New Hospital Authority chief Henry Fan must learn about frontline operations, Hong Kong medical experts say
- Former executive councillor will be third authority chairman with no health care experience
- Some board members welcome appointment, but medical professions say he must learn quickly about ‘operational loopholes’
The incoming chairman of the Hospital Authority needs to quickly learn how frontline operations work in Hong Kong’s overstretched public hospitals, local medical professionals have said.
The appointment of Henry Fan Hung-ling, a former executive councillor and businessman, was officially announced on Thursday, with the authority applauding his ““wealth of experience and professional knowledge in corporate management”.
Fan, 71, begins his tenure as chairman of the 29-member governing board on December 1. He is the older brother of executive councillor Fanny Law Fan Chiu-fun and is a member of the chief executive’s Council of Advisers on Innovation and Strategic Development.
Fan also sits on the boards of the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority and the Financial Services Development Council.
Succeeding orthopaedist John Leong Chi-yan, Fan will be the third authority chairman who has no previous health care experience. The others were Anthony Wu Ting-yuk, a veteran accountant, and Peter Woo Kwong-ching, a billionaire developer and entrepreneur.
Charlie Yip Wing-tong, an authority board member and a former executive for the Alliance of Patients’ Organisations, welcomed Fan’s appointment.
“I can’t share details of our board meetings, but Fan appeared to have lots of passion for his work,” Yip said. “He raised profound questions, made solid comments and was patient in listening to others. This management style is important for the authority.”
Leong, the outgoing chairman, described Fan in an email to staff as a “prominent leader with remarkable management and corporate governance experience”.
“With his professional expertise and outstanding leadership, I am sure [the Hospital Authority] will benefit greatly and be brought to new heights” Leong wrote.
Fan told the Post that he would comment on his appointment after his term begins.
Dr Arisina Ma Chung-yee, president of the Public Doctors’ Association, said she was worried that Fan does not have enough experience to lead the authority, which manages all Hong Kong’s public hospitals.
I can’t see that he fully grasps the operational loopholes in public hospitals and the needs of vulnerable patients
“I can’t see that he fully grasps the operational loopholes in public hospitals and the needs of vulnerable patients, such as those who are aged and disabled,” Ma said.
“Hong Kong is facing an explosive expansion of its ageing population while facilities in its public hospitals are also getting old and less able to meet service needs.”
He added: “The Hospital Authority can no longer fight the battle alone.”
Ma said Fan’s business background might help the authority improve its administrative efficiency but she would take a wait-and-see attitude on the new chairman.
“I expect him to have a longer warm-up period than Leong and I hope he can spend more time in public hospitals and listen to the frontline staff,” Ma said.
Lau Hoi-man, a registered nurse and an officer of the Hong Kong Allied Health Professionals and Nurse Association, also expressed doubts about Fan. She wondered if he was the right choice to manage the large amount of public money allocated to the authority.
Fan was the managing director of Citic Pacific, one of the first mainland firms in Hong Kong, in the 1990s and was appointed to the Executive Council in 2005.
In 2008, Citic’s six-week delay in announcing its HK$14.7 billion (US$1.8 billion) losses in foreign-exchange dealings drew criticism from the public. Fa resigned from Citic soon after the incident.
In April 2017, the Market Misconduct Tribunal cleared Fan and other Citic executives of misconduct, and said they did not release misleading information over the foreign-exchange loss.
Dr Joseph Lee Kok-long, a health care sector lawmaker, said Fan must make it clear how the authority would use its resources to improve Hong Kong’s public hospitals and address its manpower shortage.
“Meanwhile, feedback from frontline staff must be heard,” he said.
Additional reporting by Gary Cheung and Alvin Lum
