“Government clinic appointment” covers two very different processes depending on which clinic you mean. Family Medicine Clinics (still commonly called General Out-patient Clinics) and Specialist Out-patient Clinics are booked in completely different ways — here is exactly how each one works.
It depends on why you're being seen. If you have a stable chronic condition (such as diabetes or hypertension) under a Family Medicine Clinic's care, your next follow-up appointment is arranged by clinic staff after your consultation — you don't book it yourself. If you have an episodic illness (such as a cold or flu), you can reserve a consultation slot in the next 24 hours through the FMC Telephone Appointment System or the ‘Book FMC’ function in the Hospital Authority's mobile app, HA Go. Since 15 August 2026, the telephone system only accepts calls from phone numbers with caller ID enabled, to protect patient privacy.
There is no single number — each clinic's telephone appointment line is different. The authoritative source is the Hospital Authority's own List of Family Medicine Clinics, which lists each clinic's address, contact number and operating hours; the HA Go app shows the same information. ok.med lists every Family Medicine and Specialist Out-patient Clinic with its address and district, but we do not carry phone numbers — the Hospital Authority's own facility data doesn't include them either.
You need a referral letter — from a Hong Kong registered doctor, issued within the past three months. You can then submit a new case booking application through ‘BookHA’ in the HA Go app, or in person at the clinic with the referral letter, your identity document, and proof of residential address. A nurse and then a specialist screen the referral and classify it as Urgent (Priority 1), Semi-urgent (Priority 2), or Stable (Routine); urgent and semi-urgent cases are, as far as possible, seen within 2 weeks and 8 weeks respectively. Stable-case waiting times vary a great deal by specialty and hospital cluster — see our public hospitals and specialty pages for the reported figures.
For Family Medicine Clinics, episodic booking slots are pooled across a network of clinics, so you are not limited to one specific clinic when you call or book through HA Go. For Specialist Out-patient Clinics, stable-case patients may book a new case appointment at the SOPC of their choice, though the Hospital Authority may recommend a clinic closer to your home if you need frequent follow-up care.
Browse Family Medicine and Specialist Out-patient Clinics →These links go directly to the Hospital Authority's own pages — not to ok.med.
Caller-ID requirement effective 15 August 2026 (ha.org.hk). Specialist Out-patient triage targets and reporting method per the Hospital Authority's waiting-time FAQ, last updated 6 November 2020.