Dear Fellows and Trainees,
2025 continues to be another exciting year for the Hong Kong College of Emergency Medicine. I am pleased to note that excellent progress has been made towards specialty developments and much has been accomplished in the past year in pursuit of the College’s objectives.
Emergency Medicine stands out as a dynamic and thrilling specialty that plays a crucial role in providing immediate care and interventions in different life-threatening emergencies. The fast-paced nature comes with inherent challenges, demanding quick thinking, adaptability and teamwork; and necessitates continuous advancement in education and training to upkeep the professional competency. The College is committed to achieving that hand-in-hand with you all.
Advancement of specialist education and training
The rise of artificial intelligence in recent years may revolutionise healthcare in some way, specifically the training and education of Emergency Medicine specialists as well as the A & E Department administration and operations. We need to be prepared for embracing opportunities and overcoming challenges. The College set up the Digital Emergency Medicine Subcommittee, that would focus on telemedicine, digital literacy and AI. Capacity building for specialist training is also crucial, and the College will also set up the Faculty Development Subcommittee under Education Committee to equip our trainers with essential skills and knowledge.
The teaching and learning routines have evolved. I am also pleased to witness the launch of online learning platform, with all the training materials and resources gone online for seamless access. Besides, our e-portfolio features have also been upgraded. Structural training courses and workshops have been conducted by respective Committees and Subcommittees, and I am happy to learn that they received positive response, with a healthy financial status maintained. The College has been working closely with Singapore counterpart to put forward the plan to conduct conjoint examination for HKCEM IEEM Part 1 (SAQ) and NUS MMed Part B, hopefully by October 2026. A designated task group has been formed to oversee the process and liaise with the Singapore counterpart, and the preparatory work is on-going.
Facing ageing population with more complex medical needs, the College is determined to tie in with the global adoption of competency-based medical education (CBME) for better patient outcome which the Academy has actively advocated. This would be done through reviewing the training curriculum, adopting a competency-centred approach with diverse assessment tools incorporated. We hope to train and continuously develop doctors with solid specialty knowledge and skills in the field of Emergency Medicine.
Our Exit Examination in Emergency Medicine has evolved, with a two-stage approach adopted as a reflection of our commitment to CBME. It now comprises of the Final Examination in Emergency medicine (FEEM) followed by Exit Assessment. The new format is considered more comprehensive in assessing the specialist trainees’ competencies in relation to theoretical knowledge and practical skills. A new award has been established, namely “Paragon of Emergency Medicine Trainee Award”, as purposeful recognition of excellence across all domains of competencies in Exit Assessment.
The College has long been a staunch supporter of the Academy’s mission to foster high-quality medical postgraduate education and training. Together with the College’s Censor-in-Chief, we participated in the Strategic Planning Retreat organised by the Academy in March this year, during which the College’s concerns and difficulties in carrying out our core mission due to resources implications and technical constraints. The Academy has successfully solicited funding from the HKSAR Government and The Hong Kong Jockey Club for use by herself and her Colleges for a period of 3-5 years. The College would receive substantial funding from the Academy to support our plans to review training curricula, examination and assessment; to address rapid development of AI and its applications which impact our clinical practice, to develop training resources for promotion of doctors’ wellbeing, medical professionalism and ethics through workshops, webinars and alike. depending to the actual work delivered.
Dedication to research and publication
I trust that you must be a constant reader of the College newsletters and EM Bulletins, which have been regularly published. Through these publications, you can keep yourself updated on the latest news and announcements on the College’s activities, as well as some important announcements and sharing of common specialty-specific clinical problems. Please do not miss out the third edition of the Practice of Emergency Medicine released early this year.
The Journal Citation Reports’ 2-year impact factor of the Hong Kong Journal of Emergency Medicine, which celebrated its 30th anniversary, is 0.8 in 2024. I am confident that the impact factor would improve with the dedicated efforts of the journal’s Editorial Board. Also, I would appreciate your continued support for the journal through submission of quality research articles and / or contribute to the journal work through volunteering as the journal editors.
The College has established another new prize “Outstanding Trainee Research Award” to recognize, honour, and reward exceptional research work by our trainees, and it will be presented during the conferment ceremony.
Strengthening regional and global collaboration
Strengthening international engagement continues to be one of the important goals for the College. Together with the Office Bearers and Council Members, the College representatives attended and participated in as many regional and international scientific meetings and conferences as possible that took place around the world during the past year. The College hopes to leverage the opportunities as well as the strengths and expertise of Hong Kong healthcare talents to promote collaboration for upholding high specialist training standards.
Some major regional and international conferences with College representation include the Annual Scientific Meeting of Society for Emergency Medicine in Singapore, the 24th ICEM and General Assembly in Montreal, the 5th AMM-AMS-HKAM Tripartite Congress of Medicine 2025 and 7th Emergency Medicine Annual Symposium in Malaysia, Hong Kong Shenzhen Emergency Medicine Conference, GDMA, Peking Union International Summit for Emergency Medicine in Beijing, just to name a few.
The College continues its exchange and close relations with medical academic organisations and authorities in Mainland China. We have been more involved in providing expert advice in specialist training and standardization to the Hong Kong University-Shenzhen Hospital. Emergency Medicine was among the first seven specialist training programme launched there, already with trainee admission. The College has continued to assist with the training programme development and review, to take up the examiner’s role in the Objective Structured Clinical Examination ensuring that the assessment meets the international standards.
Prioritising doctors’ wellbeing
Doctors’ wellbeing and wellness remain a high priority of the College. Many activities were held in the past year, such as soccer and running training sessions, dinner symposiums covering various professional and casual topics, mountaineering, Putonghua learning, outings, etc. To members of the Fellow Group Chapters, I hope you will continue to be the bridges for the younger generations of Fellows to learn more about the College, and to encourage them to be more involved in our work, as well as bringing together senior and young Fellows, as well as specialist trainees through the leadership dialogues, mentorship programme, various networking and wellness-enhancing activities, that promote a united, healthier and happier workforce.
Pearl Jubilee celebration approaching
Heading towards 2026, the College is approaching its 30th anniversary. Please stay tuned to the celebratory activities on the College’s website, Facebook and other social media platforms, and join us in the auspicious occasion.
It is on a strong foundation that I follow in the footsteps of my predecessors, enabling me to serve the College and overcome many challenges. I am deeply thankful and appreciative of the generous support and effort I receive from the Past Presidents, members of our Council and Committees, Fellows and trainees, as well as the Secretariat staff.
I am sure that the College will maintain the momentum and continue to thrive, standing on our firm commitment to maintaining high standards of specialists training and contributing to the betterment of the healthcare system in Hong Kong.
Dr. WU Wing Yee, Clara
President, Hong Kong College of Emergency Medicine