Secretary for Health Prof Lo Chung-mau chaired the first meeting of the Steering Committee on Health & Medical Innovation Development today to discuss initiatives for bolstering the development of medical innovation in Hong Kong.

To take forward the recommendation of developing Hong Kong into a health and medical innovation hub as announced in the Chief Executive’s 2023 Policy Address, the Health Bureau has established a high-level steering committee, chaired by the Secretary for Health and comprising members from relevant bureaus, departments, institutions and local medical schools.

Apart from co-ordinating and advancing the work related to health and medical innovation, the steering committee is tasked with advising the Government on Hong Kong's development in this area.

The work focuses of the steering committee include steering the direction to enhance local infrastructure and systems to enable high-quality development in health and medical innovation, and steering and monitoring the preparation and development of the Hong Kong Centre for Medical Products Regulation.

The committee will also concentrate on steering and monitoring the establishment of the Greater Bay Area (GBA) International Clinical Trial Institute (GBAICTI), and advising on the strategies to foster closer interface and alignment with health and medical innovation development in the Mainland and other places outside Hong Kong.

Prof Lo said the committee members offered invaluable insights at the meeting to advise on the direction and policy initiatives for driving medical innovation.

He noted that the bureau will actively follow up with a view to developing Hong Kong into a health and medical innovation hub, which will not only enable patients to benefit from the most advanced diagnostic and treatment technologies but also spur the growth of new industries in pharmaceutical and medical device research and development (R&D) and testing.

“Furthermore, health and medical innovation brings the benefits of good drugs and R&D to Hong Kong. To advance the health and medical innovation development, the bureau needs to take a more proactive and efficient attitude towards the reviewing and registering of drugs and medical devices, and to enhance clinical trial development,” he added.

To this end, the bureau will establish the GBAICTI in the Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science & Technology Innovation Co-operation Zone, providing a one-stop clinical trial support platform for medical research institutions and co-ordinating clinical trial resources in Hong Kong's public and private sectors.

At the same time, the bureau will also explore co-operation with the clinical trial networks in the Mainland, in particular in the bay area, to co-ordinate clinical trial work between the two places to comply with national and international standards.