Health Services for Students: DH Urges Parents to Enroll Before New School Year Begins

DH reminds parents to register children for three key services in new school year: annual health assessments, school dental care and seasonal influenza vaccinations

As students are going to head back to class for the new school year, the Department of Health (DH) today (August 27) reminded parents not to miss the three "must have" services prepared by the DH for students, including the Student Health Service, the School Dental Care Service (SDCS) and the Seasonal Influenza Vaccination School Outreach Programme (SIVSOP). The DH also urged parents to pay closer attention to their children, actively listen to them and provide appropriate support. Parents should serve as role models and help establish a regular daily routine, so that their children can embrace school life with a positive and proactive mindset and address challenges in the new school year.

Student Health Service

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Children and adolescents undergo rapid physical and psychological development during their primary and secondary school years. To safeguard healthy growth, the Student Health Service (SHS) under the DH provides comprehensive annual health assessments for all primary and secondary students in Hong Kong. Services include growth monitoring; screenings for vision, hearing and scoliosis; physical examination; health assessment questionnaires on health behaviours and psychosocial well-being; individual health counselling; health education; and mop-up vaccinations. Some potential health issues of adolescents may sometimes be difficult for their parents to detect in daily life. Through a series of assessments, the DH helps parents understand their children's health conditions early on and identify potential health risks. The Special Assessment Services of the SHS under the DH has optometrists, audiologists, dietitians and clinical psychologists who provide further assessments for students. Students in need are also referred to specialist clinics or other appropriate institutions for assessment and follow-up services if necessary. This comprehensive approach safeguards students' physical and mental health.

Participation in the health assessment service each year enhances students' health awareness and health literacy, helping them better manage their health conditions, and cope with the physical and mental challenges of adolescent development, academic pursuits and growing up.

During the 2024/25 school year, approximately 19 000 students (accounting for 4.3 per cent of the total student population) who received the DH's annual health assessment service were referred to the Hospital Authority for further assessment due to various health issues. Reasons for referral mainly included growth and development, such as weight (obesity or being underweight), vision, hearing and scoliosis.

School Dental Care Service

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The SDCS encourages students to pay attention to their oral hygiene and develop good oral care habits to prevent dental disease. Primary school students and students aged under 18 years old with an intellectual disability and/or physical disability studying in special schools in Hong Kong can join the SDCS. Enrolled students will be scheduled for an annual dental check-up and basic dental treatment at a school dental clinic near their school.

In the 2024/25 school year, approximately 310 000 students participated in the SDCS and over 90 per cent of participants were rendered dentally fit after receiving the services. The Government's Report of Oral Health Survey 2021 revealed that, compared globally, the tooth decay status of permanent teeth among 12-year-old students in Hong Kong was at a highly satisfactory level, with a very low proportion of untreated decayed tooth and almost no missing teeth, demonstrating the effectiveness of the SDCS in prevention, early detection and early treatment of tooth decay.

Enrolment methods

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The DH has distributed school-specific enrolment QR codes to primary and secondary schools in Hong Kong. The QR codes will be effective on September 1. By then, parents or students only need to scan the QR code provided by their school to join the above two services at the same time. They should complete and submit the required information online by September 14.

In the 2025/26 school year, a total of 293 000 primary students participated in both the SHS and the SDCS, accounting for approximately 91 per cent of all primary students in Hong Kong. Among secondary students, 230 000 participated in the SHS, with a participation rate of approximately 66 per cent.

The DH earnestly encourages parents to enrol their children in the above two services mentioned above. For enquiries regarding the enrolment methods, please contact the service units listed below or visit the websites:

Student Health Service Tel: 2856 9133

Website: www.studenthealth.gov.hk

School Dental Care Service Tel: 2928 6132

Website: www.schooldental.gov.hk

Seasonal Influenza Vaccination School Outreach Programme

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To provide convenience to both students and parents, the Government has introduced a new Electronic Consent Form (e-consent form) feature through the eHealth mobile application in the upcoming 2026/27 SIVSOP. Starting from August 17, parents can use the e-consent form to submit consent forms for their children to receive seasonal influenza vaccinations (SIV) under the SIVSOP. This new measure makes it easier for parents to submit consent forms for their children before the start of the school year and streamlines the administrative procedures for schools and healthcare service providers, enabling students to receive SIV earlier and safeguard their health. For details, please refer to the press release issued by the DH earlier.

Source: AI-found images

LD further enhances Heat Stress at Work Warning system

The Labour Department (LD) announced today (August 27) that with effect from tomorrow (August 28), the Heat Stress at Work Warning (HSWW) system will be further enhanced to better safeguard the occupational health of employees working under hot weather or in high-temperature environments.

To cope with the extremely hot weather due to climate change, the LD has promptly reviewed and enhanced the existing HSWW system on top of its original functions to enhance the warning alert under abnormally high temperatures.

The enhanced system will introduce two new conditions for triggering different levels of HSWW. First, when the "Extremely Hot Weather" Special Alert issued by the Hong Kong Observatory (HKO) is in effect, the monitoring threshold for triggering a higher level of warning will be lowered, enabling the early activation of a higher level of warning. Second, when the measured temperatures generally over Hong Kong reach 35 degrees Celsius or above, apart from lowering the monitoring threshold for triggering a warning, the warning level will be raised by one level automatically (i.e. from Amber Warning to Red Warning, or from Red Warning to Black Warning), in order to alert the public of the health risks of heat stress when working under abnormally high temperatures. For details of the enhanced system, please refer to the annex.

Since the establishment of the HSWW system in 2023, the LD has maintained communication with stakeholders and listened to their views. The LD has also continuously reviewed and enhanced the system as appropriate by making reference to information and advice provided by other departments, including the HKO, to suit the actual circumstances of Hong Kong. Since 2024, when the HKO issues the "Extremely Hot Weather" Special Alert, the LD will issue an Amber Warning even if the index has not reached the level for issuing the HSWW, to take into account the hot weather conditions. From this April, in addition to using the Hong Kong Heat Index measured at the monitoring station at King's Park, the LD has added the indices measured at the other nine locations as issuing criteria of the HSWW, enhancing the coverage and sensitivity of the system. After the launch of the enhanced system, the LD will continue to review the operation of the system and make improvements, such as studying whether to include other monitoring data, for example, the Wet Bulb Globe Temperature, as one of the indicators of the system.

The enhancement of the system will not impose additional work for employers and employees. They should continue to pay heed to the level of the HSWW issued by the LD and make corresponding work arrangements. Employers shall conduct heat-stress risk assessments for employees working in hot environments, and based on the assessment results and the risks of heat stroke faced by employees at different levels of the HSWW, implement the heat stroke prevention measures recommended in the Guidance Notes on Prevention of Heat Stroke at Work, including rescheduling work periods, setting up shade covers, providing ventilation and heat dissipation equipment, and reminding employees to replenish their water and rest in a timely manner. In addition, employers should keep assessment records and explain the assessment results to employees and give appropriate instructions to ensure that employees take an appropriate amount of rest according to the assessment results to minimise the heat stress at work.

The LD also encourages and motivates employers to arrange on-site heat-stress risk assessments, taking into account the special circumstances of their work nature and workplace (such as geographical locations and specific working environments). They can also seek assistance from occupational health professionals, and take appropriate preventive measures based on the results to reduce the risk of heat stroke at work.

The LD reminds employers that they may face prosecution if they endanger the health of employees without providing suitable heat stroke prevention measures. The LD also enhances inspections and enforcement actions targeting workplaces with a higher risk of heat stroke to safeguard the occupational safety and health (OSH) of employees.

Employees should also pay attention to their own physical condition and inform their employer if they feel unwell. When necessary, they can call the LD's OSH complaint hotline at 2542 2172 or submit an online OSH complaint form (eform.cefs.gov.hk/form/ld0001/en/) to seek assistance from the LD.

The LD disseminates the HSWW levels to members of public through multiple channels, including the "iAm Smart" and "My Observatory" mobile applications, government press releases, the HKO's official website, and major media platforms. For the HSWW and related guidelines, please refer to the LD's thematic webpage: www.labour.gov.hk/eng/news/prevention_of_heat_stroke_at_work.htm.

Source: AI-found images