BRANCH EVENTS
Marking Hong Kong Branch’s 25th anniversary in style
In the year IHEEM celebrated its 80th anniversary, the Institute’s Hong Kong Branch marked its own 25th anniversary with a symposium in the city last November. Expert international speakers discussed pressing issues including sustainability and Net Zero, climate change, ‘alternative’ and ‘greener’ energy, the resilience, running costs, and carbon footprint of high-rise hospital buildings, and the fast-developing Chinese healthcare market. Representing IHEEM in the UK were President, Alison Ryan, who gave a keynote speech, and Past-President, Paul Fenton MBE. HEJ editor, Jonathan Baillie, reports.
The one-day symposium, themed ‘Hospital Engineering Design in the New Era of Environmental and Technological Development’, took place on 3 November at the Hotel ICON in Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon. Over 200 delegates attended for a mix of interesting conference sessions, to network and learn more about healthcare provision and healthcare engineering in the region, and to mark the Hong Kong Branch’s quarter century – including at a 25th Anniversary Dinner. Alison Ryan, Paul Fenton, and former IHEEM CEO, Julian Amey, were among the UK guests. Alison Ryan presented as part of the symposium, and spoke during the dinner the same day. During her dinner speech, she explained that it had been on 4 March 1998 that a number of IHEEM members living in Hong Kong first met to discuss forming a Hong Kong Branch; they voted unanimously to seek Council’s approval, and that summer, the Branch was formed.
Two and half decades promoting innovation Alison Ryan told dinner guests: “Over the past two and a half decades, the dedication and expertise of the members have greatly contributed to the advancement of the healthcare industry in the region.” The Branch had, she said, ‘achieved numerous milestones, witnessed remarkable accomplishments, and been a catalyst for knowledge sharing, professional development, and collaboration’. “Through a wide array of educational programmes, conferences, and networking opportunities,” she added, “the Branch has consistently striven to enhance the quality of healthcare facilities and services in Hong Kong.” She particularly thanked the IHEEM Hong Kong Branch Chairman, Dr PL Yuen – who had been instrumental in establishing a Memorandum of Understanding with the Chinese Health Authority, further strengthening IHEEM’s international collaborations. She said: “Tonight’s celebration not only marks a significant
Left: IHEEM Hong Kong Branch Chairman, Dr PL Yuen – who was instrumental in providing the foundations for establishing an MoU with the Chinese Health Authority, giving his opening symposium address.
milestone, but is also an opportunity to reflect on our achievements, and our aspirations for the future.” She thanked the organising committee for their hard work in organising the symposium and dinner. In her symposium presentation, the IHEEM President focused initially on Hong Kong’s Climate Action Plan 2050, which sets out the target of reducing the city’s carbon intensity by 65-70% by 2030, with 2005 as the baseline year. Key elements include:
n Net Zero electricity generation – currently, about two-thirds of Hong Kong’s carbon emissions come from electricity generation, with combustion of coal, natural gas, and oil the main electricity sources. The Climate Action Plan 2050 proposes ending using coal for daily electricity generation by 2035, and increasing the share of renewable energy for electricity generation to 7.5-10% by the same year (and to 15% subsequently). Hong Kong’s Government says it also wishes to trial new energy sources.
n Energy saving and ‘green’ buildings – reducing buildings’ overall electricity consumption via the promotion of ‘greener’ buildings, improving efficiency, and ‘promoting a low-carbon lifestyle’. The goal is to reduce commercial buildings’ electricity consumption by 30- 40% by 2050, and residential buildings by 20-30% (from a 2015 baseline).
n ‘Green transport’ – with a target of zero January 2024 Health Estate Journal 45
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