Missionaries: And a Hospital

Abstract

The British acquisition of Hong Kong Island as a colony was viewed by some quarters, including missionaries, as having gained a foothold from which to trade and also to preach, heal and educate the teeming masses in China. Soon, mission schools were opened. The idea of a medical school was also raised intermittently. In 1887, the Alice Memorial Hospital was opened with financial backing from Dr. Ho Kai and, the same year, the Hong Kong College of Medicine for Chinese started operations within the hospital’s premises, with Dr. Patrick Manson as the first dean.