The Hospital Authority (HA) has reminded patients of public hospitals and clinics that its electronic medical certificate system will be launched on Monday.

The HA said patients can download their electronic sick note through the authority’s HA Go app, which will be encrypted with a designated QR code for verification purposes.

Benny Ku from the HA's Information Technology and Health Informatics Division said both electronic and paper sick notes will be given to patients at the initial stage, but the ultimate plan is to go paperless in the future.

Ku said the new arrangement is particularly beneficial for patients who undergo remote consultations because they’d be spared from having to pick up their sick note from their hospital or clinic, or having to wait for the certificate to be mailed to them.