CE officiates at Groundbreaking Ceremony of Chinese Medicine Hospital and Government Chinese Medicines Testing Institute
2.6.2022

The Chief Executive, Mrs Carrie Lam, officiated at the Groundbreaking Ceremony of the Chinese Medicine Hospital (CMH) and the Government Chinese Medicines Testing Institute (GCMTI) today (June 2), marking a new milestone for the development of Chinese medicine (CM) in Hong Kong. Guests from the Mainland and Macao also joined the ceremony online simultaneously. The two flagship projects are expected to be completed by 2025, with services to be commenced in phases. The Groundbreaking Ceremony was conducted in hybrid format. Mrs Lam officiated at the ceremony at the construction site of the CMH and the GCMTI in Pak Shing Kok, Tseung Kwan O. She was joined by the Secretary for Food and Health, Professor Sophia Chan; the Permanent Secretary for Food and Health (Health), Mr Thomas Chan; the Director of Health, Dr Ronald Lam; the Government Chemist, Dr Lee Wai-on; and the Director of Architectural Services, Ms Winnie Ho, to wish the two construction projects a smooth start. Addressing the ceremony, Mrs Lam said, "I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to the nation for its staunch support and the help being extended by different Mainland ministries in the planning stage of the CMH and the GCMTI and in employing CM during the fight against the epidemic. Today's Groundbreaking Ceremony heralds the start of a significant page for Hong Kong's CM development, with the two flagship projects serving as a strong impetus." Professor Chan said she is thankful for the unfailing support of the Hong Kong CM sector and relevant stakeholders for the two projects, especially the support and valuable feedback from the Chinese Medicine Development Committee. She said, "Over the years, the Government has all along been committed to promoting the development of CM in Hong Kong and has been fostering the CM policy on various fronts, with a view to bringing the strengths and uniqueness of CM into full play, strengthening its role in the promotion of public health and primary healthcare services, and enabling members of the public to receive appropriate medical services. "The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government will continue to advance CM development through measures such as talent training, research, facilities enhancement and promotions under the support of the Chinese Medicine Development Fund, so as to generate an additional driving force for CM development." Member of the Leading Party Members Group of the National Health Commission and Secretary of the Leading Party Members Group and Vice Commissioner of the National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine Professor Yu Yanhong; Member of the Leading Party Members Group and Deputy Commissioner of the National Medical Products Administration Mr Zhao Junning; Vice Minister of the Health Commission of Guangdong Province and Director of the Traditional Chinese Medicine Bureau of Guangdong Province, Professor Xu Qingfeng; the General Director of the Guangdong Provincial Medical Products Administration, Mr Jiang Xiaodong; and the Director of the Health Bureau of the Government of the Macao Special Administrative Region, Dr Lo Iek-long, gave their blessings to the CMH and the GCMTI projects online. The President of Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU), Professor Alexander Wai; the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the HKBU Chinese Medicine Hospital Company Limited, Mr Albert Wong; the Chairman of the Advisory Committee of the GCMTI, Mr Paul Fan; and the representative of the building contractor, Executive Director and Vice President of China State Construction International Holdings Limited Mr Hung Cheung-shew, also joined the ceremony at the construction site today. At the ceremony, Mrs Lam and other guests placed symbolic items of CM in a treasure chest of blessings, in anticipation of the passing on and promotion of CM culture by the CMH and the CGMTI to open a new chapter for Hong Kong's CM development. The treasure chest of blessings will be displayed to the public in the CMH after its opening. Commissioned by the Government and to be operated by HKBU under a public-private-partnership model, the CMH will be developed into a local flagship CM institution and a change driver promoting the development of services, education, training, innovation and research of CM in Hong Kong. The CMH will provide clinical services of pure CM, CM playing the predominant role and integrated Chinese-Western medicine, covering both inpatient and outpatient services. The CMH will also support the clinical placement of the three local universities and serve as a clinical training platform for CM practitioners. With regard to the promotion of CM research, the CMH will collaborate with universities as well as educational bodies in Hong Kong, the Mainland and overseas to conduct clinical research and other CM-related research. The GCMTI, to be managed by the Department of Health, will specialise in testing and scientific research of CMs, with focuses on research and establishing internationally recognised reference standards on the safety, quality and testing methodology of CMs through state-of-the-art technology. The GCMTI will continue to promote the standardisation and internationalisation of CMs. It will also empower the CMs industry through transfer of testing technology to strengthen quality control of products, with a view to establishing the brand image of Hong Kong's CMs as well as developing Hong Kong into an international hub for testing and quality control of CMs. The Government Laboratory will also take part in setting up laboratories in the GCMTI for CMs-related work. Located in Pak Shing Kok in Tseung Kwan O, the CMH and the GCMTI cover 4.29 and 1.72 hectares of land respectively. The two projects are planned and co-ordinated by the Architectural Services Department, and will be delivered by the contractor through a design-and-build contract. The CMH will be the first multi-storey hospital project adopting the modular integrated construction technology. The Groundbreaking Ceremony of the CMH and the GCMTI is one of the celebration events of the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the HKSAR. Ends/Thursday, June 2, 2022 Issued at HKT 15:38 NNNN