Day Care for Peace of Mind

The Central Surgery provides international calibre expertise for patients opting for day surgery procedures.

Going to the hospital can be a daunting exercise. For many surgical procedures, hospitals are often the only choice for peace of mind. With the Department of Health’s Code of Practice for Day Procedure Centres under the recently gazetted Private Healthcare Facilities Ordinance (Cap. 633) coinciding with the opening of The Central Surgery eight months ago, there is now a real choice when opting for simple surgeries.

According to Dr David Kingsbury, Medical Director with The Central Surgery, “approximately 70 percent of all surgeries can be done as day surgery,” he explained. “They are a big part of health care overseas but not in Hong Kong. I got together with fellow doctors and approached Ramsay Sime Darby (RSD) to help build The Central Surgery. Together, we have the experience of RSD and the support of local doctors.”

RSD is a joint venture between Ramsay Health Care, established in Sydney in 1964, and Sime Darby, established in Malacca in 1910. RSD operates in 400 hospitals and clinics internationally, with The Central Surgery its first investment in Hong Kong. “Patients seek international brands, yet Hong Kong hospitals are mostly local ones,” Kingsbury noted. “We spent four years searching for a building in Central with the technology capable of housing an international medical facility. Our 7,000 square foot facility has modern air conditioning, adequate water, drainage and floor loading, underground ambulance pick up in case of emergencies, and complete privacy for our patients. It is our flagship that we hope can turn into a regional hub. Hong Kong has always been a city connected to the world and with 20 percent of our patients come from the Greater Bay Area, we intend to develop that market.”

Kingsbury feels that the level of training that Hong Kong doctors receive provide RSD reassurance that they are operating at an international standard. “Our philosophy is to build a local team by identifying those with solid backgrounds, and who we can offer the opportunity to send overseas for further training,“ he stated proudly. “Our most important asset is our people and 100 percent of our staff is from the local Hong Kong community.”

As a ground-breaking new business, Kingsbury considers InvestHK an indispensible resource. “We have been in contact with InvestHK for four years,” he recalled. “We needed to connect to different elements such as insurers. InvestHK helped bring all that together for us.”