Hong Kong is where East meets West. Like many Western countries and Mainland China, Hong Kong is seeing a rise in the prevalence of chronic diseases among the old and increasingly among the young. And like the West, Japan and the Mainland, Hong Kong faces health, social and economic challenges – and opportunities – arising from an ageing population. Yet, being located in a cosmopolitan city with a predominantly Chinese populace has proven inspirational to us, the Faculty of Health and Social Sciences (FHSS) of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU), since we can extrapolate the best from the East and the West to our advantage. The results are innovative education, cutting edge research, knowledge transfer, and practices that not only fit the local context but also provide invaluable insights and applicability for societies elsewhere.
Our Faculty comprises the Department of Applied Social Sciences (APSS), the Department of Health Technology and Informatics (HTI), the Department of Rehabilitation Sciences (RS), the School of Nursing (SN), and the School of Optometry (SO). Our staff members are highly engaged in international, national, and local consortiums and professional organisations, with many holding or having held official positions in leading international professional bodies. This active involvement not only enhances our global network and influence, but also ensures our research and educational initiatives remain at the forefront of the field.
We are proud of our staff members who are inquisitive and innovative. Our teaching quality and methods are regularly recognised with international, national and local awards, while our research outputs are rated as world-class. In the 2020 Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) of publicly funded universities by Hong Kong’s University Grants Committee, our performance scores in some health science research areas were 4* or 3*, indicating that we are “world leading” or “internationally excellent”. 32 of our scholars ranked among the world’s top 2% most-cited scientists based on career-long impact, according to a Stanford University study published in 2025.
Our Faculty is internationally recognised for pioneering research and impactful knowledge transfer that directly benefits society. Our scholars consistently transform innovative findings into evidence-based protocols, programmes, and inventions, which are widely adopted by organisations and have earned prestigious global accolades. PolyU teams have achieved outstanding success at major international competitions. These distinguished achievements underscore our Faculty’s global leadership in transforming research and education into real-world solutions. A few of our recent achievements include:
- recognition at the International Exhibition of Inventions Geneva in 2025, our researchers won multiple Gold and Silver Medals for breakthroughs in vision science, healthcare technology, and rehabilitation; and in 2024 and 2023, our development of myopia control technologies, AI-driven diagnostic systems, and precision healthcare devices at PolyU also won multiple Gold and Silver Medals, and many of which have led to successful start-ups;
- notably, the School of Optometry’s “Seeing the Invisible: Generating Non-invasive Angiography” project received Gold Medal with Congratulations of the Jury at the International Exhibition of Inventions Geneva 2025 as well as Special Merit Award from the French Inventors Federation and Europe-France Inventors;
- our leadership was further recognised at the Asia Exhibition of Innovations and Inventions 2025 by winning Grand Award and Gold Medal with Congratulations of the Jury for a novel gene-delivery platform for ocular therapy; and
- our educational research also excelled at the QS Reimagine Education Awards 2025, winning a Silver Award in the Nurturing Employability category for the standardised programme for advancing clinical education and a Bronze Award in the Nurturing Values and Ethics category for vCare.
As a Faculty dedicated to health and social well-being, FHSS demonstrated its passion, professionalism, and commitment in the aftermath of the Tai Po fire incident in late November 2025. Our staff, students, and alumni responded rapidly, providing immediate on-site support and essential care to affected residents. Working closely with community partners, our teams have been offering mental health counselling and wellness activities to help families regain stability. In parallel, our outreach has extended to ongoing visits by FHSS alumni and staff who are health and social professionals, ensuring consistent emotional and physical health support for displaced families. Through post-trauma training and community programmes, FHSS continues to empower both the community and the next generation of healthcare professionals. Our swift, coordinated, and compassionate response underscores our unwavering commitment to social responsibility and long-term community resilience.
For more details about the major research areas of the Faculty, please visit FHSS’s website or contact the Secretary of the Faculty Research Committee at fhss.email@polyu.edu.hk.
