Secretary for Health Prof Lo Chung-mau met a delegation led by Shanghai Municipal Health Commission Director General Prof Wen Daxiang today to discuss reinforcing healthcare collaboration between Shanghai and Hong Kong.
 

At the meeting, the two parties exchanged views on the four highlighted areas of co-operation put forward in the Memorandum of Understanding on Healthcare Cooperation between the Shanghai Municipal Health Commission and the Health Bureau of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, which was signed this morning at the sixth Plenary Session of the Hong Kong/Shanghai Co-operation Conference.
 

The areas of co-operation include traditional Chinese medicine (CM), the high-quality development of public hospitals and community health. The fourth area relates to prevention and control of infectious diseases and responses to health emergencies.
 

Prof Lo highlighted that the Chief Executive included cross-boundary medical collaboration for the first time as one of the sub-headings in the 2023 Policy Address, adding that this demonstrates how deeply the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government values medical collaboration with the Mainland on various fronts.
 

He noted that the Hong Kong SAR Government has been working with various Mainland counterparts to strengthen co-operation on healthcare and to enhance the quality of healthcare quality in the two places under the principles of complementarity and mutual benefits and on the premise of benefitting the healthcare development of both the Mainland and Hong Kong.
 

He said the two places will continue to strive to foster cross-boundary healthcare collaboration and push forward the important national strategy of “Healthy China”.
 

With the support of the Hong Kong SAR Government, the Hospital Authority is following up with the healthcare authorities of Shanghai on a two-way talent exchange and deepening professional co-operation arrangements for public hospitals in both places.
 

Prof Lo added that he is grateful to the Shanghai authorities for recommending CM experts to advise on plans for Hong Kong’s first Chinese Medicine Hospital. Hong Kong will continue to encourage more CM practitioners to participate in clinical training exchanges in Shanghai with a view to elevating professional standards in the sector.