HKBH: An oasis of peace for patients on life’s final journey

Hong Kong Buddhist Hospital (HKBH) has served the public for more than half a century. It has evolved from a hospital with basic equipment in the 1970s to a well-developed hospital nowadays. HKBH focuses on two specialties: Medicine and Orthopaedics & Traumatology. The Palliative Care Unit under Medicine Department provides comprehensive services to patients with advanced cancer and their caregivers, making the hospital a sanctuary in a bustling city, providing dignified physical and spiritual care for the terminally ill patients during their final journey in life.

Founded by the Hong Kong Buddhist Association (HKBA) in 1970, the hospital’s mission is to provide holistic care to patients and the community based on Buddhist compassion and philosophy. The Palliative Care Unit of HKBH was inaugurated in 1993 in response to the increasing demand for hospice services, and became the only hospital in the Kowloon Central Cluster to provide palliative services at the time. Katrina Hui, Advanced Practice Nurse, has joined HKBH since 2013, following the admission of one of her family members. She was moved by the caring atmosphere of hospital and joined Palliative Care Unit afterwards. “With a few specialties, we can focus on developing more comprehensive and dedicated services to address the physical and psychological needs of our patients, particularly in the Palliative Care Unit,” she says.

Accompany patients face death with dignity

Another staff who has worked for a long time, Operation Assistant Chu Man-wah, has joined HKBH since 1997. She says, “babies were warmly welcomed at birth. We hope that patients will also be cared for and accompanied when they are dying, so they can face their illness peacefully.”

Many patients are emotional when facing the end of their life. One distraught patient was in bad mood and ill-tempered with Man-wah. She didn’t fight back but calmly comforted the patient. The patient eventually accepted the illness and Man-wah was a companion in her final minutes – one of those experiences that gave Man-wah a sense of purpose and belonging, and made her decide to return to work after retirement. Many patients in the Palliative Care Unit end up dying due to their deteriorating condition. Katrina and Man-wah both believed that it is a blessing to be able to take care of people, so they pursued further education to improve their ability to treat patients.

Buddhist way to comfort body and soul

In addition to providing treatment, HKBH also provides spiritual care for patients, with regular visits from monastics and HKBA members. Ven Jue Yao of the HKBA says they provide support to patients and caregivers by assisting them in convert, prayer, and recite sutras, as well as providing advices on funeral arrangements when needed. HKBA member Elaine Wan says the services allow the hospital to achieve its goal of ‘healing the sick with medicine, healing the people with heart’, and serve patients and the community in a holistic manner.

Video of ‘Our stories, our fond memories’: HKBH