University Review
Connecting and serving society
Serving to build a healthy society
Operating the territory's first Chinese Medicine Hospital
In June 2021, HKBU was awarded the service deed for the operation of the first Chinese Medicine Hospital (CMH) in Hong Kong by the HKSAR Government. Situated in Pak Shing Kok in Tseung Kwan O, the CMH is expected to be completed in 2025, with service to commence in the second quarter of the year. The CMH will become an important platform for leading the development of Chinese medicine (CM) in Hong Kong, and also a base for CM teaching, clinical training, and scientific research. Its establishment will also enable the multi-party collaborations with CM institutions in mainland China and overseas.
The CMH will establish six major specialist areas, including internal medicine, surgery, gynaecology, paediatrics, acupuncture and bone-setting. In addition, it will serve as a practicum base for Chinese medicine and pharmacy in Chinese medicine students, and as the city's hub for Chinese medicine clinical teaching and scientific research. Overall, the CMH will enhance Hong Kong's global role in the globalisation and standardisation of Chinese medicine.
Helping to rehabilitate stroke patients
Stroke is the fourth leading cause of death in Hong Kong, killing about 3,000 people each year. With a generous donation from the Bank of China (Hong Kong), HKBU and the Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui (HKSKH) Welfare Council launched the three-year "BOC-HKBU Chinese Medicine Community Stroke Prevention and Rehabilitation Scheme" in October 2020. The Scheme provides free Chinese medicine rehabilitation treatments to 500 eligible low-income stroke patients, and it also offers free preventive treatments and tracking assessments to 1,200 people who have a medium to high risk of having a stroke.
Under the Scheme, experts from the School of Chinese Medicine (SCM) formed treatment teams and formulated a six-month treatment programme for stroke patients, who will receive free Chinese medicine, acupuncture and massage treatments two to three times a week, up to 72 times in total.
In terms of stroke prevention, SCM clinics and the HKSKH Welfare Council's elderly centres set up health management stations for stroke patients, with SCM offering training to suitable older people who will then go on and serve as Elderly Health Ambassadors for stroke prevention. In addition, a mobile app was developed to help the elderly assess their risk of stroke, and seminars and workshops were held to advise post-stroke patients and their caregivers on the kinds of diets, exercises and tui-na which can facilitate recovery.
Strengthening Chinese medicine services for the elderly
With the support of the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, the School of Chinese Medicine (SCM) has enhanced two service programmes, namely the "Elderly Sponsorship Scheme of the Jockey Club 'Embrace Health' Chinese Medicine Programme" and the online "Chinese Medicine Video Enquiry Service" offered by the HKBU–Jockey Club Chinese Medicine Disease Prevention and Health Management Centre. It is expected that about 18,000 elderly people will benefit from these programmes.
The Trust also supported SCM in setting up a "Mobile Chinese Medicine Body Constitution Assessment Station". The mobile unit is well equipped with the Chinese Medicine Four Diagnostic Instrument to accurately determine the body constitution of patients. Since it was put into service in October 2020, it has been to various locations in close proximity to elderly centres to provide free tests and detailed reports as well as complimentary soup packs and herbal tea bags to senior citizens aged 60 or above.
Mobile app encourages a healthy lifestyle
The Dr. Stephen Hui Research Centre for Physical Recreation and Wellness at HKBU jointly launched the MusFit Action mobile app with the Department of Orthopaedics & Traumatology at The Chinese University of Hong Kong in November 2020. The launch of the app represents an important milestone in terms of the development of the Jockey Club Mus-Fit Action project, which was inaugurated in 2019 to promote a healthy lifestyle in the community and enhance citizens' quality of life.
The MusFit Action mobile app serves to guide and motivate participants to continue with their exercise programmes and maintain a healthy lifestyle. It features a digital health adviser function that enables users to easily obtain accessible health and exercise information as well as sport and health knowledge. It also provides workout demonstration videos for users to follow at home and a class schedule of the project's exercise courses for eligible new participants' reference and registration.
Serving to build a harmonious society
Promoting social inclusion for people with disabilities
Students of the General Education Capstone course "Sports and Disability in the Hong Kong Chinese Media" published a collection of articles on the city's most accomplished para-athletes to promote the social inclusion of people with disabilities. This newly launched course is the first news writing course in Hong Kong that focuses on sport and para-sport. With the support of the Hong Kong Paralympic Committee & Sports Association for the Physically Disabled, students from various disciplines interviewed the para-athletes and compiled their powerful stories into a book, which was published in March 2021, and they also produced videos to promote inclusiveness in society and give the public a more nuanced understanding of disabled athletes.
Sharing domestic helpers' stories
Under a multi-year project "HK Voices: Life As a Domestic Helper", which was initiated by Mr Dean Cox and Ms Robin Ewing (Department of Journalism), students and graduates of journalism reported and produced a multimedia documentary collection that showcased the personal stories of some of Hong Kong's more than 300,000 foreign domestic helpers. More than 100 stories were collected, including first-person audio reports, photo essays, feature stories and short documentary videos. These unique stories of their work and daily lives in Hong Kong form a larger ethnographic tapestry of what it means to leave behind family and friends in search of a better income and a more stable future.
The project was exhibited in November 2020, during which mobile photo and video workshops were held for more than 60 foreign domestic helpers, and they learnt professional skills from the journalism students.
Fostering sustainable fashion
Under the Jockey Club Responsible Consumption Programme, which was organised by the Department of Marketing with the support of The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, an educational TV series was produced to promote sustainable fashion.
The four-episode TV series delved into the concept of sustainable fashion with the TV hosts. In the show, the marketing students participated in an array of workshops, visits and challenges to explore ways of practising sustainable fashion by reducing purchases, upgrading and recycling. The TV series was broadcast on local TV channels.
Preparing young students for the future
HKBU launched the CLAP-TECH Pathway Project (CLAP-TECH) with a generous donation of HK$136 million from the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, and it aims to prepare students for "new collar" jobs in the society of tomorrow. The initiative provides an unconventional curriculum, and it maps a direct path for students through secondary school, tertiary education and their career via a tripartite collaboration between HKBU, industry partners, and secondary schools in Hong Kong.
Two parallel tracks focusing on information and communication technology and creative media were launched in 2020 and 2021 respectively, and to date, 12 pilot secondary schools and over 18 industry partners have joined CLAP-TECH. Students undertake a wide range of meaningful workplace learning activities such as mentorships, company visits and projects, equipping them with practical skills and making them both academically and career ready. Such activities are accompanied by applied learning courses in schools and the higher diploma curricula of HKBU.
Lifting the spirit of the community
Students from the Department of Music continue to cheer up the community during the pandemic with their music. To celebrate the 250th anniversary of Beethoven's birth, the Collegium Musicum Hong Kong and the HKBU Symphony Orchestra held the Beethoven 250 concert series in November 2020 and June 2021, respectively. The recordings of both concerts were added to the Live from HKBU YouTube channel, which was set up during the COVID-19 outbreak for the public to enjoy the classical music performed by the two ensembles.
The HKBU Symphony Orchestra also took part in the online concert "In Loving Memory of Leslie Cheung" to cherish the community's fond memories of superstar Leslie Cheung. The concert, which aired internationally on 1 April 2021 on multiple platforms, attracted a global audience of 20 million people.
Engaging the HKBU communtity
Joining hands to support graduates and students
To strengthen the bonds between members of the University community, HKBU launched BUhub in October 2020, an initiative under Project SEED (which stands for Student Engagement, Enrichment and Development). It is an interactive online platform that seamlessly connects students with over 131,000 alumni, 500 employers and mentors, and 3,000 staff members to secure timely and much-needed support for graduates in terms of their career development amid the economic downturn.
BUhub has opened up more than 30,000 job vacancies and 2,000 internship opportunities for fresh graduates and students. In addition, it serves as a powerful network and place where brilliant minds can converge, and it cultivates innovative and creative talent. BUhub also inspires exciting research ideas and ignites out-of-the-box thinking in a range of cutting-edge projects through collaboration and the exchange of ideas, and it is developing creative research projects that will change our society.
Staying connected with alumni
The alumni community of HKBU continued to grow over the year. As of June 2021, there are over 131,000 alumni who are supportive of their alma mater's development. Two new alumni associations were also formed, namely the HKBU Alumni Theatre and HKBU Alumni Runners, bringing the total number of alumni associations to 76.
Despite the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic, the University strived to stay in touch with alumni. The annual Homecoming Day 2020 was held with the theme "BUnited". Apart from the Alumni Investiture Ceremony, which was broadcast online, one of the highlights of the Homecoming Day was the "United Digitally" activity, the first-ever digital alumni meet-up. Over 1,300 alumni from all parts of the world reunited online during 21 sessions of online gatherings, and they learned about the University's latest achievements and developments from members of the senior management team and faculty members.
A fundraising project entitled "Village – CARE Campaign" was launched in July 2019 to encourage alumni and members of the public to donate to the University, with the aim of providing the best student experience on campus and equal learning opportunities for needy students. As of 30 June 2021, a total of HK$7.305 million had been raised or pledged.
Staunch support from the community
Thanks to the tremendous support received from the University community and donors, the University attained a magnificent result in the Eighth Matching Grant Scheme launched by the HKSAR Government. By the close of the Scheme in March 2021, the University had successfully secured a record-breaking sum of HK$950 million, comprising HK$662 million in donations and HK$288 million in matching funds. In terms of the total sum, HKBU ranks fourth among the 10 participating tertiary institutions. The remarkable fundraising total will certainly provide a solid bedrock of support for the University's long-term advancement.
The University is deeply grateful to the following supporters for their generous contributions:
