What to prepare before a specialist appointment: documents, reports, medicine list, eHealth consent and fee questions
Before seeing a specialist, prepare your identity document, a referral letter (if any), previous test reports and images, a list of the medicines you are taking and your insurance details, and when booking ask about the consultation fee, medicine charges and test fees. If the clinic has joined eHealth, you can give sharing consent so that the doctor can view your electronic health record.
What should I bring?
| What to bring | Why |
|---|---|
| Identity document (Hong Kong Identity Card, passport, Exit-entry Permit for Travelling to and from Hong Kong and Macao, etc.) | To verify your identity at registration and for insurance claims |
| Referral letter (if any) | A referral letter is needed to book a new appointment at a Hospital Authority specialist outpatient clinic; some benefits under the Voluntary Health Insurance Scheme Standard Plan (for example specialist's fees and prescribed diagnostic imaging tests) require a written recommendation from the attending doctor, and the insurer can ask for a referral letter or the doctor's statement on the claim form as proof |
| Previous test reports and images (for example on a disc) | So that the doctor knows which tests you have already had |
| A list of the medicines you are taking, or the medicine bags, and a record of drug allergies | The Department of Health reminds patients to let the doctor know which medicines they are taking when they see a doctor |
| Insurance card, policy or pre-approval documents | Needed when using insurance or direct billing |
| Past medical records, surgical notes and pathology reports (if you have had a tissue sample taken) | So the doctor understands your history; if you have had surgery or a biopsy, bring the relevant reports |
| A list of questions you want to ask the doctor | So you don't forget what you wanted to ask during the visit |
How can the doctor see your eHealth records?
eHealth is an electronic health record platform developed by the Government that allows two-way sharing of records between public and private healthcare providers; participation is voluntary, and anyone holding a valid identity document can join.
On registering, you are taken to have given sharing consent to the Department of Health, the Hospital Authority, the Primary Healthcare Commission and healthcare providers managed by the Government or the Hospital Authority, whose healthcare professionals may view your records only when you are under their care and they need to know; a private doctor or healthcare provider can view them only after you give sharing consent.
Ways of giving sharing consent include during online registration (up to three providers), the eHealth mobile app, the 24-hour telephone hotline, and in person or by submitting a form; when phoning a healthcare provider that has joined eHealth to book, you can also use an ‘authorisation code’ to authorise it in advance to view your records to prepare for the consultation.
There are currently 11 categories of sharable information, including allergies and adverse drug reactions, diagnoses, operations and other medical procedures, medicines, and laboratory and radiology reports; information outside the sharable scope is not shared, for example some detailed consultation notes.
What to ask before and at the appointment
What to ask differs by moment. For insurance in particular, rather than only asking whether the clinic accepts your insurance, ask whether your policy covers this consultation and the tests that may follow — the payment methods a clinic accepts and whether your policy provides cover are two different things.
| When | What you can ask |
|---|---|
| Before you book | Which specialty the doctor is in and whether they have experience treating this condition; the first-visit and follow-up fees; what payment methods are accepted; whether a referral letter or reports must be submitted when booking |
| At or after the visit | Which further tests are needed given your situation, what each is for and roughly how much; whether a test can be done as an outpatient or needs admission; whether a quote is an outpatient or inpatient price and whether it includes the radiologist's reporting fee, the doctor's fee and drugs; if surgery or admission may follow, whether an estimate can be given first; which reports and images to bring if you want a second opinion |
| With your insurance intermediary | Whether your policy covers this specialist consultation and the tests that may follow; whether a GP or specialist referral letter is needed; whether pre-authorisation is required before a test, day procedure or admission; whether the insurer pays the provider directly (cashless) or you pay first and claim; which documents the clinic or hospital must provide for a claim; whether there is a cashless service and a list of applicable doctors, clinics and hospitals |
What should non-Hong Kong residents note?
eHealth accepts registration with travel documents issued by China or other countries or regions (for example a passport) and documents such as the Exit-entry Permit for Travelling to and from Hong Kong and Macao, while holders of a Hong Kong Identity Card must register with the identity card; the ‘Cross-boundary Health Record’ function of the eHealth mobile app can authorise healthcare institutions outside Hong Kong specified by the Health Bureau (for example designated hospitals in the Greater Bay Area) to view your eHealth records; the function by which designated institutions outside Hong Kong deposit records into the ‘Personal Folder’ is available only to users registered with a Hong Kong Identity Card.
You can check on the Department of Health's Register of Private Healthcare Facilities whether a private hospital, day procedure centre or clinic is licensed or exempted.
Bring reports and images of tests done outside Hong Kong; if a report is not in Chinese or English, we suggest asking the clinic first whether a translation is needed.
Common misconceptions
‘A private doctor can automatically see my public hospital records’: no. A private healthcare provider can view your eHealth records only after you give sharing consent.
‘eHealth has my entire medical history’: no. eHealth shares only specified categories of information, and some detailed consultation notes are outside the sharable scope.
Frequently asked questions
What should I bring to my first specialist visit?
Your identity document, a referral letter (if any), previous test reports and images, a list of the medicines you are taking or the medicine bags, and your insurance card or pre-approval documents.
How can a private doctor see the reports from my public hospital tests?
If the doctor's healthcare provider has joined eHealth, you can give that provider sharing consent, for example in the eHealth mobile app, or authorise it in advance with an ‘authorisation code’ when phoning to book; the doctor can then view records within the sharable scope.
Can non-Hong Kong residents register with eHealth?
Yes. Anyone holding a valid identity document can join, and eHealth accepts travel documents issued by China or other countries or regions (for example a passport) and documents such as the Exit-entry Permit for Travelling to and from Hong Kong and Macao.