A Hong Kong scholar said on Thursday that the public has to be better informed about the city’s advance medical directives plan and welcomes the setting up of a legal framework to help eliminate uncertainty and controversy over the issue.
The comments came as Legco proceeded yesterday with the first and second readings of a government bill to establish a legal framework for advance medical directives, which enable people to set out their wish not to have certain medical interventions while dying.
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Speaking on a radio program this morning, Roger Chung Yat-nork, an associate professor of public health and primary care at CUHK, said he welcomes the legal framework as it helps eliminate uncertainty and controversy over the plan and offers better protection for patients and medical staff.
Chung said the directives set up by patients will clearly state under what conditions resuscitation is not to be performed, such as when the patient is in a coma due to a specific cause.
The legal framework will also safeguard medical staffers should they choose to perform resuscitation out of goodwill, he added.
He noted that authorities may need to strengthen training for medical staffers to ensure that those who would interact with terminally ill patients are fully aware of the plan.
Meanwhile, Chung emphasized the need for public education to ensure that the public understands that these instructions are established by terminally ill patients themselves and are not simply based on personal preferences or perceived intentions.
