Free Dental Check-ups for 750 Seniors: Celebrate China's 75th Anniversary in Hong Kong

Health Bureau and HK Dental Association jointly organise Healthy Teeth for Elderly Activity in celebration of 75th anniversary of founding of People's Republic of China

As a celebration of the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, the Health Bureau (HHB) and the Hong Kong Dental Association (HKDA) are jointly organising the Celebrating the 75th Anniversary of the Founding of the People’s Republic of China - Hong Kong Dental Association Healthy Teeth for Elderly Activity to provide free oral check-ups for 750 elderly persons. Persons aged 60 or above may sign up for the activity at District Health Centres (DHCs) or DHC Expresses (DHCEs) across the 18 districts in Hong Kong from tomorrow to Thursday (November 12 to 14).

The Government has been attaching great importance to citizens' oral health, with an emphasis on oral health being an integral part in enhancing their overall health. Regular oral check-ups and personalised oral hygiene guidance are effective means to prevent dental diseases, with a view to achieving early identification and timely treatment, thereby retaining natural teeth and maintaining the quality of life.

The HKDA rallied the voluntary support of over 100 registered dentists in Hong Kong for this activity to provide 750 individuals aged 60 or above each with a free session of oral check-up and consultation as well as necessary X-ray services subject to dentists' clinical diagnosis, thereby encouraging the elderly to develop a habit of receiving regular oral check-ups.

The 750 quotas will be allocated by drawing lots. Interested individuals aged 60 or above can obtain and submit the ballot form at DHCs or DHCEs across the 18 districts in the city from tomorrow to Thursday. They can check the ballot results between November 26 and December 21 at the DHCs or DHCEs where they submitted the ballot form. Successful applicants will also receive a call from the dentist or dental clinic concerned for notification of the date and time of the oral check-up.

The 750 successful applicants will be matched with dentists by the HKDA and scheduled for oral check-ups between this December and March next year.

For more details of the activity, members of the public may call the HKDA hotline at 2262 3902 from 9am to 6pm from Monday to Friday (excluding public holidays).

Meeting attendance of members of District Councils in 2024

The Home Affairs Department (HAD) made the following clarifications today (January 2) regarding certain media reports on the meeting attendance of the current-term members of the District Councils (DCs) in 2024:

(1) The current-term DC members were diligent in their work, with over 98 per cent of 470 members having attended all DC meetings or were only absent with the DC's consent; over 90 per cent having attended all committee/working group meetings or were only absent with the DC's consent. Aside from attending DC meetings, each DC member on average attended 28 committee/working group meetings;

(2) all DC members fulfilled the requirement under the Performance Monitoring Guidelines for Members of the DCs (the Guidelines), i.e. attendance rate of not lower than 80 per cent and no DC members were in violation of the requirement; certain reports were incorrect in stating that some DC members were in violation of the Guidelines due to their absence at meetings since absence at an individual meeting was not a violation in itself; and

(3) for the purpose of calculating attendance, the Guidelines stipulate certain reasons for absence that would be consented by the DCs, including sickness and attendance at another meeting or an activity on behalf of the DCs etc. If a DC member were absent from meetings due to the aforementioned reasons with the DC's consent, the absence would not affect his/her attendance rate. If a DC member were absent from meetings due to other reasons (i.e. personal matters), the absence would be counted towards his/her attendance rate.

​The HAD hoped that media outlets and members of the public would have an accurate understanding of DC members' attendance situation at meetings. The current-term DC members' attendance rate at meetings was the highest amongst all previous terms, which fully demonstrated DC members' efforts and work in improving governance at the district level.