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Patsy Moy

A 'two schools, one system' formula has been proposed by the dean of the University of Hong Kong's medical school to turn the city into a regional biomedical hub.

Lam Shiu-kum  said the medical school needed at least 400 teaching staff to become world-class.

'We have nearly 200 teaching staff and the Chinese University has slightly more than 200,' he said.

Professor Lam said he was not proposing a merger between the two  schools but  more co-operation on  research  to avoid wasting resources and duplicating work.

He said microbiology was one  area in which both schools could co-operate.

Professor Lam said he would discuss the proposal with his incoming counterpart at  Chinese University,  Fok Tai-fai,  who will succeed  Sydney Chung Sheung-chee  as head the medical school on July 1.

Professor Fok was out of town yesterday and could not be reached for comment.

Professor Chung said  Chinese University would not mind more co-operation.

But he added: 'Healthy rivalry can bring about improvements.'

'I do not see the point of duplicating the work that Professor Lam has done. We are very proud of our Chinese University researchers and students, who have carried out much outstanding research, such as into microsurgery,' he said.

A series of rows between the city's only two medical schools have drawn widespread  attention over the years.

At the height of last year's Sars outbreak, Professor Lam published an article in the South China Morning Post suggesting that infection-control measures at the Prince of Wales Hospital -  Chinese University's teaching hospital - were poor and were to blame for the scale of the outbreak.

Professor Lam's comments angered doctors at the hospital in Sha Tin.

In January last year,  transplant teams from the two medical schools  were embroiled in a public spat over the Hospital Authority's plan to merge the two liver-transplant centres.



'Two schools, one system' idea to galvanise medical research in HK