Replies to LegCo questions

LCQ2: Medical services for residents on Lantau

        Following is a question by the Hon Cheung Man-kwong and a reply by the Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food, Dr Yeoh Eng-kiong, in the Legislative Council today (June 2):

 

Question:

 

        As early as 1998, the Administration reserved a site at Tai Ho, Lantau for the construction of the North Lantau Hospital (NLH) and forecast that the project would be completed in 2007.  However, the project has not yet been implemented.  Regarding the provision of medical services to people on Lantau, will the Government inform this Council:

 

(a)    of the reasons for not yet implementing the NLH construction project, together with a detailed list of the relevant work performed in the past six years by the government departments concerned, as well as the latest estimated project completion date;

 

(b)    of the respective projected numbers of residents and transient population on Lantau (including tourists and outsiders working there) as well as their sum at the end of each of the next five years; and

 

(c)    whether it will provide 24-hour emergency medical services on Lantau to cope with the demand before the commissioning of the said Hospital; if so, of the time when such services will start; if not, the reasons for that?

 

Reply:

 

Madam President,

 

(a)    The Government has in the past reserved a site at Tai Ho for construction of a hospital.  Subsequently, Hong Kong's overall population growth turned out to be slower than expected.  There were also decisions to introduce projects that would affect the development and land use of North Lantau in recent years, such as the Hong Kong- Zhuhai-Macao Bridge and the North Lantau Value Added Logistics Park.  In view of these developments, earlier this year the Government established the Lantau Economic and Infrastructural Development Coordination Task Force, headed by the Financial Secretary, to comprehensively review the planning and development of Lantau, and to formulate a planning blueprint to ensure that the various projects would be implemented in a co-ordinated and balanced manner.  Consequently, the remaining development and planning of Tung Chung New Town, including the choice of the NLH's site, has to be reviewed as well.  The Lantau Economic and Infrastructural Development Coordination Task Force is formulating a Lantau Development Concept Plan, and is planning to consult the public on the various proposals in the Plan.  The Task Force has initially identified Tai Ho, including the site originally earmarked for the NLH, to be the site for developing a Value Added Logistics Park to reinforce Hong Kong's status as the premier international logistics hub in Asia.  In the course of reviewing the remaining development of the Tung Chung New Town, another site will be identified for the NLH.  Subject to public views on the Concept Plan, the review on the remaining developments in the Tung Chung New Town is preliminarily envisaged to be completed in 2007.  Afterwards, land formation works for various developments in the new town, including that for the hospital, will proceed.   

 

        Meanwhile, we have attempted to identify alternative sites in the existing Tung Chung New Town for construction of the NLH.  Two sites have initially been identified.  After we have made a preliminary choice on the preferred site, we will conduct feasibility studies and public consultation.  If the preferred site is found feasible and acceptable to the public, we will be able to commence works on the NLH earlier.  It normally takes four to five years to design, build and commission a new acute hospital after a final decision has been made on the choice of the site provided that the land formation has been completed.

 

(b)    According to the population projection prepared by the Planning Department, the projected population for Lantau for the next five years are set out in the Annex attached to the reply. 

 

(c)    At present, accident and emergency services for residents of North Lantau is provided for by the Princess Margaret Hospital(PMH).  There is direct land transport network and public transport linking North Lantau and the Kwai Tsing District.  Patients who are in serious condition may use ambulance service for delivery to the PMH for treatment. 

 

        We have to consider various factors in deciding whether to provide 24-hour emergency medical service, including whether the usage rate justifies the resources devoted to such purpose, and whether there is sufficient support from other specialties such as surgery, trauma and intensive care.  According to the data collected by the Hospital Authority(HA), the average number of Lantau residents using accident and emergency service of all public acute hospitals and triaged as critical or emergency categories per day is 1.2.  In view of the low usage rate, we have no immediate plan to introduce 24-hour emergency medical service in North Lantau.  However, the HA is in close liaison with the residents of North Lantau and are identifying areas where the general out-patient clinic service can be improved to better meet the needs of the residents. 

 

Ends/Wednesday, June 2, 2004

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Legislative Council Question 2

Annex

 

According to the population projection prepared by the Planning Department, the population of Lantau (see Note 1) in the next five years is as follows:

 

Year	Population (see Note 2)			Employment (see Note 3)
	North Lantau New Town	Rural Lantau	Lantau Total
2004	54,200	30,300	84,500	n.a.
2005	61,300	30,800	92,100	n.a.
2006	68,200	31,200	99,400	82,204
2007	69,800	31,700	101,500	n.a.
2008	70,300	31,900	102,200	n.a.

 

Planning Department has no projected figures on tourists for Lantau.

 

Note 1: including Chek Lap Kok International Airport

Note 2: the figure includes Usual Residents and Mobile Residents but not tourists or workers.

Usual Residents comprise all Hong Kong Permanent Residents who have stayed in Hong Kong for at least three months during the either six-month periods before or after the reference moment, regardless of their whereabouts at the reference moment and Hong Kong Non-permanent Residents who are in Hong Kong at the reference moment.

Mobile Residents are Hong Kong Permanent Residents who have spent one to less than three months during the either six-month periods before or after the reference moment, regardless of their whereabouts at the reference moment.

Note 3 - Only the projected employment figures for the year 2006 is available.