Hong Kong public healthcare’s strange quality incentives

A strange incentive of the Hong Kong public healthcare system is that for some things it's actually faster and more convenient than the private system while still also being incredibly cheap.

A few years ago, I fell between the stairs and pontoon in the Causeway Bay Typhoon Shelter and scraped open a large part of my shin. The yacht club lifeguard cleaned me up and had me take a taxi to the Ruttonjee Hospital Accident & Emergency department.

After a quick triage and twenty minute wait, Ruttonjee A&E patched me up. The doctor instructed me to go to the Sai Ying Pun government clinic every other day for the next several weeks to have my wound cleaned and bandage changed.

The public clinic was a five minute walk from home and I could go to the clinic any time within opening hours. On each visit, I was in and out within 5 minutes and the nurses were all very kind and efficient. The cost was only HK$19 (US$2.52) per visit. Because of their amazing care, I have basically no visible scar on my leg.

I felt kind of bad using public health resources when I can afford private but have no idea how one would replicate the quality of care and convenience in the private system. Private system would probably have told me to just clean your wound and change my bandage myself at home and charged me a dear sum for that not very helpful advice.