Ambulance Facility in Hong Kong
Emergency and Non Emergency ambulance services in Hong Kong are provided by four main organizations in Hong Kong which are a mix of public and private institutions:
- Hong Kong Fire Services Department
- Auxiliary Medical Services
- Hospital Authority
- St. John Ambulance Association
All operators manning emergency hotlines will be able to speak English.
The Hong Kong Fire Services Department
The Hong Kong Fire Services Department ambulance services can be accessed by dialing the 999 hotline or the Fire Services Communication Centre at 2735 3355. These ambulance services are provided for emergency services. For prompt dispatch service the caller should follow the guidelines:
- Explain the situation
- Provide details of the location of the incident
- Description of condition and symptoms of the patient
- Contact details
This ambulance service is directly related to the fire service and operates from 35 depots throughout the territory. In the event of an emergency you can dial 999 or a hospital directly and they will dispatch an ambulance to you immediately. The contact details of the hospital closest to you can be found using the links below.
Public Hospitals
http://www.ha.org.hk/
Private Hospitals
http://www.dh.gov.hk/
The Hospital Authority
The Hospital Authority’s non-emergency ambulance service serves mainly aged patients who are being discharged from in-patient treatments from public hospitals and at Accident and Emergency departments. These patients are usually unable to make their way home and require help.
Patients in need of such service may make their requests direct to the staff at the clinics or hospitals they attend who then usually use the computer system to make bookings for them.
Hong Kong St. John Ambulance Brigade (St. John Ambulance)
The St John’s ambulance brigade provides free ambulance services for Hong Kong citizens from its three depots. These are 24 hour emergency services though the agency also offers non-emergency services. Eleven fully equipped ambulances are run by the Brigade and stationed in three depots, attending to emergency calls from residents of Hong Kong Island, Kowloon and the New Territories on 24-hour basis. The emergency number is 1878 000.
St. John Ambulance also provides non-emergency services for a charge for patients of private hospitals transfer from home to the hospital at a charge of HK$300 one way exclusive of tunnel charges. Service applications have to be made at least one day in advance.
Hong Kong: 2576 6555
Kowloon: 2713 5555
New Territories: 2639 2555
http://www.stjohn.org.hk/en/index.shtml
Auxiliary Medical Services
The Auxiliary Medical Service provides non-emergency ambulance services to the public. The main recipients of this service are those patients who need medical care and transfers from the out-patient clinics of the Hospital Authority as well as private hospitals. The timings of the service are from Monday to Sunday (including Public Holidays) as from 0800 to 1800 hours and its scope covers Hong Kong Island, Kowloon, New Territories and Lantau Island.
Applicants are required to complete an application form AMS 52 which has to be endorsed by the staff at the relevant hospital or centre and then faxed to 2866 5397 which is the number of the Non-Emergency Ambulance Transfer Service Office of the Auxillary Medical Service no less than one working day in advance and then confirmed by phone.
Auxillary Medical Service hotline:- 2567 0705.
