Medical expert hits out at foreign doctor plan

2021-03-07 HKT 09:29″ title=”The government has proposed allowing Hong Kong permanent residents working as doctors abroad to come back and practise in the SAR to alleviate the shortage of doctors in public hospitals. Image: Shutterstock”>

The government has proposed allowing Hong Kong permanent residents working as doctors abroad to come back and practise in the SAR to alleviate the shortage of doctors in public hospitals. Image: Shutterstock

A former chairman of the Health and Medical Development Advisory Committee, David Fang, says accusations that the medical council is preventing foreign doctors from practising in the SAR are unfair and groundless.

Critics have accused the Medical Council of setting a protectionist examination with a low pass rate.

But speaking on RTHK’s Letter to Hong Kong, Fang said the high standards were needed to ensure safety.

“Nowadays of course we strive for a much higher pass rate, but with medical graduates from many different countries, that may be difficult to achieve,” Fang said.

“The Medical Council has the duty to ensure a safe standard of practice with general registration because it allows practice without supervision. To say that the Council purposely designs an examination to keep out foreign graduates is unfair and groundless.

The government last month proposed allowing Hong Kong permanent residents, working as doctors abroad, to come back and practise in the SAR to alleviate the shortage of doctors in public hospitals here, but Fang said the problems lie in the lack of funding and poor manpower planning.

He also expressed concerns about proposals to set up a committee to draw a list of medical schools abroad to allow graduates to practise in the SAR.

He said this committee bypasses the Medical Council, tramples on professional autonomy, and infringes the Basic Law.

Fang also expressed concerns that the committee could face political pressure, and warned it could negate the principle of “one objective standard fair to all”.

The proposed committee will face much political pressure, including from non-English speaking influences, which will change the practice and teaching of medicine here forever. And what if, as you all suspect, there are insufficient graduates coming back to take up the offer?” he said.

“Your worst suspicions will probably come true. The door will be open to non-HK citizens. Ultimately, it is the Hong Kong people who will pay with their health.”