Replies to LegCo questions

LCQ14: Mobile medical services

Following is a question by the Hon Chan Kwok-keung and a written reply by the Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food, Dr Yeoh Eng-kiong, in the Legislative Council today (January 15):

Question :

Regarding the dispatching of Department of Health's mobile dispensaries, floating clinics and flying doctors to provide medical services to residents living on outlying islands and certain remote areas in the rural parts of the territory, will the Government inform this Council:

(a) of the numbers of vehicles, vessels and helicopters deployed to provide mobile medical services, and their annual operating and maintenance costs;

(b) of the respective numbers of medical and supporting staff at various ranks for such services and the annual expenditure on their salaries;

(c) of the annual salary and other expenditures for the relevant supporting staff (such as pilots and crew members) of other government departments involved;

(d) of the unit cost of mobile medical services and how it compares to that of a general out-patient clinic;

(e) of the districts in which mobile medical services are provided and the timetables for the services;

(f) of the total attendance to receive mobile medical services and the average number of persons served in each trip in each district over the past three years;

(g) whether it knows where the residents in such districts would go to seek medical services at other times; and

(h) of the criteria for deciding which districts should be provided with mobile medical services; whether it has regularly re-assessed if such services should be maintained in the relevant districts in the light of factors such as demographic changes, the demand for such services, the availability of public transport services and networks, as well as the costs for providing the services in these districts?

Reply:

The Department of Health (DH) provides medical services through floating clinics and helicopters to serve residents in outlying islands and remote areas, as follows -

(a) Four vehicles, two floating clinics and one helicopter are currently used by the DH for providing mobile medical services. The annual operating and maintenance costs for the mobile medical services are $5.4 million (of which $1.7 million are borne by DH and $3.7 million by other government departments).

(b) & (c) The manpower and the staff costs involved in the services are set out
as below -

DH

Rank	No.
Medical and Health Officer	2.3
Registered Nurse	2.3
Dispenser	2.3
Assistant Clerical Officer	2.3
Motor Driver	0.4
Workman II	2.3

Other government departments

Rank	No.
Marine Department
Senior Launch Master	2
Launch Assistant	6
Government Flying Service
Pilot I	0.04
Pilot II	0.04
Air Crewman Officer II	0.04
Air Crewman Officer III	0.04

The total staff cost of the mobile medical services is $9.1 million with the following breakdown:

	$'M
DH	6.8
Other government departments	2.3

(d) The unit cost at 2002-03 price level is $1,610 for mobile medical services and $219 for general out-patient service.

(e) & (f) The locations and the time table for the mobile medical services and the number of attendances in the most recent three years for which data are available are set out at Appendix.

(g) All the locations are covered by the mobile medical services on a regular basis. The residents can also travel to urban areas for medical services in the private and public sectors by various means, depending on their location and clinical condition.

(h) DH provides health care facilities through the mobile medical services in the remote and less densely populated areas taking into account the accessibility to other health care services, the demands for and utilisation patterns of these services as well as the need to rationalise the resources. These services are currently under review in the light of urbanisation and improvements in transportation network. We shall modify the scope and mode of operation of the mobile medical services given the changing circumstances.

End/Wednesday, January 15, 2003
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