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Diploma Conferment Ceremony
of HK College of Orthopaedic Surgeons
5 December 2004
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by
Dr C H Leong
President, Hong Kong Academy of Medicine
Mr. President, New Graduands of the HK College of Orthopaedic Surgeons, Fellows, Ladies and Gentlemen
Let me begin by congratulating the New Fellows. Some of you are being conferred 2 Fellowships. It is indeed an enormous achievement.
This is the second time within the last 2 months that I have the honour to address the conferment ceremony of the HK College of Orthopaedic Surgeons. The first one is for the admission of the First Fellow in the subspecialty of Rehabilitation and this time the New Fellows of the two Colleges.
In the former ceremony I talk about the significance of the subspecialty, firstly to praise the college in taking a lead to indicate that there are more than Repair & Reconstruct in medicine in general, and in orthopaedics in particular, and that rehabilitation is essential to return a patient back into normality. Secondly the fact that the College is introducing subspecialties amongst its Fellows and symbolizes the maturation of the College.
I am indeed reminded by the fact that orthopaedic surgery has been established in HK for over 50 years and that the College of Orthopaedics have actually been born some 16 years ago, well before the Academy. My congratulations to your visionary forefathers and the successive Councils of the College.
Mr. President, now that your new fellows have completed their training and on their way to become orthopaedic specialists, what does the future entail for them. Some of them may like to pursue a career in academia and join the University if they have a chance; some may be in luck in securing re-employed by the Hospital Authority. Both these groups will be continuing their career in hospital orthopaedics involving in major and perhaps glamorous procedures; Harrington rods to straighten the spine, replantation of severed limbs, and digital transfer etc. A percentage will have to engage themselves in private orthopaedic practices where they will be facing less major orthopaedic ailments – tennis elbows, low back pain, cervical spondylosis etc. Let us do not belittle these types of practice for these ailments albeit minor in appearance are very disruptive to everyday life and relieving them save many days and hours of loss in work manpower. It is on this basis that your Academy has called for the need to train both “generalist specialist” and “specialist specialist” across all Colleges and disciplines. In the setting of orthopaedic one area that is getting more prominent is the specialty of “sports medicine”. With the crave for physical exercises and sports come increasing incidences of torn ligaments, joint derangements all the way to major bone and muscular trauma. Of course, sports medicine is not new. As early as the 7th century B.C. there were these who call themselves physicians devote themselves to treat athletes. The first game similar to soccer was played by the Spartans and Romans and the kicking object was not a ball but the head of dead Danish people. Just imaging the trauma to the players that may result.
Mr. President, to the new graduands, the message is clear, opportunities awaits you at every corner if you work for it.
My congratulation again to the new graduands. May you and your College grow from strength to strength in the next 50 years.
Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to thank the College of Surgeons of Edinburgh for the efforts, she has taken to nurture the surgical disciplines with the Academy of HK from new borne to maturation. I like in particular to pay tribute to President John Smith for his personal dedication.
In exactly 2 weeks’ time I will be demitting office having served the Council for 12 years with 4 years at the helm. I will leave the office with light heart, knowing very well that our 15 colleges are now fully matured to be the standard bearers of their respective specialty and that our oversea friends and brethren will always be at our bid and call should we need their valuably assistance.
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