HKUMed MFN v26i1

Advancing Family Medicine in the Greater Bay Area Professor Cindy Lam Lo-kuen 卌ꪫ㫲來䱇 Dr William Wong Chi-wai 랔䘋㪮ꄴ欰 Family Medicine was the first HKUMed department to open a clinic at the HKU- Shenzhen Hospital (HKU-SZH) in July 2012, where it introduced an outpatient model offering a packaged fee for consultations that aimed to reduce unnecessary investigations, treatments and secondary specialist referrals. It also prohibited the practice of giving intravenous drugs at outpatient settings, which is rarely medically indicated and can lead to serious side effects. ‘We were the first in the Greater Bay Area and first in the country to execute a “whole-person care” medical service and package fee,’ said the Head of Family Medicine at HKUMed, Professor Cindy Lam Lo-kuen . ‘Our aim has always been to set the standard for Family Medicine in the region, so we are also pleased that the practice of curtailing intravenous treatments for outpatients has been recommended to be phased out at both the national and provincial levels.’ Since that auspicious start, the HKU-SZH FM Clinic has expanded its services to include clinical psychology, early pregnancy assessment, post-natal shared care, adult vaccination as well as integrative chronic disease management that provides personalised care and comprehensive management for patients with multi-morbidity. It has also played a significant leading role in training the next generation of family doctors and health professionals. The discipline of Family Medicine (FM) has been progressing in leaps and bounds in the Greater Bay Area and Mainland China, with HKUMed playing a leading role in its development. Portraits by Raymond Chan 33