From the heated public debate around the number of pregnant mainland women coming to Hong Kong to give birth, to the legionella outbreak at the government's new Tamar site, public health issues are never far from the city's headlines.
But how do public healthcare professionals begin to tackle problems of such immense scope and complexity?
According to assistant professor Kim Jean-hee, co-director of the master of public health programme at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK), the three fundamental qualities required in this field are 'technical competence, imagination and guts.' And, she adds, 'a can-do attitude is absolutely essential.'
'Most of the public health issues that we are grappling with are at the intersection of many public health areas, such as health service management, law, technology, policy, social behaviour and medical ethics,' says Kim. 'Public health solutions usually require complex systems-level thinking.'
'All the issues we are concerned about, such as air pollution, smoking and the long waiting list of patients with cataracts, can all be thought about within the framework of need, demand and supply,' says Dr Janice Johnston, deputy head for education at the University of Hong Kong's (HKU) School of Public Health.
'The challenge facing healthcare professionals in Hong Kong is understanding how these factors interrelate and intermesh, so we can provide a healthcare service delivery model that satisfies the population,' Johnston adds.
