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It is my great honour to have been selected as one of the 20 awardees of the UGC Targeted TPg Programmes Fellowships 2020/21. I received my qualification as a registered dietitian in the U.S. and have been working as a dietitian at a private oncology clinic since I moved back to Hong Kong. During my service, I noticed a number of challenges the Hong Kong healthcare system is facing. As a dietitian, I have been working closely along with physicians and other healthcare professionals to prolong and improve patients’ quality of life. Among the professional knowledge in public health I expect to gain from the HKU MPH programme, I am particularly interested in the concentration of health economics, policy and management. Being in a private medical institute, I have been in various administrative roles and I am aware of the utter importance of health management effectiveness. The medical resources in society are limited while the increase in population is not. I would like to acquire additional skills from the HEPM concentration to serve as a healthcare administrator in the sector. My personal mission is to increase health awareness and decrease health disparities for not only the patients that I am currently closely working with, but with a larger population, including the less fortunate in the community. Despite the pandemic situation, I could still easily acquire knowledge with the help of the faculties and connect with my classmates in a dynamic study environment virtually. I have been learning a lot not only during class times, but in group projects with peers from diverse background. I have built friendships with students from different professions and countries. Once again, I would like to thank HKU for providing me with the reward. Also I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to my family, mentors, classmates and professors for continuous support throughout my postgraduate journey

Hi, I am Rigil Yeung. I am doing a part-time MPH in HKU and working in a pharmaceutical company as a project manager. Prior to this program, I have received a PhD in Life Science and a BSc in Biochemistry (First Class Honour) from HKUST, with specialities on psychiatry and oncology. There are two main reasons for me to take this program. Firstly, I would like to dedicate myself in healthcare and pharmaceutical industry in the long run, and the MPH program will definitely help a lot for my career development. Besides, I hope I could develop my expertise and skillset in policy. Therefore, I pick HEPM as my concentration in this MPH program. I felt very honoured to receive the fellowship as I knew it is a merit-based award. The fellowship also recognizes my professional qualification and previous hard work, supports me to achieve further and motivates me to serve Hong Kong in the future. Due to COVID-19, all lectures are now conducted online. Still, I am happy to make some good friends from this MPH program. After the COVID-19 peak period, I hope the class will resume and I could meet my friends in the class. I believe this MPH program would help me to advance my career further. More importantly, equipped with knowledge and skills related to healthcare policy, I hope I could contribute further to Hong Kong in this area.

In this Webinar, Ms. Leontine Chuang (J.D.), CEO of the American Club Foundation (ACF), will be sharing about her career journey where she began in practicing corporate law and then moved into working in intergovernmental organisations and NGOs. Throughout her work, she has impacted the lives of many refugees and asylum seekers. Prior to joining ACF, Leontine has had extensive experience working for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, and the international NGO PILnet. Participants will have the opportunity to ask Leontine questions about her career and advice on building your career in global and public health. Details and Registration: Date: 8 Jun 2021 (Tue) Time: 5-6pm (HKT) Registration: https://hkuems1.hku.hk/hkuems/ec_hdetail.aspx?guest=Y&ueid=75525 Registration closes at 12nn on 7 Jun 2021.

Presented by the School of Public Health Professional Development Hub (SPH PD Hub), join us for a discussion exploring Public Health and Global Health Careers! In this session, we will chat with Dr Nason Tan (MBBS, MPH), Regional Operations Support Unit Director at Médecins Sans Frontières Hong Kong. Dr Tan will share his personal career journey in public and global health. He will also discuss his experience working with MSF and share his insights about the impact of and works of MSF both locally and globally. This is an interactive discussion where you will have the opportunity to ask Dr Tan questions you may have about careers in this field. About the Speaker: Nason Tan is a Malaysian physician with public health background. He is an alumni of HKU’s Master of Public Health (MPH) programme. He started his clinical career serving in rural Borneo and was attached with the flying doctor service. He subsequently left the government sector with Kuala Lumpur General Hospital being his last place of work. He then joined Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) in 2011 working in different capacity as a field worker, Board director, and currently as the Regional Operations Support Unit Director of MSF Hong Kong. Nason has done humanitarian missions in Ethiopia, Sierra Leone, Nepal, Cambodia, Indonesia, and Malaysia. He has managed outbreaks of Cholera, Lassa fever, severe Malaria and malnutrition emergencies. He has also done exploratory mission in Borneo, and coordinated a search and rescue effort for the Rohingya refugees in the 2015 Andaman Sea crisis which led to the founding of South East Asia Refugees Support Network. Nason was previously the MSF Hong Kong Board President. He represents this region’s voice in bringing awareness to the MSF movement on issues of Methanol poisoning, access to treatment for Hepatitis C, plight of the Rohingya refugees, and Planetary Health. In his personal capacity, he is actively involved with the under-privileged community such as refugees, poor urban and homeless folks, injecting substance users, sex workers, orang asli (indigenous tribes), and the rural population. He was also a part-time university lecturer and has provided training and coaching sessions to local NGOs and medical students on humanitarian crises, health needs assessment, sexual health, HIV and substance misuse advocacy, as well as communication skills. Moderator: Dr Polly Wong (view profile) Lecturer, School of Public Health, The University of Hong Kong Details and Registration: Date: April 29th, 2021 Time: 17:00 – 18:00 HKT Registration: https://hkuems1.hku.hk/hkuems/ec_hdetail.aspx?guest=Y&ueid=74591 Registration closes April 28th 2021 at 12 noon If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Dr Polly Wong by email at pollywong@hku.hk About Coffee and Career Series: We will invite professionals across different public health and global health employment fields to share their real-life experience from time to time. It will give you an exclusive chance to interact with the professionals, and also allow you to get the first-hand career information in the field. Stay connected with us at our Linkedin Page.

We are delighted to have Dr Wai-kit Ming sharing with us his career journey at the Coffee and Careers session on 26 February 2021. Speaker Bio Dr. Wai-kit Ming is an HKU MPH alumnus. He is one of the youngest researchers and currently the Head of Community Medicine at the School of Medicine and Public Health, the Assistant Dean of the International School at Jinan University, Guangzhou, China, and the Adjunct Professor of Sun Yat-sen University. While earning his MD and Ph.D. at Jinan University, he earned a master's from the University of Hong Kong and Harvard University. Following his postdoctoral training at the University of Oxford and Harvard University, he was a visiting research fellow at the University of Oxford and the National Centre for Perinatal Medicine Epidemiology in the United Kingdom. He served as the CEO of a medical device company and has 13 national patents for medical devices. As a public health physician, Dr. Ming’s interdisciplinary research spans different fields while maintaining a focus on population health. His research team has extensive interdisciplinary collaboration experience, including health and pharmaceutical economics, health technology assessment, real-world research, health policy, maternal-fetal medicine, and artificial intelligence medicine. He has had a long history of cooperation with the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and with some local universities on national-based clinical research projects. He was invited to be a doctoral thesis committee member of the University of South Carolina. Dr. Ming’s work revolves around COVID-19 research that has major population health impacts locally and internationally. He has had two scholarly papers published as covers of a journal and over 50 other scholarly papers published, mainly in JCR Q1 and Q2 journals. Please click below and watch the video of Dr Ming's sharing.

My name is Vincent. Protecting the health of community has always been my greatest wish and aspiration. I have been trying very hard to equip myself with healthcare related knowledge and skills, with a view to serving the public. In 2018, I obtained my nursing degree, and then I worked as a registered nurse in a public hospital in Hong Kong till now. Currently, I am taking the MPH program as a part-time student in the HEPM concentration. After working for two years, I could really feel that our healthcare system is overloaded. High bed occupancy, long service waiting time, healthcare staff shortage and high patient-to-nurse ratio are commonly seen among public hospitals, and they are threatening the quality and safety of the healthcare services our citizens are receiving. As a healthcare professional, I really want to do something about it and I know the root causes underneath the overloaded healthcare system are very complex. Therefore, I wish to acquire myself with more public health knowledge, particularly regarding the healthcare system, so that in the future I could contribute in shaping a better healthcare system, so as to promote the health of the community. I feel really grateful for being granted the UCG fellowship. Without the fellowship, I could probably not take the MPH program. So far, I do enjoy studying MPH in HKU, and it is a wonderful learning experience. I have come across classmates from diverse backgrounds (physicians, nurses, engineer, dietitians and etc.) and we share and learn from each other’s expertise, and it makes my learning journey more fruitful. Frankly speaking, I have not decided what to do next upon graduating from the MPH, but I am pretty sure I would like to make some contribution in the field of public health in the future. Once again, I would like express my gratitude to HKU and UGC for granting me the fellowship.

Hey all! I’m Manson, a HKU Med graduate and now an emergency room doctor by profession. It was a busy night shift which provoked me to learn more about MPH. As the gatekeeper of hospital, dashing around in a hectic environment is not uncommon. There exist multiple clinical problems to be dealt with, yet behind the scene is the bigger issue which carries much more impact – our healthcare system. This drives me to get out of the scope of clinical practice and explore what’s actually happening around us. The interaction between different domains of public health fascinates me. The diversified knowledge in public health echoes well with my career which emphasises on breadth. I’m more than honored to have received the UGC fellowships. It acknowledges the importance of public health in the complicated world nowadays and encourages me to pursue something new yet highly related in my career. You will definitely meet great people in MPH. Sharing from renowned academic staff bring us a high level of personal development. Groupmates from all walks of life can enlighten you and give you lots of insights and perspectives. I believe MPH will pave me the way in achieving the goal of a competent public health leader. As a stakeholder in the healthcare system, it is always my obligation to effectively practice public health, protect and promote health of all with ambition, drive and empathy. Dr Manson Chu MPH HEPM (Part-time, Year 1) Awardee of UGC Targeted TPg Programme Fellowships 2020/21

We are delighted to have Dr Alexander Ng sharing with us his career journey at the Coffee and Careers session on 5 January 2021. Dr. Alex Ng, Vice President of Tencent Healthcare. Alex is currently leading Tencent’s healthcare business. Tencent has already developed multiple products such as the wechat mini-app “Tencent Healthcare”, electronic health insurance and healthcare card, AIMIS (AI enabled clinical decision support system for medical images), Oncology Assistant (AI enabled triaging system to better match cancer patients to oncologists). Alex first started his career as a medical doctor where he was the chief resident at Middlemore Hospital in Auckland, New Zealand. He then moved to the US to become a strategy consultant with McKinsey & Company after completing the Master of Public Health at Harvard. After 9 years at McKinsey between US and China, where he co-led the Greater China Healthcare Practice, he joined the Gates Foundation as the deputy director of the China Country Office, responsible for the health and innovation portfolio. He is also serving as an advisor to WHO’s Digital Health Technical Advisory Group, and an honorary associate professor at University of Hong Kong’s Faculty of Medicine. Please click below and watch the video of Alex's sharing.

Dr Janice Johnston, Associate Professor, Deputy Director (Education) and Head of Division of Health Economics, Policy and Management of School of Public Health, LKS Faculty of Medicine of The University of Hong Kong (HKUMed), was awarded the University Distinguished Teaching Award 2020. Dr Johnston has been teaching at the School of Public Health for almost 30 years. She has been a pioneer and an advocate of public health education, as well as the guiding spirit and backbone of our Master of Public Health (MPH) programme, the flagship programme of our School and the largest taught postgraduate programme in HKUMed. She has also been an engine for developing our School’s new undergraduate programme, Bachelor of Arts and Sciences in Global Health and Development. The award is a recognition of her dedication to teaching, her tireless efforts to make learning enjoyable and challenging, and the impact that she has brought to her students and public health education. The School extends our heartfelt congratulations to Dr Johnston. To get to know more about Dr Johnston, please view her biography, or a video featuring her journey as an educator.

We are delighted to have Mr Matt Friedman sharing with us the journey and experiences spanning his career at the Coffee and Careers session on 27 Nov 2020. Matt is an international human trafficking expert with more than 30 years’ experience in international public health work with USAID and United Nations in more than 40 countries. He is currently the CEO of The Mekong Club, an organization of Hong Kong’s leading businesses that have joined forces to help end all forms of modern slavery. Mr. Friedman offers technical advice to numerous governments, banks, and corporations working to eliminate all forms of modern slavery and is the author of twelve books. Please click below and watch the video of Matt's sharing.

We are delighted to announce that 3 of our own MPH graduates are among Honours recipients for the 2020 Honours List and JP Appointment by the Government: Dr NG Wing-yiu, George (MPH, 2005) awarded the Chief Executive's Commendation for Community Service De CHAN Kam-hoi (MPH, 2011) awarded the Chief Executive's Commendation for Community Service Dr LEUNG Yiu-hong (MPH, 2005) awarded the Chief Executive's Commendation for Government/Public Service We are proud of our graduates for their dedication to public and community service in Hong Kong. Congratulations to our awardees, and all the best in your continued endeavours!

1. MPH concentration and expected graduation year Health Economics, Policy & Management, 2018 2. Job title and Community Outreach Works Board Director of Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) Hong Kong Founder of HIV prevention ‘PrEP & PEP Malaysia’ Co-founder of ‘South East Asia Refugees Support Network’ Medical Coordinator of ‘Impian Malaysia’ Advocate for human rights and health needs of LGBT, injecting substance users, sex workers, homeless folks and refugees (Seksualiti Merdeka, PT Foundation, Malaysian AIDS Council, Pertiwi Soup Kitchen and Health Mobile Services) Sexual Health Physician Part time lecturer (International Medical University, Malaysia) Freelance writer 3. Tell us your story! How did you become interested in public health, and how does public health relate to your current line of work? I often find myself to be wanting more in anything that I do. Whether it is for personal growth, interests, or passion, there is always a burning desire to learn. Whether it is for defending human rights and access to health needs, there is also an unquenchable thirst to see social justice is met. My line of work deals mainly with planning, organising, coordinating, negotiating and executing a wide variety of activities crucial to the delivery of health services / programmes for our underserved populations. No doubt, I have accumulated learned experiences from many trials and mistakes along the way, somehow I still feel inadequate. I believe a solid foundation in the field of public health; in particular health economics, policy and management; would enrich my knowledge immensely. I can then apply this knowledge and execute my work more effectively and efficiently. I also enjoy sharing knowledge, training, and imparting wisdom to our younger generations as means to build up their capacity. To sum up simply, the personal quest to be a holistic clinician, well-rounded humanitarian, and efficient Board director in addition to leaving a meaningful legacy behind one day has therefore brought me here. 4. How have you applied what you have learned within the MPH program to your line of work? Prior to coming HK, I have informed the local HIV AIDS Concern organisation that I’d wished to volunteer and build up the capacity of its frontline staff while studying full time in HK. I also have responsibility serving as a Board director and involved in various committees or working groups serving different dossiers for our MSFHK office and the wider international MSF movement. I have been privileged to be able to apply the many things that I have learned thus far (health policy, leadership and management, economics, financial management, behavioural theories, health needs assessment, organisational theory and change, communication and human resource strategies) and executing them in my capacity. 5. What advice would you give to current MPH students who will be entering the workplace for the first time? Observe and learn from everyone in the workplace regardless if the person happens to be the office cleaner or CEO. Be mindful and practise ‘respond and not react’ to whatever situations you find yourself in. The moment you are reacting, you let your emotions override whatever rationality you may have. That sudden emotional reaction could be more damaging both to your colleagues and yourself. Stay calm and come back with a civil constructive response instead. Be respectful, courteous, culturally sensitive and stay humble. Humility, patience, persistence, teamwork spirit, desire to learn and improve, receptive to constructive criticisms, high EQ, and be appreciative of your colleagues are all virtues to cultivate, to have, and to last for a lifetime. 6. Any other wisdom to share with the readers? If you are able to enjoy your work as a passion, it won’t come across as a job. That is a major key to staying motivated in whatever you are doing. And for me personally, the more I give, the more I get in return, unexpectedly in abundance. My happy mantra, ‘Good life – assume nothing, do more, need less, smile often, dream big, laugh a lot, and be grateful.’ Know a fellow HKU SPH student or alumni with an interesting story? Let us know! Email Ms Shereen Ayub (sayub1@hku.hk) to nominate your MPH peer for the next 'Meet Our Students and Alumni' blog series.