At a Legco Special Finance Committee meeting yesterday (17 April), lawmakers scrutinised the expenditures of the Health Bureau. According to information from the Bureau, the wastage rates for full-time doctors, nurses and allied health professionals ranged between 6.1% and 9.5% in the year 2023/24. As of the end of March this year, the Hospital Authority (HA) had hired 138 non-locally trained doctors. The number is expected to rise to 200 by the end of this year. Lo Chung-mau, the Secretary for Health, says the overall situation of manpower loss has improved, but the wastage rate of young medical staff is relatively high, which is a worrying trend.
As for dentists, data shows that vacancies for dentists in the Department of Health have jumped nearly nine times over the past four years. As of the beginning of this month, the vacancy rate for dentists was 27.6%, meaning that one in every four positions is vacant. In other words, the number of dentists is over a hundred people short of the normal establishment. The government projects that the problem of dentist shortages will continue until 2035.
Hong Kong’s faculty of dentistry is among the best in the world, repeatedly ranked among the top three in university dentistry schools around the globe. However, the city has a serious shortage of dentists. There are currently 2,576 registered dentists and 309 specialist dentists residing in Hong Kong, translating into just approximately 3.8 dentists per 10,000 people. This is lower than the average of around five dentists per 10,000 people in developed regions. Even more serious is the imbalance between the public and private sectors.
Dentists in Hong Kong’s public sector are mainly employed by the Department of Health. According to government figures, the overall ratio between dentists in public and private practice is currently about 1:3, meaning that for every four dentists, only one works in the public sector. Documents submitted by the Health Bureau to the Finance Committee show that the public-private practice ratio for newly graduated dentists in 2020/21 was 1:5.6, which further expanded to 1:9.7 and 1:12.8 respectively in the two years that followed. According to some people in the dental sector, dozens of newly graduated dentists used to join the Department of Health every year. Last year, however, the number dropped to single digits.
The worsening of dentist shortages in the public sector over the past few years has been related to multiple factors. On the one hand, the huge number of dentists employed by the government in the 1980s have retired one after another in recent years. The wave of emigration has also created more vacancies. On the other hand, due to the lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic, Hong Kong has seen huge demand for local dental services over the past three years. Poaching of dentists from the private sector with high pay has also exacerbated the departure from the public sector.
With the integration of the Greater Bay Area, it is cheaper to travel northward to receive dental care, which many Hong Kong people find attractive. However, the government has a duty to provide more suitable and adequate dental services for local disadvantaged people with financial difficulties. In last year’s Policy Address, the government announced that it would partner with non-governmental organisations, such as charitable organisations and social welfare institutions, to promote relevant work. However, there have been no further details yet, and it remains unclear how the manpower problem will be dealt with. It is hoped that the government will come up with a practical and viable plan as soon as possible that will benefit the disadvantaged from the lower strata of society.
Ming Pao Editorial 2024.04.18: Strengthening dental services to help the disadvantaged and taking a multi-pronged approach to alleviate manpower shortages
There is a shortage of dentists in Hong Kong, and the situation in public dentistry is particularly serious. The dental vacancy rate of the Department of Health is as high as 27%, affecting everything from school dental clinics to “street” dental services.
The Special Finance Committee of the Legislative Council reviewed the expenditures of the Health Bureau yesterday. Bureau data show that the turnover rate of full-time doctors, nurses and allied hospital staff in 2023/24 ranges from 6.1% to 9.5%. As of the end of March this year, the Hospital Authority has hired 138 non-locally trained doctors, which is expected to increase to 200 by the end of the year. people. Director of Medical and Health Lu Chongmao described that the overall manpower attrition situation has improved, but the attrition rate of young medical staff is relatively high, and the trend is worrying.
Regarding dentists, data shows that dental vacancies in the Department of Health have increased nearly nine times in the past four years. As of the beginning of this month, the vacancy rate reached 27.6%, that is, one out of every four dental positions is vacant, which is still more than a hundred people short of the normal establishment. According to government projections, the shortage of dentists will continue until 2035.
Hong Kong has the world’s top dental school, which has repeatedly ranked among the top three in global university dental rankings. However, there is a serious shortage of dentists. There are currently 2,576 registered dentists and 309 specialist dentists residing in Hong Kong, that is, there are only about 3.8 dentists per 10,000 people, which is lower than the average level of about 5 dentists per 10,000 people in developed regions. The imbalance between the public and private sectors is even more serious.
Public dentists in Hong Kong are mainly employed by the Department of Health. According to government figures, the overall dental public-private practice ratio is currently about 1:3, which means that only one out of every four dentists serves in the public dental sector. Documents submitted to the Finance Committee by the Medical and Health Bureau show that the public-private practice ratio for newly graduated dentists in 2020/21 is 1:5.6, and has expanded to 1:9.7 and 1:12.8 respectively in the following two years. Some people in the dental field pointed out that in the past, dozens of newly graduated dentists joined the Department of Health every year, but last year the number dropped to single digits.
The shortage of dentists in the public sector has worsened in the past few years, and multiple factors are involved. On the one hand, the government hired a large number of dentists in the 1980s, and they have retired one after another in recent years. The immigration wave has also expanded the vacancies; on the other hand, Hong Kong has been closed due to the epidemic. The demand for local dental services has been huge in the past three years, and high-paying poaching in the private market has also intensified. There has been a loss of public dentists.
With the integration of the Greater Bay Area, “traveling north for dental check-ups” is relatively cheap, attracting many Hong Kong people. However, the government has the responsibility to provide more appropriate and in-depth dental services to local disadvantaged groups with financial difficulties. Last year’s “Policy Address” announced that the government would partner with non-governmental organizations, such as charitable organizations and social welfare agencies, to promote relevant work. However, there are no more details yet, and it is not clear how to deal with the manpower problem. We only hope that the authorities will come up with it as soon as possible. A set of practical plans to benefit the disadvantaged at the grassroots level.
■/ Glossary new words /
wastage : the loss of employees because they stop working or move to other jobs; the number of students who do not finish a particular course of study
exacerbate : to make something worse, especially a disease or problem
charitable : connected with a charity or charities
