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Lo Hoi-ying

One of the greatest wishes of Fung, an elderly patient hospitalised at Hong Kong’s Caritas Medical Centre for the past three months, is to see her pet cat, Silver.
The internal medicine patient said it would be a “precious memory” if she could be reunited with her 13-year-old calico cat.
“I miss Silver very much. My daughter will show me videos, but if I can see it face to face, I can hug and kiss it and say goodbye,” she said.
“If we can have a final reunion, I can tell it to be obedient and live a good life.”
In line with the government’s push to adopt pet-friendly policies, the Hospital Authority announced on Tuesday that it would allow special arrangements for palliative care patients to spend time with their pet cats and dogs.
It said it would adopt a more humane approach to be flexible in allowing personal pet visits to wards, especially for patients with impaired mobility.
Dr Annie Kwok Oi-ling, chairwoman of the authority’s palliative care central committee, said the statutory body also had an ongoing initiative where volunteer pets could interact with patients regularly, adding that the scheme had shown positive results.
“Pets are no longer considered just animals but as a family member and provide an important pillar of emotional support to patients,” she said.
Kwok also said hospitals would arrange a time and place for the patient to meet their pets “as soon as possible” after considering each case, with the person’s and the animal’s condition, as well as the size of the pet, being factors.
She recounted a case she had helped with a few years ago, in which a late-stage patient requested to spend some time with her pet, which she described as a family member, in her final days.
“One old lady in her seventies said her final wish was to see her toy poodle and even had a photo of her pet by her bedside,” Kwok said.
“We arranged for them to meet in a small private room, and the patient’s daughter brought the dog in a pet carrier so she could spend time with her dog for around half an hour.”
Kwok said the woman died within a week of the visit.
“If going one small step further can help the patient and their family feel better, we will try our best to accommodate them,” she said.

For now, Fung will have to satisfy her desire to cuddle with Silver by spending time with “Dr” Goofy, a 13-year-old waggy-tailed specialist prescribing joy and laughter.
Goofy, a pug mix, is part of a team of about 200 volunteer “pet doctors” that make their rounds at wards under a collaboration with public hospitals.
Before joining the team, Goofy had to undergo a rigorous selection process and even pass a six-month-long “internship”.
Goofy’s owner, who only gave her name as Angela, said that the animals’ temperament and behaviour were some of the most important factors when selecting a pet doctor.
“They are assessed on their behaviour around other pets, strangers and whether they listen to commands,” she said.
“These pet doctors provide positivity and emotional comfort and lighten the mood in the wards, which might help patients’ conditions improve.”
Doctor Pet, the volunteer group Angela and Goofy are part of, has provided 200 pet doctors for the authority’s scheme.
Their performance is assessed at every assignment, and they have to renew their licences every year.
Kwok said the authority had arranged for about 50 such visits to the geriatric, paediatric and palliative care wards in the past two years and was planning to make such arrangements more frequent.
Having pet doctors visit had become a highlight for patients, their families and medical staff, as their presence lit up the wards, she said.
“There is much more joyous laughter, and the pets become a new topic of conversation for patients, their family members and our healthcare staff,” she said.
“Usually, late-stage patients are adverse to taking photos. But when these pets visit, family members will photograph them together, becoming a precious memory in their final moments of life.”


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A perfect purr-scription? How ‘pet doctors’ can help Hong Kong hospital patients

Patient Fung spends time with “Dr” Goofy at Caritas Medical Centre. Photo: Sun Yeung

Dr Annie Kwok (left) has said the ongoing initiative has shown positive results. Photo: Sun Yeung

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News

Hong Kong

Health & Environment

Hospital Authority to allow palliative care patients to spend time with pets and already has volunteer animals to comfort those in need


Hospital Authority to allow palliative care patients to spend time with pets and already has volunteer animals to comfort those in need.


A perfect purr-scription? How ‘pet doctors’ can help Hong Kong hospital patients

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Hospital Authority to allow palliative care patients to spend time with pets and already has volunteer animals to comfort those in need

Hospital Authority to allow palliative care patients to spend time with pets and already has volunteer animals to comfort those in need