Non-urgent patients wait up to 8 hours at Hong Kong’s public hospitals amid flu surge – and things unlikely to get better before Lunar New Year

“The authority should seriously review the health care system, and assess whether they can cope with the shortage in resources and manpower. This is the root of the problem,” alliance community organiser Li Sze-man said.
Also, 66 per cent reported having to wait an extra 30 minutes to pick up medication from the pharmacy while 20 per cent waited two hours or more for prescriptions.

The group also found there were at least 13 different authority apps, which they said was too confusing and inconvenient for patients, especially the elderly, and suggested consolidating them into a “one-stop shop”.

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Dr Jeffrey Pong Chiu-fai, convenor of the group’s health and hygiene committee, said the HA Touch app was “not very effective or efficient” in helping a patient to see a doctor the fastest way.

“We have apps but how can we use them to complement the service better?” he said. “The long-run goal is how to use smart, convenient and efficient means to seek medical help. If they have an app but no one uses it, then more people will just walk in [to the A&E] room and wait.”

He said it should be relatively easy to consolidate and streamline apps given that almost 80 per cent of hospital admissions take place within the same public system.

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South China Morning Post

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