The government is seeking a closer partnership with the mainland’s National Health and Family Planning Commission, including the possibility of Macau being provided with access to a special team of medical professionals based in the mainland.
According to a statement from the Government Information Bureau, local medical professionals would be able to liaise with their mainland counterparts and benefit from their knowledge. Such an arrangement would also assist the MSAR in the development of its own medical facilities.
The Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture, Alexis Tam, who is part of a delegation visiting the World Health Assembly in Geneva, Switzerland, raised the possibility of such an initiative during a meeting on Monday, with the mainland’s Minister of National Health and Family Planning Commission, Li Bin.
The local delegation at the 69th World Health Assembly in Geneva, Switzerland
During the meeting between Tam and Li, Tam proposed that medical professionals from Macau might be able to receive some training at health institutes on the mainland.
In addition to further cooperation with China, additional collaboration with Hong Kong authorities has been proposed, particularly in the fields of medical training, emergency response mechanisms for public health incidents, patient transferals, the management of hospitals and issues relating to bone marrow transplants.
Tam’s visit to the World Health Assembly, the decision-
making body of the World Health Organization (WHO), will also see him meet with the director-general of WHO, Margaret Chan.
The Macau delegation includes Secretary Tam, the Director of the Health Bureau, Lei Chin Ion, the Director of the Conde S. Januário Hospital, Kuok Cheong U, and consultants to the Office of the Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture.
The Assembly, now in its 69th session, will run until Saturday in the Swiss city of Geneva. It is themed, “Transforming our World: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.” DB
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