In the Media

Dr Denise Cheung, Research Assistant Professor, contributed a column to am730 on the effect of qigong, a mind-body exercise, as an intervention on telomerase activity and mental health in Chinese women survivors of intimate partner violence. (am730 – March 18, 2019)

Dr Derek Cheung, Assistant Professor, contributed a column to am730 on the feasibility, efficacy, and cost of promoting smoking cessation in public outdoor areas where smokers gather to smoke (smoking hotspots). Of 3,080 smokers approached, male smokers were more likely than female smokers to be open to brief advice on smoking cessation and younger smokers were more likely to consent to a telephone follow-up. Of those who consented to the follow up, the quit rate was 10.6%. (am730 – March 25, 2019)

Dr Kelvin Wang, Associate Professor, was interviewed in the China Daily about the vaping industry. He advocates a total ban on e-cigarettes along with other new tobacco products, as he feels the vaping industry lures teenagers to try a wide range of flavors with designer appeal, instead of being a step towards stopping smoking. Setting an age restriction would simply lead teenagers to try e-cigarettes secretively. A survey done in 2016/17 by the School of Nursing and School of Public Health was also quoted in the paper, which found 8.7 percent of secondary school students and 1.4 percent of primary school children (grades 4-6) had tried e-cigarettes. (China Daily – May 27, 2019)

The School was invited to join the China Nursing Consortium of Elite Teaching Hospitals in May 2019. This opens the way for us to collaborate with the eight other distinguished hospitals/nursing departments in the Nursing Consortium in clinical nursing education and training and facilitate exchanges. The School is the only nursing institution in Hong Kong to join the Nursing Consortium, which will enable us to play a leading role in modernizing nursing residency education in Mainland China. (Sing Pao – May 29, 2019; Mirage News – May 31, 2019)

Dr Patsy Chau, Associate Professor, was interviewed by South China Morning Post in May 2019 about her research on the relationship between hot weather and suicide among the elderly. The study reviewed approximately 8,000 suicide cases of residents aged 65 or above from 1976 to 2014 and found a link between higher temperatures and higher suicide rates among older people. Based on her findings, recommendations on preventive measures have been made. (South China Morning Post – June 1, 2019)

Dr Edmond Choi, Assistant Professor, contributed a column to am730 on gender and sexual orientation differences in the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine uptake among Chinese young adults. His study showed only 45.8% of subjects knew HPV vaccination is not only for females and only 4.7% of males were vaccinated. The study also showed different results based on sexual orientation, with only 2.6% bisexual/homosexual males being vaccinated. (am730 – March 18, 2019)

Dr Kelvin Wang, Associate Professor, contributed a column to am730 on a study showing electronic cigarette use is not associated with young smokers quitting conventional cigarettes. Among participants, the average number of cigarettes consumed per day on weekends was 11.5. About 60% of smokers had tried an e-cigarette and they were younger and more addicted to nicotine, less ready to quit and consumed more cigarettes per day on weekends compared with nonusers. (am730 – July 8, 2019)

Dr William Li, Associate Professor, contributed a column to am730 on the efficacy of musical training in the lives of Hong Kong Chinese survivors of pediatric brain tumor. Musical training was found to be effective in reducing their depressive symptoms and enhancing their self-esteem and quality of life. (am730 – July 15, 2019)

A press conference on the effectiveness of the government’s “Smoking Cessation Program in the Workplace” was held on July 18, 2019. The program was launched in 2013 to raise awareness among companies of the importance of supporting staff to quit smoking. HKU’s School of Nursing and School of Public Health presented their latest findings on the program, which started its third phase January 2017 with 92 companies enrolled and 801 smokers served. Together with the first and second phases, the entire program has served more than 270 companies and 2,100 smokers. (Metro Radio, RTHK, TVB.com – July 18, 2019; Headline News, Oriental Daily News, Sing Pao, Sky Post, Lion Rock Daily – July 19, 2019; Hong Kong Economic Times, Oriental Daily News – July 25, 2019)

Research led by Dr Daniel Fong, Associate Professor, found the two-tier scoliosis screening protocol in Hong Kong was effective clinically and cost-wise in identifying scoliosis in children. The research involved assessing data for about 300,000 children who attended the screening program between 1995 and 2000 and was funded with support from the Research Grants Council and Public Policy Research Funding Scheme. (ToPick hket.com – September 9, 2019; Hong Kong Economic Times, Oriental Daily News – September 10, 2019)

Dr Fong was also interviewed by Apple Daily about a study he conducted in 2016 on the impact of noise pollution in Hong Kong secondary school students. Among 2,872 students from 13 secondary schools, the ratio of long-term tinnitus (11.7%) and temporary tinnitus (35.6%) was two to three times higher than that of American students. To prevent adverse impact on health, WHO recommended that the sound level should not exceed 45 decibels. (Apple Daily – September 17, 2019)

Dr Jojo Kwok, Research Assistant Professor, contributed a column to am730 on the effects of mindfulness yoga vs stretching and resistance training exercises on anxiety and depression for people with Parkinson’s disease. (am730 – July 22, 2019)

Dr Mandy Ho, Assistant Professor, contributed an article to Oriental Daily News on how lifestyle modifications, such as a healthy diet and regular exercise, and weight management could help people with pre-diabetes reduce the risk of developing diabetes mellitus. (Oriental Daily News – September 14, 2019)

The Smoking Cessation Research Team of HKU’s School of Nursing and School of Public Health reported in a press conference that WhatsApp chat support, combined with brief smoking cessation interventions, could increase the chance of quitting smoking by 60-80%. The results may have implications for strengthening existing smoking cessation services. This study was published in The Lancet Digital Health. (Bastille Post, Headline Daily online news, HK01, Min Pao Daily online news, on.cc, RTHK, ToPick hket.com – September 20, 2019; Headline Daily, Ming Pao Daily News, Oriental Daily News, Sing Pao – September 21, 2019)

The School and Hong Kong Housing Authority (HKHA) are collaborating to organize the Healthy Ageing in Public Rental Housing Estates Programme 2019-2021. Teachers and students are performing free health assessments for older tenants of Fortune Estate, Cheung Sha Wan through home visits. Mobile health assessment stations and mini health exhibition about sarcopenia are also being organized in different public rental estates and HKHA malls all over Hong Kong. (am730 – October 9, 2019)