A staff member of a hospital fills prescriptions of traditional Chinese medicine for patients, May 26, 2019. (PHOTO / XINHUA)
Practitioners of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and Western medicine should collaborate and play their respective roles in Hong Kong’s public healthcare system, said Tommy Li Ying-sang, president of the Federation of the Hong Kong Chinese Medicine Practitioners and Chinese Medicines Traders Association.
The TCM federation in March organized the “Fight the Virus Together – Chinese Medicine Telemedicine Scheme”. By subsidizing some 400 TCM practitioners in Hong Kong, the program aims to provide free telemedicine services and Chinese medicine deliveries on the same day to local COVID-19 patients who are quarantined at home.
By focusing on the holistic regulation of the body, appropriate use of traditional Chinese medicine can reduce COVID-19 infections, severe cases and the mortality rate
The program is funded by the Food and Health Bureau through the Chinese Medicine Development Fund.
Within a month of its launch, the service – which is expected to benefit 20,000 patients – has so far conducted medical examinations of over 3,500 COVID-19 patients in the city, with a daily quota capped at 1,000 patients. The scheme is set to end late May so that if there is a sixth wave of outbreak, it will be ready to help.
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“As infections are dropping, the federation is proposing to extend the medical examination service to those who have recovered from COVID-19. The proposed service can alleviate the Hospital Authority’s workload in this area. The federation is discussing the matter with the city’s health authority,” Li told China Daily.
The program can speed up the recovery process of these patients, many of whom still have a cough and some phlegm and other symptoms even after recovery, Li noted.
“The federation has cultivated close connections with various regional organizations, charity organizations and societies since the fifth wave of the pandemic. If the central government send medical and other supplies to Hong Kong again, the government can leverage the connections of the federation to send the supplies promptly to organizations that need them most,” Li said.
He recommended the government set up a communication platform that can match the supplies to recipient organizations to avoid resource mismatches in the delivery process.
During the fifth wave of the pandemic between February and March, the federation cooperated with the city’s three major regional associations and the Shaw Foundation Hong Kong to distribute 10,000 anti-pandemic kits consisting of rapid antigen test kits and Lianhua Qingwen. Between the middle of 2020 and early 2021, the federation delivered up to 950,000 healthcare soup kits.
The TCM federation president emphasized that TCM practitioners and Western medicine practitioners should collaborate and complement each other with their respective strengths in treating COVID-19. By focusing on the holistic regulation of the body, appropriate use of TCM can reduce COVID-19 infections, severe cases and the mortality rate.
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But the problem is that TCM is not recognized for use in the public healthcare system of Hong Kong. Current TCM clinics in the 18 districts of Hong Kong are based on a tripartite collaboration model involving the Hospital Authority, a non-governmental organization (NGO) and a local university, with NGOs responsible for their day-to-day operation.
“If TCM could be recognized in the public healthcare system in Hong Kong, it would bestow benefits to patients, TCM practitioners and the development of the TCM industry,” Li noted. “The government should mull to build a reserve of TCM and should have a contingency plan to approve some non-registered TCM for emergency use in Hong Kong.”
“With the establishment of the TCM hospital, and if TCM is recognized in the city’s public healthcare system, Hong Kong, as an international trade center, can play the pivotal role in promoting TCM to overseas countries in the future,” Li envisaged.
Located in Tseung Kwan O, the city’s first TCM hospital with a 400-bed capacity is expected to serve between 1,000 and 1,200 patients daily. The hospital will begin operations in phases from mid-2025 with outpatient and day-patient services in the first year, and inpatient services in the second year.
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The project is adopting a public-private partnership model, with government funding available for the construction, while the Hong Kong Baptist University has won the tender to operate the hospital.
“The hospital will have the division of acupuncture and massage and provide consultations in various medical specialities such as pediatrics and gynecology. It can satisfy the need for seeking medical consultations in TCM in various medical specialities, hence promoting the heritage of TCM,” Li said.