Press Releases
SFH receives Hospital Authority report on Caritas Medical Centre incident
The Secretary for Food and Health, Dr York Chow, said today (January 5) that
he hoped the Hospital Authority could learn from the Caritas Medical Centre
(CMC) incident and refine the operation system of hospitals to provide
quality medical services to the public.
Dr Chow made his remarks after receiving the Hospital Authority's report and
recommendations on the incident.
"I support the Hospital Authority's decision to set up a committee to deal
with the responsibility issues of the hospital staff concerned in accordance
with the established mechanism.
"Saving lives is the professional duty of health care workers. The
environment in a hospital is ever-changing. The most important thing for
health care staff is to understand and take care of the needs of the
patients. They need to do the job with compassion and handle issues
flexibly.
"When handling life-and-death cases, hospitals should have a sense of
mission and empathy, in addition to following the Hospital Authority's
directives. Health care workers should exercise teamwork in treating
patients in critical condition and help people with urgent medical needs.
"I believe that, should health care workers uphold these principles, a
system based on the well-being of patients would be established in Hong
Kong.
"I know the incident has sent shockwaves to the staff of CMC and dampened
the morale of some. However, I am confident that they will respond to the
challenge and serve the community in a caring and positive manner.
"I have instructed the Hospital Authority to put in place appropriate
improvement measures and update the bureau on the progress regularly," Dr
Chow said.
Ends/Monday, January 5, 2009
Issued at HKT 17:12
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