HONG KONG elderly people who fall ill while in Shenzhen will soon be able to get help from the University of Hong Kong-Shenzhen Hospital (HKU-Shenzhen Hospital) by simply tapping a button on their smartphone, Hong Kong-based The Standard reported Thursday.

The Senior Citizen Home Safety Association (SCHSA) in Hong Kong is introducing the cross-border “Call and Care Service” in July.

The Personal Emergency Link was rolled out in 1996 with a device that puts the users in touch with the call center and emergency help.

Mobile services, including a safety phone and phone applications, have been developed in recent years.

Co-founder Law Chi-kwong said: “With its experience, SCHSA hopes to provide support for Hong Kong elderly people who travel to the mainland.”

Citing government figures, Law said there are 10,400 Hong Kong senior citizens living in Shenzhen. About 20,600 people aged 65 or above travel to the mainland daily.

Users of the Call and Care Service mobile app are charged a HK$168 (US$22) monthly fee, said chief executive Irene Leung Suk-yee.

It is expected that the cross-border service will cost around HK$220 to HK$230 a month, Leung said. Current users will just have to visit the association’s center to switch to the new plan.

The first stage of the plan will start next month, covering Shenzhen, Leung said.

She said the service could be expanded to other Guangdong cities, but that the team would first have to get familiar with certain issues, including the regulations on the mainland.

To get help, users will have to tap the safety button to reach the service’s call center in Hong Kong, which operates around the clock.

If necessary, the case and the patient’s medical records will be transferred to the HKU-Shenzhen Hospital and an ambulance will be arranged, while the patient’s emergency contact is notified.

Hospital chief executive Lo Chung-mau said that many senior citizens are unfamiliar with the medical culture at mainland hospitals and are concerned about the quality of service there.

Lo said that his hospital is managed by a team from HKU, which runs on the Hong Kong model and coordinates better with medical institutions in Hong Kong.

“There has been a misunderstanding that our hospital charges hefty fees similar to private hospitals,” Lo said, adding that Hongkongers are charged the same price as Shenzhen citizens at his hospital.

(SD-Agencies)