era

As expected, Dr. Kwok Ka Ki was elected as our new Legislative representative last month. As members of the Doctors Union, we are not only proud of having Dr. Kwok as one of our faithful members, but further still, we are proud of our members’ support in such important event as mentioned in my message in the last HKDU bulletin.

You may have noticed that we have received a written complaint from Complaints Committee, Electoral Affairs Commission and our reply to them in the September HKDU Bulletin. For your information, we have received no further communication from them. I would expect the past era of confrontation in the medical arena will quiet down, and with the appointments of new personnel to the key posts of the medical profession, the future atmosphere of the medical profession will be more friendly and there should be more collaborations not only in the field of public health but also in many areas of common concern for both public and private sectors.

Two Urgent issues

Medical Protection

Are you happy with MPS dominating the medical indemnity insurance? Are you happy with the escalating subscription of MPS year after year? Shall we have another choice in medical indemnity insurance? Your council request your help and support in the only MPP that we can secure in the market. Your council appreciated your support in voting for a better Legislative representative just recently, and your council looks for your support again in creating the third miracle – the normal delivery of our second MPP. As a matter of fact, we need one hundred more members’ support in this meaningful campaign. Even though we are now working with our Legislative Councilors, various medical organizations and the HKSAR Government on the issue of capitation on compensation for patient’s suffering, we still need to start a MPP plan in the near future to make sure that we have more choices when we succeed in legislation (it may take years to complete legislation) for compensation capitation.

CME

Not long ago, I have signed, along with our Legislative representative and other colleagues in the Medical Council on 28th August 2004 a letter to the Chairman of the Medical Council to ask for a revisit of the issue of linking CME with annual practising certificate. This issue is provoked by Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food who informed us during a dinner meeting that he was asked by certain members of the Medical Council to put this item, and this item alone out of the various Medical Council Reform issues, to the Legislative Council. Followings are salient points in the letter. For details, members may request the HKDU secretariat for a copy of the letter.

  1. We are not against Article 23 per se nor we disagree with CME. Actually we all advocate and promote CME, and we point out that the strong sentiment of the profession against linking CME to registration.  The similarity between the SAR Government pushing Article 23 and the Medical Council pushing Mandatory CME linked to registration is striking;
  2. The citizens of Hong Kong do not want a “sword” hanging over their heads, neither does the medical profession;
  3. Numerous research studies have shown, and lay members should take note, that the passive didactic large group presentations currently earning CME points lack an effect on physicians’ performance of current practice guidelines;
  4. The draconian approach of the Medical Council has damaged the trust between the Council and the Profession.  The Ontario College of Physicians and Surgeons (the counterpart of the Medical Council in Ontario Canada) said it well of revalidation, which they wanted to implement: ‘it will only succeed if physicians support and accept its framework’;
  5. So many flaws in the system that to push it through despite the strong feelings of the profession just to show superficially that the Medical Council is maintaining standards or protecting the public would only allow all hell to break loose;
  6. And a suggested alternative is the majority of doctors can be distinguished by the quotable title (CME certified) and the minority will be scrutinized by their own patients (if there is any);
  7. And we, as organizers of CME activities, are not prepared to take up more doctors without the proper resources.

At the same time, HKDU have sent another letter to the Medical Council on 26th August 2004 requesting again a Named Referendum of the Medical Profession on the captioned issue. Please refer to Page XX of this bulletin for a reprint of the letter. We have the support of sister medical organizations on our proposal. The captioned agenda item will be discussed in the Policy Meeting of the Medical Council soon. I hope I can report to you all after the meeting. In the mean time, let’s look forward towards the success of a concerted effort of our colleagues with the newly elected Medical Legislative representative on this issue.

Dr. Yeung Chiu Fat Henry