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The annual Career Talk on 2020/21 Hospital Authority Resident Training Programme co-organised by the Hong Kong Academy of Medicine (HKAM) and the Hospital Authority (HA) took place on Saturday, 9 November 2019 at the Hospital Authority Head Office Building. The talk began with the highlights of the 2020/21 Centrally-coordinated Recruitment Exercise for Resident Trainees, delivered by Dr. Sharon Wong, Chief Manager (Medical Grade) of HA Head Office. Then, it was closely followed by an Introduction on Postgraduate Specialist Training delivered by Prof. Gilberto Leung, Vice President (Education & Examinations) of HKAM. And there were information booths hosted by representatives from different specialties opened for interns’ enquires. Many thanks to Dr. Edmond Chan, Dr. Alfred Kwong, and Dr. MK Lee for joining me to host the Family Medicine booth. There were HKCFP video recordings, publications, and pamphlets on display, and they were made available for participants to take home. |
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Interns visited our booth enquiring about the training contents and duration, the latest development of Family Medicine, primary healthcare, and the future career pathway as a Family Physician, and last but not least the number of available training posts. We were most delighted that a lot of interns had expressed interests in considering Family Medicine as a career choice. I look forward to meeting them again soon during the forthcoming recruitment exercise for Family Medicine resident trainees.
We were most honoured to have the opportunity to co-organise this year’s Hong Kong Primary Health Care Conference (HKPCC) with the Hong Kong Academy of Medicine. It was unfortunate that the Academy of Medicine of Malaysia (AMM) and the Academy of Medicine, Singapore could not join us as originally planned. The Conference was renamed as The Hong Kong Academy of Medicine Conference and the Hong Kong Primary Care Conference 2019. The joint Conference was successfully held on 6 – 8 December 2019 with the tremendous support from all the participants and guests, amounting to nearly 600 strong. The theme was “People-Centred Care: Towards Value-Based Innovations”. As the title implied, the conference aimed at addressing the future directions of healthcare improvement and development in provision of patient-oriented clinical care. The scientific programme of the Conference encompassed a wide range of clinical practice situations. The clinical symposia covered topics from acute to chronic conditions and from artificial intelligence in healthcare to voluntary health insurance. Mr. Ricky MK Chu, Chairman of Equal Opportunities Commission, Hong Kong, delivered the Halnan Lecture titled, “Knocking Down Barriers to Inclusive Healthcare”. Dr. Donald Li, President of World Organisation of Family Doctors (WONCA), shared with us the concepts behind the setting up of District Health Centres (DHCs) and the challenges on how DHCs could help fulfil the delivery of comprehensive healthcare needs to the people and community in Hong Kong in the plenary session titled, “Enhancing Primary Care in Hong Kong through the Provision of Integrated People- Centred Primary Care in District Health Centres”. We must also express our appreciation towards Prof. Doris Young, Division of Family Medicine, National University of Singapore, for her unfailing support and sharing with us during the HKPCCs over the years. The Conference was indeed a valuable opportunity for healthcare experts and practitioners from different specialties across the healthcare sectors to share their experiences and insights. I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to the Organising Committee, Scientific Subcommittee and the Conference Secretariat for their hard work and contributions in planning and arranging such an inspiring platform for exchange.
While the Year 2019 is about to end, the new Year 2020 is around the corner. As a sneak preview of 2020, I would like to share with you that the WONCA Asia Pacific Region Conference 2020 is going to be held in Auckland, New Zealand from 23 - 26 April 2020. Abstracts are now open for submission. Plan your trip and register to the Conference early so as to enjoy the early bird discounts which are open till 20 December 2019.
Wishing you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year ahead!
Dr. David V K CHAO
President