Medical Faculty News v25i1

Thin-section electron micrographs of the 2019 novel coronavirus grown in cells at The University of Hong Kong. The image shows part of a virus infected cell grown in culture with multiple virus particles being released from the cell surface. Each infected cell produces thousands of new infectious virus particles which can go on to infect new cells. Image credit: John Nicholls, Leo Poon Lit-man and Malik Peiris, The University of Hong Kong HELPING HANDS HKU, the HKU-Shenzhen Hospital and Hong Kong’s Elderly Commission bought 50,000 masks in early February for 5,000 elderly people in need. Student volunteers packed the masks which were distributed by 11 non-government organisations. Raising Awareness • Real-time Dashboard: Operated by the School of Public Health to provide a daily tally of cases in Hong Kong broken down by age, source (local, imported, possible local, close contact of these), onset, confirmation, hospitalisation, isolation, discharge and deaths. • #askHKUMed and other advice and information: Short videos, infographics and other information produced by HKUMed for sharing on social media. Examples of topics include how to properly wear masks and wash hands, for both adults and children; what is rapid testing; how the fatality rate is calculated; the impact of Covid-19 on women; and thoughts on the herd immunity proposal, among other issues. • Mass Media: Dozens of interview given to local and international media by HKUMed experts; opinion pieces have also been contributed. Outlets include some of the top news outlets in the world, such as 60 Minutes Australia, Al Jazeera, Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), BBC News, Caixin Media, CBS News, CGTN, CNN, CCTV, Euronews, NBC news, National Public Radio, NHK (Japan Broadcasting Corporation), Phoenix TV, Reuters, Sveriges Television; The Atlantic, Der Spiegel, The Economist, Financial Times, Fortune, The Guardian, La Repubblica, The New York Times, New Yorker, Politico, The Straits Times, The Wall Street Journal , etcetera., reaching billions of readers/ viewers worldwide. The School of Public Health and HKU Journalism and Media Studies Centre held a joint workshop, “Learn to Decode What You Hear about Covid-19” that was livestreamed on March 30 and is available on YouTube. • Latest updates via social media: HKUMed has attracted a high level of interest and engagement through its social media accounts, which are posting the latest research findings, updates and advice as the Covid-19 epidemic evolves. Tweets through our @hkumed Twitter account have garnered millions of impressions and engagements. Our Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn accounts have also seen a high level of activities, as has the Dean’s Twitter account @gmleunghku. Learning Arrangements for Students and the Community • Faculty Programmes: Regular updates on teaching and learning arrangements have been provided to students and staff since January 22. Most learning has moved online. Special notifications have also been sent out to students in their clinical and final years and those who are on their experiential year abroad. The Yu Chun Keung Medical Library has provided access to e-resources. • Online learning for all: Two highly relevant MOOCs (massive open online courses) are offered through the Faculty: Epidemics I and Epidemics II. Both were developed by the Dean and look at the fundamental scientific principles underlying epidemics and the public health actions behind their prevention and control. Epidemics II incorporates Covid-19. 07 Medical Faculty News