New Year Wishes
With the economic boom in Hong Kong, excitements and happiness come one after another in the last year. As we are stepping in the new year of 2008, I do wish that every one of you would be healthier, happier and wealthier than before.
For those who missed the fun, entertainment and splendid prizes of our Annual Dinner Party cum celebration of 10th Anniversary Return of Hong Kong to
Besides our usual guests of honor, we are most grateful to have representatives from the Liaison Office of the Central Peoples・s Government in HKSAR who came, for the first time, to share our joy in our Annual Dinner Party. (Please refer to Page xxx and xxx for details of the Annual Dinner Party)
Unlike the SARS period when the whole city was depressed, nowadays people are enjoying life through the success of their hard work or wisdom in investments. It becomes a norm that Hong Kong citizens hustle and bustle their way for the weekends to Macau after the opening of some glamorous casinos in this former Portuguese colony; and to Shenzhen after opening of numerous magnificent malls and restaurants all round this Special Administrative Region of Mainland
This is in great contrast to that economic climate in 1997 under Mr. Tung. There seems to be some luck with our present HKSAR Chief Executive, Mr. Tsang. Let・s wish that his luck would stay on for long.
How about our medical world in the past 10 years? What is our reward as compared to other people or Professionals in Hong Kong? What now is our degree of morale? Are we keeping in pace with those outside our Profession?
I am not certain. At least the consultation fee of most of our private colleagues is not raised for the past 10 years. At least the number of patients attending each private clinic is decreasing. And, worse still, the reimbursement from HMOs is decreasing too. (Data from HKDU last 10 years・ survey on clinic fees).
People are talking about wage increase in the coming year. The price of real estate would go up 30% next year. (According to TVB Financial News on 27th Dec 2007). The Link Management is increasing her tenants・ and car parks・ rentals. This means there will be a huge rise in the overhead of our private colleagues.
Then comes the Health Care Reform to be realized starting from this year. At a start, we have the Health Care Vouchers for the Senior citizens from Mr. Tsang that we could not or would not resist. Then we have the Tin Sui Wai North ：Money follows the patient PPI； project, supposed to be launched in the summer of this new year. Next, we have to face the real challenges of acquiring Office Automation through computerization. All and all, I must say we have to stay proactive and competitive before we can overcome such challenges ahead.
As far as the Public Private Partnership (PPP) or Public Private Interface (PPI) is concerned, we know we have to be careful. We have been negotiating such cooperation for over 10 years, even before Dr. E. K. Yeoh as Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food when we intended to launch the All Hong Kong Doctors Group during that time and together with the late Dr. Raymond Wu Wai Yung, we have asked for blessings on such an organization from the then Secretary, Mrs. Katherine Fok Lo Shiu Ching. The answer was definitely not encouraging at all.
Now we learned that doctors in Tin Shui Wai North were approached individually by the Hospital Authority for a lower consultation fee, we learned that those who are interested in the pilot project have to computerize their offices, to join the ePR to exchange health information in a two way fashion and even have to be audited for drugs stored in their offices but supplied by the Hospital Authority for the public patients. Does this look like the way of creating a huge Government HMO at the expense of poor individual private medical practitioners? For those who are concerned or interested, you are most welcome to join the discussion seminar organized by your UNION on this topic on 24th Feb 2008 in the Sunday Afternoon Symposium in the Princess Margaret Hospital where Dr. Cheung Wai Lun, Director of the Hospital Authority on Cluster Services, would be present to discuss with us and would be ready to answer queries. (Details please refer to the separate Circular No. 0881 enclosed with this Bulletin).
All the bests for the coming new year!
Dr. Yeung Chiu Fat Henry