MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIRPERSON
With the swift passage of time, the Department of Paediatrics and Adolescent Medicine is celebrating its 60th anniversary in 2024. In the Chinese calendar, 60 years constitute a Jia Zi and represent a full cycle. As we march into the next Jia Zi, we are set to begin a new cycle. A cycle, being a circle, is celebrated equally on each point. Being unbridled by time, the circle blends the legacies of the past with the promises of the future.
As we celebrate our Diamond Jubilee, we reflect dearly on our past to pave way for our better future. Through the unwavering efforts of our predecessors, UPU, the University Department of Paediatrics, a proud name to be remembered, had established excellent paediatric clinical services and academic activities at Queen Mary Hospital, The Duchess of Kent Children's Hospital, and previously Grantham Hospital. With the passage of time, UPAM, the University Department of Paediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, has expanded to establish itself further at the Hong Kong Children's Hospital, Gleneagles Hospital, and the University of Hong Kong-Shenzhen Hospital.
To this day, our Department remains true to our vision to provide the finest care for children and their families through science and humanities. We do so by creating knowledge through research, translating research discoveries to benefit our children, educating and nurturing generations of medical healthcare workers, teachers, and researchers in paediatrics, and providing paediatric care of the highest quality.
The remarkable evolution from a small Paediatric Unit six decades ago to a nationally and internationally recognized Department of Paediatrics and Adolescent Medicines attests to the selflessness of generations of Departmental members in achieving our missions. We are connected by core values of integrity and people remain at the centre of our core. Through engaging all the extended UPAM family members, University and Hospital Authority colleagues and our honorary teachers in the private sector, we enter with confidence a new phase that is filled with opportunities but equally challenges of the fourth industrial revolution.
Looking ahead, our Department will actively bring in new talents to expand our paediatric clinical programme and academic activities in the HKU teaching hospitals, introduce education technologies and innovation to nurture our medical students and paediatric trainees, and establish new research platforms and networking opportunities nationally and internationally to drive new research initiatives. Through knowledge exchange, we shall strive to share research outcomes with the public and the industry.
Amid the era of artificial intelligence, big data and metrics, we pledge to continue to embrace a human-centred approach to our patients, our students, and our UPAM family members!
