On June 23, 2003, WHO removed Hong Kong from the list of SARS 'Infected Areas’. In that battle against the deadly viral disease, eight medical practitioners lost their lives while serving their patients. One of them was a CUHK graduate, Dr. Tse Yuen-man.

Tse Yuen-man was a student at the Faculty of Medicine, United College from 1986 to 1992. As a freshman, she wrote in her handbook, “I want to become a doctor to serve the community and the people, and make full use of my capabilities.” She later worked at Tuen Mun Hospital after graduation. In the eyes of her colleagues, she was kind, gentle and calm. She was not only concerned about patients’ diseases, but also their physical and mental conditions. When the SARS outbreak began in Hong Kong, Tse Yuen-man asked to join the Intensive Care Unit to treat the critical patients. Though eventually she lost her precious life during the fight against SARS, her great spirit has brought a positive message to society.

To commemorate Tse Yuen-man, the ‘Daughter of Hong Kong’, a video about her story was made as one of the ‘CU50 • The People’ video series. Through the video, let’s experience her loving heart as a doctor.

CUHK earlier held a donation ceremony for the establishment of the ‘Li Dak Sum Yip Yio Chin R&D Centre for Chinese Medicine’ in gratitude for the HK$100 million donation made by Dr. Li Dak Sum. Officiating guests included: The Honourable C Y Leung, Chief Executive of the HKSAR and CUHK Chancellor; Dr. Li Dak Sum, Chairman of Roxy Property Investment Company Limited and Corporate Advisor of Sharp-Roxy (HK) Limited and his wife Mrs. Li Yip Yio Chin; The Honourable Eddie Ng, Secretary for Education; Dr. Vincent Cheng, Chairman of the Council of CUHK; Prof. Joseph Sung, Vice-Chancellor and President of CUHK; and Prof. Shaw Pang Chui, Director of the Li Dak Sum Yip Yio Chin R&D Centre for Chinese Medicine and Professor of the School of Life Sciences, CUHK.

An endowment fund named the ‘Li Dak Sum Yip Yio Chin Education Development Fund’ will be set up with the HK$100 million donation to support CUHK in advancing its research in Chinese medicine. In addition, the ‘Li Dak Sum Yip Yio Chin Scholarships’ will be set up to facilitate academic exchange between CUHK and Fudan University in Shanghai as well as the tertiary institutions in Ning Po, and make awards to outstanding students from families with financial difficulties.

The new centre will be able to enhance the development and research of Chinese medicine in Hong Kong. In addition, it aims to promote the quality control and assurance of Chinese medicinal materials and products in Hong Kong; and to provide training towards expertise in the Chinese herbal industry. The centre is also planning to collaborate with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, in the United Kingdom, to enhance the development of the centre. In addition, the centre will cooperate with the Food and Health Bureau and the Department of Health, HKSAR, to position Hong Kong as an international hub for the development of Chinese medicine.

Last Saturday, CUHK Dragon Boat Club sent two teams “CUHKSU DBT” and “Dragon of CUHK” to compete in the Hong Kong Stanley International Dragon Boat Championships. The club was just set up in February this year. With several months of dedicated training and perseverance by the team members, “CUHKSU DBT” and “Dragon of CUHK” made a fantastic performance in the competition and won the championship and the first runner up respectively.

The idea of setting up the CUHK Dragon Boat Club came from two students, Lee Chun-man, who used to be a member of CUHK Rowing Team, and Yip Wai-fung, who was a member of United College Rowing Team. With a great passion for dragon boat racing, they set up the dragon boat student club and recruited over 30 members within half a year. At the beginning, most of the members had no experience of dragon boat but with great passion, plus months of intense training and professional guidance from a dragon boat expert, they have made tremendous progress. By April, their team had already come second runner-up in the Hong Kong Inter-University Dragon Boat Championships.

In July, their team will join the Hong Kong International Dragon Boat Races and compete with local and international participants. Don't miss the chance to cheer for them again.