Speech by CS at Hospital Authority Convention 2025 (English only) (with photo/video)
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Vice-minister Cao Xuetao (Vice-minister of the National Health Commission), Henry (Chairman of the Hospital Authority, Mr Henry Fan), Tony (Chief Executive of the Hospital Authority, Dr Tony Ko), distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,
Good morning. I am delighted to welcome you to the Hospital Authority Convention 2025.
Over the next three days, more than 190 prominent speakers from around the world will share their knowledge and experience in some 60 sessions, offering intelligence, insight and inspiration for the more than 8 600 healthcare leaders and practitioners here from Hong Kong, the Mainland, throughout Asia and around the world.
For the next few minutes, allow me to tell you about some of the latest developments in Hong Kong's healthcare system, and our commitment to rising as a health and medical innovation hub.
We are advancing collaboration through key projects like the Greater Bay Area International Clinical Trial Institute in the Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Co-operation Zone, and the new Hong Kong Centre for Medical Products Regulation. These initiatives aim to elevate our healthcare standards and foster partnerships.
Operating one of the world's largest healthcare systems, the Hospital Authority maintains high standards through a professional and dedicated workforce, a robust management system and an emphasis on continuous reform and enhancement, including the comprehensive application of information technology (IT).
In striving for excellence, the Hospital Authority has made a number of recent breakthroughs.
They include deepening collaboration with the Mainland, from initiating healthcare talent exchanges between hospitals to facilitating cross-boundary use of electronic health records via the territory-wide eHealth platform, as part of the Government's eHealth+ initiatives to build a comprehensive healthcare information infrastructure in support of the healthcare reform and the digital transformation of our healthcare sector.
Another area of progress is hospital accreditation.
As put forward under the Chief Executive's Policy Addresses, two Hospital Authority public hospitals were accredited under the China's International Hospital Accreditation Standards in December 2024 and March 2025 respectively. And three more hospitals here will begin the accreditation process this year.
The Hospital Authority, I am pleased to say, is contributing to the internationalisation of China's national hospital accreditation standards, improving overall healthcare quality and benchmarks in the Greater Bay Area.
Turning to technology and smart healthcare, the Hospital Authority has been integrating a wide range of advanced IT, digital technology and AI (artificial intelligence) tools into their healthcare services and facilities to enhance service quality and operational efficiency.
Examples include providing AI support to facilitate data-driven care and developing smart wards, smart clinics and smart pharmacies in hospitals.
To date, the Hospital Authority has implemented more than 45 key Smart Hospital offerings in its hospitals, and other applications are being developed to enhance hospital operation and management.
The Hospital Authority has also implemented various AI applications across different aspects of their services, including assisting in clinical diagnosis, enhancing medication safety, predicting the deterioration risks of patients' conditions, and optimising bed management and non-emergency ambulance services.
To drive research, the upcoming Real-World Study and Application Centre will open up local health and medical databases to support clinical diagnosis and treatment, as well as drug development and public health research, while promoting co-operation between Hong Kong and Shenzhen.
The Hospital Authority is also supporting research by innovation and technology institutions in Hong Kong Science Park, enabling remote access to data from about 200 000 anonymous patients. This can only accelerate medical innovation, furthering Hong Kong's goal of becoming a healthcare research centre.
Bringing together different areas of expertise from Hong Kong's healthcare sector, the Institute for Medical Advancement and Clinical Excellence was formally established earlier this month.
The Institute's work will include development and promulgation of clinical guidelines in screening, diagnosis, treatment and management of various diseases, as well as evaluation of the efficacy and cost-effectiveness of medical options. The Hospital Authority will be very much involved in the Institute's efforts, working with other major healthcare institutions together to enhance the overall quality and effectiveness of medical services in Hong Kong.
I am grateful to the Hospital Authority for once again organising this essential international gathering of healthcare professionals. Grateful, too, for its unwavering efforts in ensuring that Hong Kong's healthcare services and its public hospital system remain high-quality, sustainable and accessible to the public – staying true to its mission of "helping people stay healthy."
I wish you all an inspiring and rewarding Hospital Authority Convention. And for our guests and participants coming from around the world, I am sure you will have a memorable stay here in Hong Kong, Asia's world city.
Thank you.
Ends/Monday, May 26, 2025
Issued at HKT 9:30
Issued at HKT 9:30
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