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Hong Kong healthcare and hospitals
OpinionLetters

LettersFix Hong Kong’s healthcare silos with link workers

Readers discuss bridging medical and social welfare, why Hong Kong must change, and an epic road trip

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Sham Shui Po District Health Centre in 2022. Photo: Jelly Tse
Letters
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Hong Kong faces profound structural challenges related to the rising prevalence of chronic diseases among the ageing population, and the associated problems of loneliness and the burden on caregivers. As the government prepares its inaugural five-year plan, this moment offers a vital opportunity to reform the city’s health and medical system to tackle the interlocking challenges.

Since 2011, Health In Action has witnessed that grass-roots families struggle not only with illness but also with housing, financial strain, access to healthy food, caregiving, social isolation and health literacy. Social determinants of health are estimated to account for a substantial proportion of health outcomes, often more than half, depending on the model and population studied.

Residents simply don’t know where to access or how to navigate existing resources because public services operate in silos. The lack of coordination pushes them back into the Hospital Authority system, deepening avoidable demand and long-term fiscal pressure.

Future primary healthcare must evolve from siloed operations into a cross-disciplinary system capable of addressing the full spectrum of community needs. We submitted a paper to the Hong Kong government, urging it to leverage the five-year plan to introduce social prescribing as a cornerstone policy tool to bridge medical and social welfare and make the best use of social capital – community stakeholders.

Social prescribing goes beyond simply referring citizens to community activities. The client journey begins with holistic needs being identified by professionals, followed by trained link workers setting goals, identifying resources and providing continuous connection before progress is reviewed.

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