What’s behind the rising number of Hong Kong doctors, nurses being disciplined?
Health Bureau’s reply to lawmaker shows 33 instances of disciplinary action against doctors in 2023-24, up from 21 and 14 for two previous years
The number of doctors and nurses at Hong Kong public hospitals facing disciplinary action rose between 2021 and last year, while the volume of complaints filed to healthcare facilities increased before declining slightly during the same period.
A written reply from the Health Bureau to the Legislative Council’s Finance Committee on Wednesday showed that the number of disciplinary actions taken by the Hospital Authority against health professionals increased from 150 in the 2021-22 financial year, dipped to 132 in 2022-23 and rose again to 201 in 2023-24.
The authority oversees Hong Kong’s public hospitals.
But a breakdown of the figures showed instances of disciplinary action against doctors and nurses had consistently increased over the same period.
The number of disciplinary actions taken against doctors stood at 14 in 2021-22, 21 in 2022-23 and 33 in 2023-24. For nurses, the figure rose from 96 to 101, before increasing to 145.
In terms of allied health professionals, such as physiotherapists or occupational therapists, the tally went from 40 and dropped to 10 before increasing slightly to 23.