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Empowering the next generation of health innovators

27 Jun 2023

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Professor William Cheung (left) and Dr Wendy Huang (centre) introduce the Bachelor of Social Sciences (Hons) / Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Innovation in Health and Social Well-Being programme. First-year student Nicole Lee (right) shares her learning experience and her aspirations.

 

First-year student Nicole Lee, who had never studied Information and Communication Technology in secondary school, didn’t expect herself to be able to learn programming quickly. Now she is keen to apply the computing skills she has acquired to develop solutions that can improve people’s health and well-being.

“I’ve always been interested in learning about health-related topics. With advances in health technologies, I’m excited to see how new innovations will change the future of healthcare,” she says.

Nicole is one of the students in the first cohort of the Bachelor of Social Sciences (Hons) / Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Innovation in Health and Social Well-Being programme. Launched in the 2022/23 academic year, the transdisciplinary programme aims to nurture the next generation of health leaders – who understand health and social well-being issues, are capable of working across different disciplines, and keen to leverage new technologies to make a difference.

Where health and innovation meet

In Hong Kong, one of the pressing issues faced by the health sector is the rising demand for healthcare services brought about by an increasingly ageing population. Globally, the health challenges of the next decade, such as infectious disease prevention and harnessing new technologies, demand a response from more than just one academic discipline. It is crucial to develop innovative and integrated approaches to address these problems.

“Different sectors including healthcare are undergoing digital transformation. Talent who are familiar with health issues and technology would be highly sought-after,” says Professor William Cheung, Associate Vice-President (Undergraduate Programmes) and Professor of the Department of Computer Science. “Our future is tied to technical advancements, and therefore this transdisciplinary programme emphasises innovation, and students have to learn and excel in generating innovative ideas and mastering new technologies.”

The programme is led by Dr Wendy Huang, Associate Professor of the Department of Sport, Physical Education and Health. “Emerging technologies in healthcare have opened up unprecedented opportunities. Our programme meets the need for innovators who can apply technologies for better health,” she says. “It is also open to students from all academic backgrounds who are passionate about health-related topics.”

Harnessing new technologies for better health

Designed by academics from the Faculty of Social Sciences and the Faculty of Science, the programme focuses on educating students about a broad range of academic subjects while providing them with experiential learning experiences. The first year of the programme centres on a core curriculum, where students learn about important global issues such as sustainable development through the course “Global Challenges” and develop solutions using a transdisciplinary approach. They also learn programming skills and work in groups to develop interactive applications in the course “Computing for Creatives”.

In the second year, students will enhance their knowledge and skills in areas covering AI and data analytics, user experience design in health and well-being, public health and entrepreneurship. They will then choose between two concentrations: “Health and Social Wellness” (HSW) and “Health Technology and Informatics” (HTI).

According to Dr Huang, students who choose the HSW concentration will specialise in a diverse range of fields including corporate health and wellness, health and nutrition, as well as research and social innovation. The HTI concentration, on the other hand, will enable students to pursue careers in the fields of health informatics, health data analysis and health technology.

Nicole hopes to get a deeper understanding of health, wellness and technology, before eventually moving into research in related areas. She also looks forward to having internship opportunities so that she can integrate what she learned in class with actual fieldwork. “I am driven by my curiosity in the domain of health research,” she says. “And I can’t wait to learn more about the ways technologies can be used to improve people’s health. For me, the most important thing is to be able to use my knowledge to contribute to society and help people.”