06 December 2021
Event Date(s)/Period(s)
6 December 2021
Organised by
School of Public Health
On 6 December 2021, a media briefing was held on the medical campus for the two gold prize-winning teams of the ‘Public Health in Action - Student Knowledge Exchange Competition’ to present their project ideas and deliverables to the media.
Hosted by the School of Public Health, the inaugural Student Exchange Competition aims to encourage health-oriented students to gain practice in reaching out to the community and engaging them in health strengthening activities. Teams proposed project ideas and practical measures, and then implemented the projects.
One of the two gold prize-winning teams, ‘Escaping from Vaping’ educated secondary school students on the hazards of e-cigarettes through a series of school outreach talks, laboratory experiments and social media channels. They successfully reached out to over 1,500 students in nine secondary schools, effectively changing their perception about e-cigarettes, and gaining their support in the petition for the total ban on e-cigarettes in Hong Kong.
The other gold prize-winning team, ‘Lantern’, developed a user-friendly mobile app to provide foreign domestic helpers working as caregivers at elderly households with reliable information on elderly care, e.g. tips on first aid, daily care, physiotherapy, etc. They also partnered with local FDH unions and NGOs to conduct pilot studies and raise awareness, for which they received very positive user feedback.
‘The Selection Panel was very impressed by the quality, creativity, inclusiveness and impact of the projects,’ expressed Professor Keiji Fukuda (福田敬二), the then Director of School of Public Health. ‘As a strong believer in public health advocacy and innovation, it is the mission of our School to put public health in action. We want our students to acquire the skills and to be dedicated to giving back to the community, and to particularly improve the well-being of vulnerable populations.’
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