Cross-boundary emergency medical rescue in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area has taken a step forward after Zhuhai and Hong Kong successfully transported the first patient via direct ambulance transfer service.
Since launching the service in November, 2025, Zhuhai has become the only Chinese mainland city capable of providing point-to-point cross-boundary ambulance transfer services to Hong Kong and Macao.
Zhuhai authorities pledged to deepen medical collaboration with the two special administrative regions, and experts anticipate that the city will play a greater role in Greater Bay Area’s medical integration with its geographical advantages.
In the morning of Dec 31, 2025, an ambulance carrying a 75-year-old Hong Kong male patient departed from Zhuhai People's Hospital and arrived at Princess Margaret Hospital in Hong Kong after a journey of 93 minutes.
The patient sustained a severe head injury from a fall at the hotel while visiting Zhuhai with his family. After his condition stabilized, the patient expressed the desire to return to Hong Kong for further care.
Administrative departments of Zhuhai and Hong Kong completed the medical assessment and cross-boundary coordination within two days and offered various custom clearance convenience measures to facilitate the transfer.
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Previously, patients being transferred from Zhuhai to Hong Kong or Macao had to be moved to another ambulance at the checkpoint, exposing them to safety risks. Now, they can remain in the same ambulance throughout the journey, and enjoy priority access when crossing the boundary.
The ambulance is equipped with a comprehensive range of devices, including multifunctional monitors and portable ventilators. It can also handle emergency surgeries.
Hong Kong launched a pilot program for direct ambulance transfers with other Greater Bay Area cities in late 2024. The first phase covered designated hospitals in Shenzhen and Macao, and it was later expanded to include Zhuhai and Guangzhou’s Nansha district. Macao also kicked off a similar program with Zhuhai in early 2025.
As the end of 2025, Zhuhai had completed six transfers with Macao, and one with Hong Kong. The response time for Macao transfers was reduced to under 25 minutes.
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Luo Fuzhi, deputy director of Zhuhai Health Bureau, said there are plans to further deepen medical collaboration with Hong Kong and Macao.
They include facilitating the cross-boundary delivery of traditional Chinese medicine, supporting Hong Kong's elderly residents in using healthcare vouchers at more medical institutions in Zhuhai, and accelerating the use of devices and medications available in Hong Kong and Macao within Zhuhai.
Professor Zhang Guangnan, who is researching Greater Bay Area integration at Sun Yat-Sen University, believes that as the nation’s only city that connects with Hong Kong and Macao by land or land passage, Zhuhai is expected to play a pivotal role in Greater Bay Area’s medical integration through institutional innovation.
