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Mechanisms currently in place have had limited impact on boosting Hong Kong’s doctor supply. This conclusion is especially
obvious when assessing the ratio of practising doctors to 1,000 population in various jurisdictions (OECD, 2021). The doctors
per 1,000 population ratio in Hong Kong (2.0) fares worse than well-developed regions in the world (OECD countries average at
3.5) and other comparable Asian jurisdictions, such as Singapore (2.5) (Food and Health Bureau, 2021; Census and Statistics
Department, 2021; Department of Statistics Singapore, 2021a, 2021b). Furthermore, while many jurisdictions have noted their
own doctor shortages, including the United Kingdom, which has placed all physician categories under their Shortage Occupation
List (SOL), Hong Kong would still need to hire a significant number of doctors to catch up to the current ratios observed in other
jurisdictions. In particular, Hong Kong would require an additional 10,776 doctors on top of its current doctor supply
to attain the 3.5 doctors per 1,000 population average ratio within OECD countries. Importantly, the shortfalls that
Hong Kong faces relative to other jurisdictions may be understated, as the OECD’s definition of practising physicians excludes
doctors who are i) licenced to practise but are currently in research posts or other positions without direct contact with patients,
ii) licenced but not economically active doctors, and iii) doctors currently working abroad (OECD, 2020).

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