The Government today said the Hong Kong Academy of Medicine’s role as the gatekeeper of specialist qualifications remains unchanged despite the proposed law amendments to attract more qualified non-locally trained doctors to practise in Hong Kong.

It made the statement after Secretary for Food & Health Prof Sophia Chan met the academy’s council members yesterday evening to explain to them the rationale and details of the latest proposed amendments to the Medical Registration (Amendment) Bill 2021.

The Government pointed out that according to its latest proposal, if a non-Hong Kong permanent resident or a limited registration doctor holding a non-locally awarded specialist qualification wishes to become a special registration doctor, his or her non-locally awarded specialist qualification must be recognised by the academy.

It also emphasised that the academy currently has an established mechanism to evaluate, review and recognise non-locally awarded specialist qualifications.

The statement reiterated that the Government respects professional autonomy. For future special registration applicants, their non-locally awarded specialist qualifications must be recognised by the academy in accordance with the existing mechanism.

There is no question of the academy’s role as the gatekeeper of specialist qualifications being fundamentally altered.

Regarding local medical graduates’ concern about job security, the statement said the Government is contemplating a further increase in medical training places for the next University Grants Committee triennium.

The Hospital Authority will provide internship places to all qualified local medical graduates, employ all those who have passed the internship and provide them with specialist training. 

On supporting local specialist training, the Government said it understands that the medical sector and local medical graduates are concerned about the allocation of specialist training places and whether there are adequate training places for both locally and non-locally trained doctors.

It said the authority will create supernumerary posts with dedicated funding allocation from the Government for hiring non-locally trained doctors so that recruitment and promotion of locally trained doctors will not be affected.

In view of the future increase in non-locally trained doctors, the Food & Health Bureau is planning to set up a new platform and invite representatives from the authority, the Department of Health and the academy to discuss matters related to specialist training, based on the specialist manpower projection to be announced later this year.

The Government will deploy additional resources as necessary to support specialist training, it added.