Hong Kong Children’s Hospital has temporarily suspended services at its ear, nose and throat department due to a manpower crunch, with more than 500 patients referred to other public medical institutions.
The Hospital Authority confirmed the move on Friday, saying the department’s services had been provided by a team comprising an associate consultant, a resident and a part-time consultant but only one member was currently still working.
“One is sick and another has resigned,” an authority spokesman said, adding ear, nose and throat services at the hospital in Kai Tak had been affected since November.
Do you have questions about the biggest topics and trends from around the world? Get the answers with SCMP Knowledge, our new platform of curated content with explainers, FAQs, analyses and infographics brought to you by our award-winning team.
More than 500 patients, including those who were under other specialists, had been referred to services provided by other public hospitals with bookings arranged, the spokesman said.
The authority’s group of hospitals in central Kowloon would coordinate and provide help to patients who required medical treatment or emergency surgery, he added.
“The Hospital Authority is deeply sorry for the inconvenience and worries caused to the young patients and parents, and it expects that the services at Hong Kong Children’s Hospital will resume after the manpower situation is improved,” he said.
“The authority will arrange more experienced specialists to the hospital cluster to strengthen manpower.”
More from South China Morning Post:
- Hong Kong patient finds gauze in scrotum 2 months after operation
- Hong Kong Hospital Authority chief Tony Ko to quit at end of July
For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2025.
