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Highlights of the Year 2019-20

Manpower Support - Training Programmes & Other Measures

  • Enrolled Nurse Training Programme for the Welfare Sector
    To alleviate the shortage of nurses in the welfare sector, SWD has commissioned the Open University of Hong Kong to provide a total of 920 training places in 4 consecutive years from 2017-18 under their two-year Enrolled Nurse (General)/Enrolled Nurse (Psychiatric) Training Programmes. The third cohort commenced in September 2019. The training programmes are fully funded by the Government. Participants are required to sign an undertaking to work for 2 consecutive years in the welfare sector upon completion of the training programme.
  • Navigation Scheme for Young Persons in Care Services
    The Navigation Scheme for Young Persons in Care Services was launched in July 2015, providing a total of 1 000 training places in several years starting from 2015-16 to encourage young persons to join the elderly and rehabilitation care services. As at the end of March 2020, a total of 1 158 trainees were recruited under the scheme and 447 of them graduated.

    SWD has continued to provide a total of 1 200 additional training places within 5 years starting from 2020-21 and has rolled out enhancement measures, which include expanding the age range of trainees from 18 to 25 at present to 17 to 29, reducing the working hours per week for trainees from 44 at present to 40 for them to further their studies more effectively, and raising their salaries and training subsidies, with a view to attracting more young people to join the care services in the social welfare care sector. The operating agencies started recruiting trainees under the enhanced scheme from February 2020.
  • Innovation and Technology Fund for Application in Elderly and Rehabilitation Care
    SWD continues to implement the “Innovation and Technology Fund for Application in Elderly and Rehabilitation Care” to subsidise elderly and rehabilitation service units in the procurement, rental or trial use of newly developed technology products so as to improve the quality of life of service users and alleviate the burden and stress of care staff and carers.
  • Wi-Fi Service
    SWD, with the allocation from the Lotteries Fund, launched a four-year pilot project providing Wi-Fi service to around 1 350 service units operated by subvented organisations under SWD from January 2020 in a gradual manner, so as to encourage them to make use of technology products to improve elderly and rehabilitation services. SWD will also provide Wi-Fi service to 180 welfare facilities which it operates.

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