Hong Kong to match high-risk residents with dentists via District Health Centres from 2027
Director of Health Ronald Lam said District Health Centres will pair high-risk residents with dentists from next year. The announcement came at an oral health festival. Lam also noted 30 per cent of kindergartens have yet to join the preschool dental scheme.
District Health Centres (DHCs) will begin matching residents with high-risk oral health problems with dentists from next year, Director of Health Ronald Lam Man-kin said on Sunday.
Lam made the remarks at the Department of Health’s “Oral Health for Life” festival, which marked National Love Teeth Day. The event featured booth games, information stations and dental health exhibitions.
In his speech, Lam described dental health as a “lifelong duty” and urged residents to build good oral care habits from childhood. He warned that dental problems such as periodontal disease often show no early symptoms, and called on people to brush twice daily and undergo regular check-ups.
Lam said the city’s first five-year plan and the latest policy address set out reforms to promote oral health, in line with national strategies to improve life-cycle health services. Government services will cover residents across the life cycle, from children aged up to three to those up to 18, with annual oral screening and preventive care available from a young age.
However, he noted that about 30 per cent of kindergartens had yet to enrol in the preschool dental scheme and called on the rest to join so it could reach full coverage. For adults, Lam stated that the DHCs will begin matching high-risk residents to dentists in their districts from next year. The department will also partner with various organisations to provide outreach services to elderly residents in care homes and to people with disabilities.
Speaking at the same event, Department of Health consultant in charge of dental services Kitty Hse Mei-yin said the government is offering broad and basic care to the many, while ensuring deeper care for those most in need. Hse reported that more than 23 non-governmental organisations were providing oral health outreach to kindergartens, while 32 were supporting tens of thousands of grassroots residents, including the homeless, via the Community Dental Support Programme (CDSP). For elderly care homes, she added that 11 organisations had formed 25 outreach teams, with authorities planning to expand basic community dental services next year.