The first cross-boundary Internet hospital set up by a Hong Kong doctor entered service in Guangzhou’s Nansha District on Tuesday.
Residents of the Hong and Macao special administrative regions can receive remote consultations through the comprehensive outpatient department of Xinxing Medical Centre and have Hong Kong-prescribed medicines delivered to Nansha in the Guangdong provincial capital.
The hospital has nine units, including internal medicine, gynecology and psychiatry, that provide high-quality online and offline health services. So far, nine doctors have registered to work at the hospital, with another eight on the application process.
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Lau Shun-tung, a Hong Kong doctor and head of the hospital, said patients can get medical advice from Hong Kong-based doctors at home by a mobile application. “After consultations, medications will be swiftly delivered by SF Express to patients in Nansha from Hong and Macao within a day or two,” he said.
All medications that comply with prescriptions in Hong Kong, excluding psychiatric and anesthesia medications, are allowed under the service. According to Lau, the service is particularly suitable for managing chronic diseases that require long-term follow-up visits and medication.
About 80,000 elderly Hong Kong residents are now living in Chinese mainland cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area due to their lower cost of living and a comfortable environment, directly benefitting from the digital platform.
The innovative arrangement reflects deeper integration between Nansha and Hong Kong in medical rules and regulations. To facilitate the livelihood, medical care and retirement of Hong Kong and Macao residents in Nansha, various measures have been enforced there in recent years.
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The first health service center for Hong Kong and Macao residents opened at Guangzhou Nansha Central Hospital last year and it was also allowed to use Hong Kong-registered drugs and medical devices for urgent clinical purposes.
Contact the writer at grace@chinadailyhk.com
