Free district-by-district health checks for elderly

The Home and Youth Affairs Bureau and its district care teams kicked off a collaboration with the University of Hong Kong on Tuesday to provide free health screenings across Hong Kong. The scheme – which includes eye checks for the elderly, seminars and family health information – began in Western with 250 residents. The goal is to reach some 5,000 people across 18 districts within a year. Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs Alice Mak said the collaboration combined the professional knowledge of HKU's medical school with the community networks built up by district care teams. The school said doctors and professors would lead students in performing the check-ups. "We appreciate this opportunity to allow our professional students – be they from the medical, nursing, pharmaceutical, Chinese medicine, or public health fields – to get together," said the dean of the school, Lau Chak-sing. "They will help the public learn more about common diseases, eye problems and child development. It's important for us to prevent diseases and illnesses." The school said the scheme's next stop, scheduled for late this month, would be in Yuen Long. Edited by Edmond Fong