Speech by SFH at Ministerial Roundtable – Cooperation with Key Stakeholders (English only) (with photos)
Following is the speech by the Secretary for Food and Health, Professor Sophia Chan, at Ministerial Roundtable – Cooperation with Key Stakeholders today (November 27) in Singapore.
Minister Gan (Minister for Health, Singapore, Mr Gan Kim Yong), distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,
Good morning. It gives me great pleasure to share with you the experience of Hong Kong in engaging stakeholders to address the issue on diabetes and other non-communicable diseases (NCDs).
Hong Kong has a vibrant civil society. In recent years there has been an increase in the number of players in the healthcare sector. We fully support the spirit outlined in the World Health Organization (WHO)'s Framework of Engagement with Non-State Actors. We have established co-operation with stakeholders to achieve the common goal in promoting and protecting the health of Hong Kong people.
In terms of health promotion, our Department of Health has partnered with various key stakeholders, like academics, professional associations, home-school associations and the catering industry to carry out campaigns for promoting healthy lifestyle such as low salt and sodium in meals. Starting from next year, we will provide financial support, around US$32,000, to our 18 District Councils, which are our district advisory bodies and partners. They will in turn engage community organisations to launch health promotion activities on prevention and control of NCDs in the district level.
I am sure you are familiar with the Healthy Cities approach initiated by the WHO which aims to cope with the adverse effects of an urban environment over health. In Hong Kong, each of our 18 districts has set up a Healthy Cities Project. They have recently won the bid to organise the next Global Conference of the Alliance for Healthy Cities in Hong Kong in 2020. I look forward to seeing them working closely with the private sector such as companies and non-government organisations as encouraged by the WHO.
Our vision to provide quality, affordable and sustainable health services to the public is shared by many in the civil society. At the primary care setting, we are committed to illustrating the effectiveness of medical-social collaboration. A pilot District Health Centre (DHC), operating through district-based, medical-social collaboration and public-private partnership, will be set up in Hong Kong. This DHC will be operated by a non-public entity with government funding. It will provide services in health promotion, health assessment, chronic disease management, and community rehabilitation. Diabetes and hypertension, and their related risk factors, are among the priority issues to be handled by the DHC.
Promoting partnership with patients to provide patient-centred care is one of the key strategic directions of the Hospital Authority, which manages all public hospitals in Hong Kong. They have established Patient Resources Centres to support patients and their families or carers, and facilitate the networking between patient and patient groups for mutual support, including a number of diabetes-related patient groups. The Resources Centres collaborate with clinical teams and patient groups for patient education and the organisation of empowerment programmes for diabetic patients, such as healthy cooking classes, peer-led exercise sessions, etc, to strengthen their knowledge and skills in self-management. These Centres also engage patient groups as volunteers to participate in projects such as ward visits or home visits to show concern and care for diabetic patients.
As you can see, we have pursued co-operation with key stakeholders in different ways and at different levels and have been encouraged by the synergy created so far. We will endeavour to foster more collaboration and join hands with stakeholders in minimising the threat posed by diabetes and other NCDs.
