In 2003, Hong Kong was hit hard by SARS, an unknown infectious disease that threatens the life of Hong Kong people. Against such a backdrop, the Internet Professional Association (iProA) and the Department of Health jointly organised the "IT in Health Forum" in July 2003 under the initiatives of "DO IT Campaign" of the Legislative Councillor Hon. Mr. SIN Chung Kai.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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(Above: Inauguration Ceremony of IT in Health in 2003)

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This forum provided a platform for knowledge and experience exchange among IT and health professionals in the areas of disease tracking and control. One of the highlights of the event was the publication of the "White Paper: The IT Infrastructure of Hong Kong's Centre for Disease Control (CDC)", which pinpointed the importance of data sharing and development of local expertise in public health informatics, and aroused much professional interest in the subject.  Subsequent implementation of the "Communicable Disease Information System" for disease surveillance by the Hong Kong SAR Government is crucial to Hong Kong in view of the threat of the avian flu.

Recognizing the important role of information and communication technologies in support of health care, the Fifty-Eight World Health Assembly called on its member states to implement plans for eHealth services for cost effective health administration, to mobilize multi-sectoral collaboration for determining evidence-based eHealth standards and norms, and electronic public health information systems for surveillance of and rapid response to disease and public-health emergencies.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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(Above: The inaugural eHealth Forum in 2006 is a signature event of the eHealth Consortium.)

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To further capitalize on awareness generated in 2003, to further promote the use of IT in the health care industry, to move forward with important recommendations of the White Paper and to raise public awareness to the call of the Fifty-Eighth World Health Assembly, Internet Professional Association (iProA) and Hong Kong Society of Medical Informatics (HKSMI) came together and founded the eHealth Consortium organization with supports from the Hospital Authority, the Department of Health and the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer.  eHealth Consortium was established by such public-private-partnership which aims to promote collaboration between health care and IT professionals in both private and public sectors for health care services with enhanced accessibility, quality and effectiveness for a healthier tomorrow for everyone in Hong Kong.

We invite all health care and IT professionals in Hong Kong to take part in this effort. We believe that through public-private-partnership and co-operation between health care and IT professionals, we will be "Building a Healthy Tomorrow" for the people of Hong Kong as envisioned in the Hong Kong SAR government's recent consultation paper on health care reform.