Fewer people have sought help at accident and emergency (A&E) departments since new public healthcare service fees took effect, the Hospital Authority said on Thursday.

The authority revealed that A&E units of public hospitals saw an average of 4,592 patients every day in the first week of the new pricing regime, down 618 attendances when compared to last year's daily average.

It noted that the hospitals "have been able to concentrate resources to serve critical and emergency patients" in a timely manner.

All critical patients were able to be treated immediately, while the vast majority of emergency cases were being tended to within 15 minutes of arrival.

The percentage of urgent patients receiving care within half an hour rose from 82.7 percent last year to 88.8 percent this year, while the average waiting time for these cases dropped from 22 minutes to 19 minutes.