News

Dr Sulaiman joins Prof. Tsang’s research team to conduct a collaborative project with GMU

We would like to welcome Dr Surajo Kamilu Sulaiman on board, who newly joined Prof. Hector Tsang’s research team as a postdoctoral fellow in January 2021.   Dr Sulaiman received his Bachelor of Science in Physiotherapy from Bayero University in Nigeria, and his Master of Physiotherapy from SRM University in India. He earned his PhD (rehabilitation science) from Queen’s University in Canada. Before joining our department, he was lecturer in the Department of Physiotherapy, Bayero University. His research interest is quality of life and its measurement in individuals with disabilities or at risk of developing disabilities. Dr Sulaiman will be working on a collaborative research project on physical exercises for individuals with knee osteoarthritis, jointly supervised by Prof. Tsang, Dr Arnold Wong of RS, and Dr Ou Haining from Guangzhou Medical University (GMU). Prof. Tsang has been appointed Nanshan Scholar by GMU, and the funding support for this project originates from his appointment. 

RS gave an interview with Xinhua Net to share their experience in helping survivors from the Yunnan earthquake in 2014

Members of the Department of Rehabilitation Sciences (RS), PolyU, gave an interview with Xinhua Net to share their experience in helping survivors from the Yunnan earthquake in 2014. For six years, Mr Tang Kin-chung (Occupational Therapy Clinical Associate, RS) and the team of PolyU students, 愛無疆 (Love without Borders), has never stop visiting the county and surrounding areas to give out their services, equipment and love to those disabled. Prof. Hector Tsang (Chair Professor of Rehabilitation Sciences and Head of RS) said the demand for occupational therapy is vast in the impoverished rural areas in China where the medical facilities are not as comprehensive as first-tier cities. “Positively impacting on the lives of people with or without disabilities” is the mission of RS. Over 130 PolyU students have joined the “Love without Borders” over the years to visit Rudian and surrounding areas at least twice a year, and about 110 disabled persons have received their therapy services. Online coverage: Xinhua Net - http://bit.ly/3hBB2Vc; http://bit.ly/38U8CBT China News - http://bit.ly/2JIQpP6 The Cover - http://bit.ly/3rOZCqi Sina - http://bit.ly/3obdiJL Yunnan.cn - http://bit.ly/3hFA2iO 光明時政 - http://bit.ly/3oay2lb 21CN新聞 - http://bit.ly/3b5LfYv East Day - http://bit.ly/3hAQQaI Sohu - http://bit.ly/3oaymjT Toutiao - https://bit.ly/2LjRop7

PolyU sets up the first university-based occupational therapy clinic on campus

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) has established a new on-campus rehabilitation centre that focuses on the provision of occupational therapy (OT) services, thanks to a generous donation from Mr Tam Wing Fan and his family. It is the first-ever OT clinic in Hong Kong operated by a university. The Tam Wing Fan Rehabilitation Service Centre (Occupational Therapy), named after its donor Mr Tam Wing Fan, a distinguished Hong Kong architect and philanthropist who generously supported education, research and community service, is the second rehabilitation centre operating on the PolyU campus. With state-of-the-art equipment, veteran academic researchers and experienced occupational therapists, this new Centre provides comprehensive OT services for people of all age groups, including treatments for musculoskeletal, neurological and mental health dysfunctions. In view of the ageing population and the rising needs for primary healthcare services in the community, the Centre will become a service point for the public, with an emphasis on elderly care and offering treatments for common neurological diseases, elderly falls and fractures, and mental health conditions. For more details, please refer to https://www.polyu.edu.hk/en/media/media-releases/2020/1120_first-university-based-ot-clinic/

RS designs new dual-task exercise for stroke patients to effectively reduce the risk of falls and fall-related injuries

Professor Marco PANG Yiu-chung, Professor of Department of Rehabilitation Sciences at PolyU led the study of “Dual-Task Exercise Reduces Cognitive-Motor Interference in Walking and Falls after Stroke: A Randomized Controlled Study” (link), appeared in Stroke, a peer-reviewed medical journal published by the American Heart Association. It was revealed that dual-task exercises were able to help reduce the risk of falls and injurious falls by 25.0% and 22.2% respectively, bringing about significant improvement to the dual-task mobility of people post-stroke. As such, the programme has the potential to roll out in community and home-based settings, where healthcare resources are scarce. For more details, please visit: https://www.polyu.edu.hk/en/media/media-releases/2020/0917_polyu-designs-new-dual-task-exercise-for-stroke-patients/

Dr Shirley Ngai received national award - 2018 National Teaching Achievement Award (Higher Education) (Second Class Prize)

Dr Shirley Ngai (Associate Professor and Programme Leader of BSc (Hons) in Physiotherapy of RS) has been awarded the 2018 National Teaching Achievement Award (Higher Education) (Second Class Prize). The National Teaching Achievement Award (Higher Education) by the Ministry of Education is presented to individuals or teams who have made great contribution to either education theory or practice and achieved significant improvement in education quality and learning outcome. Dr Ngai is among the first academics from Hong Kong to receive this top honour in education at the national level. Dr Ngai specialises in research and teaching in cardiopulmonary physiotherapy. To enhance the confidence of her students in the real clinical scenarios, she has designed and introduced various innovative pedagogical methods including converting the classroom into a simulated “ward” to allow students applying their professional knowledge in a “simulated” clinical setting.

MOT and MPT Programmes train talents in occupational therapy and physiotherapy meeting urgent demand from the social welfare sector for healthcare/rehabilitation manpower

While the demand for healthcare services is growing drastically in Hong Kong, the supply of qualified therapists is far from adequate especially in the social welfare sector, bringing difficulties to non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in meeting the healthcare and rehabilitation needs of society. To alleviate this manpower shortage, the Social Welfare Department (SWD) of HKSARG has been offering a Training Sponsorship Scheme in collaboration with The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) and NGOs since 2012. The two master's entry degree programmes PolyU is offering under this Scheme are Master in Occupational Therapy (MOT) and Master in Physiotherapy (MPT). Introduced in 2012, these two-year full-time programmes provide an opportunity for those who aspire to serve the community as competent and qualified therapists. Under this Scheme, potential talents are funded by NGOs to take part in a two-year master's entry degree programme either in occupational therapy or physiotherapy. After graduation, these students are required to contribute to the work of the NGOs they signed up for three consecutive years. The Scheme has yielded good results with over 250 students having been trained in four cohorts under the Scheme to serve in NGOs that offer care and rehabilitation services for the elderly, persons with disabilities or children with special needs. Well received by the social welfare sector, the Scheme will be extended for another three cohorts in 2021, 2022 and 2023. The next cohort is open for application now until 26 August 2020. Professor Hector Tsang, Chair Professor of Rehabilitation Sciences and Head of Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, said, "According to the Report of the Strategic Review on Healthcare Manpower Planning and Professional Development , Hong Kong will have a shortfall of about 190 occupational therapists and 900 physiotherapists by 2030. Facing such surging societal need in NGOs, PolyU is set to help train talents in these disciplines with the two master's degree programmes. Students were admitted in alternate years in the previous four cohorts in 2012-2020. Due to the favorable feedback from the social welfare sector, we have decided to offer the programmes on an annual basis for the next three consecutive years from 2021 to 2023." The fifth cohort of the two programmes offered by PolyU is now open for applications. The first semester will commence in January 2021. All bachelor's degree holders, who have obtained credits for the subjects of human physiology and human anatomy (three credits each or equivalent), are eligible to apply. Preference will be given to those applicants who obtained their first degree in healthcare-related fields such as psychology, nutrition and kinesiology. Graduates will be fully qualified to register with the corresponding professional bodies for practising in Hong Kong. The Training Sponsorship Scheme provided by SWD is also available for successful programme applicants. For more details, please visit https://polyu.hk/QvZKu Application for MOT and MPT programmes opens now until 26 Aug 2020: https://polyu.hk/xWBuL

Occupational Therapy Online Summer Programme - Elite Occupational Therapist Taster Programme (EOTTP) 2020

With the full support from the Department of Rehabilitation Sciences (RS), members of Occupational Therapy Student Ambassador (OTSA) have successfully held the Elite Occupational Therapist Taster Programme (EOTTP) on 4 August 2020. This programme has been organized annually to promote Occupational Therapy (OT) profession to secondary school students. Due to the sudden surge of confirmed local COVID-19 cases, this year the Programme has been switched from face-to-face to online mode to minimize the risk of infections. A total number of 278 Secondary 4 and Secondary 5 students has joined the EOTTP held from 9:30am to 12:00noon on 4 August through Zoom. After the welcome speech given by Prof. Hector Tsang (Cally Kwong Mei Wan Professor in Psychosocial Health, Chair Professor of Rehabilitation Sciences and Head of RS), two mini seminars were delivered by Prof. Kenneth Fong (Professor and Programme Leader of BSc (Hons) in OT) and Mr Tony Wong (Clinical Associate (OT) of RS) to let audience have a brief understanding about OT and PolyU OT Programme. In order to let the participants know more about the actual work of Occupational Therapist, a student sharing session on “We Care, We Share“ which is a community service project for rural residents with disabilities has been conducted. Moreover, a virtual tour has been organized and led by OT Clinical Associates and Student Ambassadors, so that participants could develop basic understanding about human anatomy, splinting in musculoskeletal rehabilitation, sensory integration in pediatric rehabilitation and assistive technology for people with disabilities. Although the delivering mode this year is different from the previous years, it is still hoped that this online programme could give the participants an overview of OT beforehand.

Physiotherapy Summer Programme 2020

The PolyU Summer Programme, a university-wide activity for senior secondary school students, has been offered since 2015. This year, due to the sudden surge of confirmed local COVID-19 cases, the delivery mode has been changed from face-to-face to online mode to minimize the risk of infections. Despite the change of delivery mode, PolyU Summer Programme 2020 – Physiotherapy (PT) was successfully held by the Department of Rehabilitation Sciences (RS) on 28 July 2020 and attracted 275 Secondary 4 and Secondary 5 students from top local secondary schools to join the programme. After the 30-minute programme talk delivered by Dr Billy So (Assistant Professor in PT of RS) which gives the students a brief concept on the PT programme, a virtual teaching laboratory tour was organized to let students understand more about PT profession. A student sharing session has also been arranged, in which several PT students have been invited to share their views on pursuing PT study in PolyU. At the end of the programme, Dr Freddy Lam (Assistant Professor in PT of RS) delivered a mini online lecture with the topic as “Preventing Falls in Older People” to give the students a better understanding of PT practice. The whole programme received positive feedback from the participants and it is hoped that the programme can continue to be held every year to promote PT profession to secondary students.

Congratulations to 4 RS staff members on receiving Long Service Award

The Long Service Award Scheme has been introduced since 1990 to foster a sense of belonging among PolyU staff and acknowledge the long-serving staff for their years of dedication and devotion. This year, we are glad to announce that 4 RS staff members were honoured for their services over the years. 35 Years Long Service Award Prof. David Man 25 Years Long Service Award Prof. Amy Fu Mr Wilson Lam 15 Years Long Service Award Mr Michael Wong

Appreciation Ceremony for Dr Tsui Chi Man for contributing complimentary Nano-coating Service for RS OT teaching laboratories

An appreciation ceremony was held on 29 June 2020 to acknowledge Dr Tsui Chi Man for contributing complimentary Nano-coating Service for Occupational Therapy (OT) teaching laboratories of the Department of Rehabilitation Sciences (RS). It was hounoured to have the presence of Professor David Shum (Dean, Faculty of Health and Social Sciences), Ms Belinda Chow (Director of the Alumni Affairs and Development Office ) and Mr Loo (Head of Health, Safety and Environment Office) to attend this meaningful event. When delivering the speech, Ms Chow expressed her thankfulness towards Dr Tsui, an alumnus of RS OT, for his contribution and generous offerings to PolyU. From Dr Tsui’s presentation about the Nano-coating technology, we could all feel his strong sense of belonging to PolyU and RS. On behalf of RS, Prof. Hector Tsang (Chair Professor and Head of RS) gave his heartfelt thanks to Dr Tsui. As the Head of RS as well as Dr Tsui’s PhD supervisor, Prof. Tsang said he was touched by Dr Tsui’s considerable efforts which help colleagues and students of RS get protected from the spread of coronavirus. While Dr Tsui has set up a good example of giving back to alma mater, he hopes that more RS graduates could also do well to emulate his way. Towards the end of the ceremony, all the guests even had a try on applying the Nano-coating service inside the room.