Community Care in China and Hong Kong

Since the 1970s and especially in the last decade, community care has become a fashionable approach to social care in many societies. This paper explores community care experiences in China and Hong Kong by examining the points of convergence and dissimilarity. A preliminary framework for cross-cultural comparison is proposed which comprises three dimensions: (1) the conceptions of community care adopted by these two societies, their evolution and their implications for social policy; (2) the origin, background, and common factors underlying the community approach; and (3) tentative achievements, including pitfalls. The writer concludes that community care in these two places face common issues and a central theme that unites them is the principle of privatisation which both embrace as a pragmatic means to meet the needs of their citizens.