ON the eve of the 20th anniversary of Hong Kong’s return to China, Shenzhen’s health authority released a list of 10 major achievements in health care cooperation between the two cities.

1

Topping the list is the University of Hong Kong-Shenzhen Hospital (HKU-SZH), which celebrated its fifth anniversary Saturday. Funded by the Shenzhen city government and run by the University of Hong Kong, the hospital became a test field for Shenzhen’s public hospital reform, bringing to Shenzhen and the rest of the mainland new practices in a wide range of fields such as hospital management and salary reform. The hospital is widely known for the prominent role of general physicians, package pricing and doctors who refuse to accept red envelops from patients.

2

Shenzhen PKU-HKUST Medical Center ranks second on the list. Jointly established by the Shenzhen Municipal Government, Peking University and Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) in March 2001, the center aspires for the industrialization of scientific research in medicine, biotechnology and pharmaceuticals. The center has set up several important labs and public service platforms.

3

The Shenzhen Municipal Health, Population and Family Planning Commission and Hong Kong’s Hospital Authority signed an agreement March 30, 2011, allowing the transfer of medical records of Hong Kong residents who are admitted to Shenzhen hospitals and would be referred back to Hong Kong for better continuity of care.

In January 2015, the health authorities of Shenzhen and Hong Kong agreed to a trial program that would allow Hong Kong senior citizens to use health care vouchers at the HKU-SZH. By the end of 2016, 7,954 such vouchers had been used at the hospital, involving a total amount of 1.69 million yuan (US$248,000).

4

C-MER (Shenzhen) Dennis Lam Eye Hospital, the first solely Hong Kong-funded hospital on the mainland, opened in Shenzhen in March 2013. Since then, a total of six medical institutions solely funded by Hong Kong investors have opened in Shenzhen.

5

Two top-notch Hong Kong medical teams have been introduced to Shenzhen hospitals as part of the city’s “3R Project,” which aims to introduce top medical experts and resources to Shenzhen.

On June 5, 2017, the HKU-SZH partnered with a team of spine surgeons from Queen Mary Hospital in Hong Kong to build a world-class medical center for patients suffering from spinal conditions in Shenzhen.

In 2015, Shenzhen No. 3 Hospital introduced an AIDS vaccine and immunotherapy research team led by Professor Chen Zhiwei with the University of Hong Kong.

6

The Shenzhen Center for Disease Control and Prevention signed a deal with a team led by academician B. Z. Tang with the HKUST on May 13, 2017 to cooperate in public health research.

7

A total of 116 students from higher learning institutions in Hong Kong have interned at the Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine Shenzhen Hospital since 2016.

8

Wellsoon, a traditional Chinese medicine clinic chain based in Shenzhen, has open 14 clinics in Hong Kong since 2011.

9

Staff members of Shenzhen health authority received training at the Chinese University of Hong Kong on public health and management of public medical institutions in September 2016, the first session of a training program.

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The two cities have maintained regular cooperation in health care. (Lin Min)