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40th Anniversary Celebration
About HKCFP > President’s Message

August 2017

HKCFP 40th Anniversary Conference “From Seedling to Forest - Ever Enriching Primary Care” is just round the corner. The conference is from 2-3 September 2017 featuring 4 plenary lectures, 3 forums, 3 seminars, 4 workshops and 6 morning sessions. For the first time we also have a parallel morning session in Putonghua. We welcome Prof. Amanda Howe, WONCA President as guest of honour who delivers one of the plenary lectures. Prof. Sophia Chan, Secretary for Food and Health Bureau will be one of the officiating guests. Do join us at this memorable weekend!

The much anticipated Young Doctors Committee was officially formed and headed by the young and capable Dr. Loretta Chan. The terms of reference were as below: 
  • To provide perspective and advocacy of HKCFP to young members
  • To engage young members in College activities
  • To connect young members of College and enhance our communication
  • To nurture young leaders in HKCFP
  • To promote continuity of representation by young HKCFP members in national and international meetings
  • To connect with medical students and promote family medicine amongst undergraduates


The committee has proposed the launching of Mentorship programme for basic trainees for the purpose of bridging across different generations in the College. All basic trainees will be invited to join on a voluntary basis and each trainee will be matched with one mentor.

I am a member of the Hong Kong Alliance for Advocacy Against Alcohol which expresses grave concern regarding the organization of a sports event which encourages participants to consume beer while running. While physical activity has definite health benefits, there is no place for alcohol in exercise and sports. Alcohol is classified as Group 1 carcinogen by the World Health Organization and there is no safe level of alcohol consumption. Alcohol use is also associated with many other chronic diseases such as ischaemic heart disease, liver cirrhosis and neuropsychiatric disease. Consuming alcohol while engaging in sports may cause dehydration and enhance the risk of heat stroke, increase burden on the vital body systems and increase the risk of accidents and injuries due to its adverse effect on the central nervous system. I urge all of you to condemn this initiative of “Beer Run” and educate our patients to refrain from alcohol. 

I was one of the delegates of the Hong Kong Academy of Medicine to attend the 60th Anniversary Diamond Jubilee Celebration of the Academy of Medicine leaded by Dr. Donald Li and Prof. CS Lau. College of Family Physicians Singapore was inaugurated in 2014 as a Chapter of the Academy and she has grown from strength to strength and hopefully will be one of the constituent Colleges in the not too distant future. Prof. Doris Young, our external examiner for Exit Examination is now based in Singapore and when the two of us are together, mischief can happen. We managed to speak to Mr Ong Ye Kung, Minister for Education and guest of honour of the Anniversary Dinner to address him the importance of having more academics at the Universities to teach Family Medicine and enhance the role of Family Physicians in the community. Mr. Ong is one of the potential candidates as future Prime Minister and he was receptive to our conversation. Our Singaporean colleagues exclaimed, “We don’t dare to speak to our Minister like that.” Job was done, Hong Kong style. 

There was a very good satellite Symposium in Family Medicine covering topics like innovation and research, emerging role of Family Medicine Physicians in meeting the challenges of a greying population. Singapore’s healthcare system is facing exactly the same problems as Hong Kong. No wonder I could communicate in the same wavelength with Prof. Lee Kheng Hock, President of College of Family Physicians Singapore. I was very grateful to Prof. Lee who managed to locate my old classmate that I had not seen since our graduation day! Finally the icing on the cake was the conferment of honorary fellowship to Presidents of Overseas Fraternal Colleges by the Academy of Medicine, Singapore. I was one of the recipients! Before my ink dries up, I must mention the Donald Li Good Food Guide recommendation is Hua Ting Restaurant, Orchard Hotel, Singapore.

Dr. Angus M W CHAN
President

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