Replies to LegCo questions
LCQ5: Medical Council of Hong Kong
Following is a question by the Dr Hon Kwok Ka-ki and a written reply by the Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food, Dr York Chow, in the Legislative Council today (October 25):
Question:
The Medical Council of Hong Kong (the Medical Council) handles the registration,
examination and disciplinary matters of medical practitioners in accordance with
the Medical Registration Ordinance. Among the 28 council members of the Medical
Council, half of them are appointed by the Chief Executive. Other professional
bodies, such as The Law Society of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Bar Association, the
Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants, The Hong Kong Institute of
Architects, The Hong Kong Institute of Surveyors and The Hong Kong Institution
of Engineers, are all independent of the Government and have the same basic
function of handling registration, examination and disciplinary matters. Most,
if not all, of their council members are elected on a one-member-one-vote basis.
In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) of the reasons for the Medical Council to have a statutory framework
different from those of other professional bodies and for half of its council
members being appointed by the Chief Executive; and
(b) of the number of staff members, remuneration, income and other expenses
related to the following functions of the Medical Council in the past three
years;
(i) registration of medical practitioners;
(ii) licensing examination;
(iii) handling complaints and conducting disciplinary inquiries about medical
practitioners;
(iv) continuing professional development programme; and
(v) other administrative matters?
Reply
Madam President,
(a) The Medical Council of Hong Kong (the Medical Council) is an independent
statutory body established under the Medical Registration Ordinance (Cap. 161).
It is empowered to register medical practitioners, conduct licensing
examinations, and exercise disciplinary actions over medical practitioners in
Hong Kong.
In the regulation of the medical professions, the Administration has subscribed
to the principle of professional autonomy. The Medical Council enjoys
independence in performing its aforesaid statutory functions. The Administration
respects the independence of the Medical Council and would not interfere with
the decisions that are within the autonomy of the profession. The historical
development, background and specific needs of the different professional bodies
all contribute to the different regulatory regimes and it is not appropriate to
draw a direct comparison between the regulatory frameworks of different
professional bodies. Generally speaking, all professionals recognise the
principle of professional autonomy and a fair degree of lay participation in its
regulatory matters.
The Ordinance currently provides that of the 28 members of the Medical Council,
seven are to be nominated by the Hong Kong Medical Association and seven
returned by the medical practitioners. The remainder of the members include two
medical practitioners nominated by the University of Hong Kong, two medical
practitioners nominated by the Chinese University of Hong Kong, two medical
practitioners nominated by the Hospital Authority, two medical practitioners
nominated by the Director of Health, two medical practitioners nominated by the
Academy of Medicine and four lay members. These members are appointed by the
Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food under the delegated authority of the
Chief Executive. Such an arrangement ensures that different stakeholders in the
medical sector can participate in the operation of the Medical Council and that
their views are fully reflected in the Medical Council.
(b) Please refer to the Annex for the relevant information.
Ends/Wednesday, October 25, 2006
Issued at HKT 14:40
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Attachment:
Annex to LCQ5