Henry Tong: Keep learning in the course of public service

Businessman Henry Tong has a lifelong commitment to helping the community since his childhood and – after serving hospital governing committees (HGCs) – is in no doubt that hospitals are under a great pressure. With decades of experience in public service and education management, Henry joined the Hospital Authority (HA) board at the end of last year and sees a shortage of talent and the long waiting times for outpatient services as his key concerns. He believes performing public service requires passion and a willingness to learn, so as to bring a more effective and practical impact.

Promoting medical-educational-social collaboration

Explaining why managing hospitals is such a challenge, Henry points out, “90% of inpatient services are provided by HA, so you can imagine the enormous pressure on the services. That is why I particularly appreciate the dedication and professionalism of our frontline medical staff.” Apart from improving hospital services under the sustainability framework like the expansion of public-private partnerships, he also suggests promoting medical-educational-social collaboration with the help of social resources to relieve the pressure on the public healthcare system.

“In the past, most people talked about medical-social collaboration, but in fact the educational element is just as crucial,” he explains. “Health education activities can be conducted in primary and secondary schools and even kindergartens. Meanwhile, corresponding physical and psychological support can be provided to students in need in the community and on campus so that illnesses can be identified earlier, thereby easing the pressure on hospitals.”

Many businesses set Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to establish an overall development plan and direction and to improve performance. Henry also set KPIs when he was the Chairman of the Committee on Home-School Co-operation, dealing with issues such as parent education. He says he will work towards setting similar KPIs in his new role but will begin by learning the system. “I will start by equipping myself in the first two years,” he says. “In the past, I dealt with individual clusters and hospitals but now I am dealing with the whole public healthcare system, which requires a more comprehensive understanding of different aspects before I can make useful suggestions.”

Henry strongly believes there is no end to the learning journey in public service in order to contribute multi-disciplinary strengths. “Many members of the HA Board and HGCs have valuable experience in their own professions such as architecture, surveying, and business,” he reflects. “Training courses about how hospitals operate would definitely aid members having a full grasp of healthcare policies including the 10-year Hospital Development Plan and the Primary Healthcare Blueprint, such that they can master a wider range of healthcare issues.”