News

The 17th International Symposium on Veterinary Epidemiology and Economics

21 November 2024 In the past few days, members of the Centre for Applied One Health Research and Policy Advice (OHRP) were very busy participating in the 17th International Symposium on Veterinary Epidemiology and Economics in Sydney, Australia.

Between November 11th and 15th, OHRP was proudly represented by one postdoc and three PhD students, who presented four posters and delivered three oral presentations, most of which are part of their PhD theses at City University of Hong Kong.

Chun Ting Lam Angus, our OHRP postdoc, gave an oral presentation on "Modelling the spread of Salmonid Rickettsial Septicaemia and assessing regional control strategies among saltwater salmonid farms in Aysén Chile", and presented two posters: one on "Epidemix: Enhancing Accessibility for Policymakers in Modelling the Transmission Dynamics of African Swine Fever Virus" and another titled "A Description of the Disease-Associated Morbidity and Mortality in Semi-Intensive Chicken Farms in Bangladesh, India, and Vietnam." While these posters are not part of Angus's PhD research, they represent the work he is currently doing as a postdoc at OHRP.

Theethawat Uea-Anuwong presented a study on "Extended-Spectrum β-Lactamase (ESBL) Genes of Escherichia coli in Peridomestic Rats (Rattus norvegicus and R. tanezumi) Captured from Different Habitats in Hong Kong SAR".

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Xin Chen Mila showcased a poster on "Enhancing Health and Production in Hong Kong SAR: Integrating the One Health Approach to Establish the First ‘Hong Kong Chicken Quality’ Brand and Promote Sustainable Antimicrobial Practices". She also delivered an oral presentation called "A Bayesian Estimation of the Prevalence of Campylobacter and Non-Typhoidal Salmonella in Chicken Farms, Markets, and Slaughterhouses in Vietnam." The research conducted on poultry farms in Hong Kong was part of her work as a Research Assistant at the OHRP, while the study in Vietnam is a component of her PhD project, which includes data from the One Health Poultry Hub.

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Belete Haile Nega presented a poster on "Biosecurity Practices and Viral Infections in Hong Kong Pig Farms: Patterns and Implications for Disease Prevention."

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Kudos to each one of them! Thanks for the amazing representation of the OHRP, the Department of Infectious Disease and Public Health, and the university. We wish you all a safe return.

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The 25th Biennial Conference on the Biology of Marine Mammals

21 November 2024 "Last week, the newest member of the OHRP, Maria Jose Robles-Malagamba, attended the 25th Biennial Conference on the Biology of Marine Mammals, in Perth, Western Australia. During the conference, Maria participated with an oral presentation on the use of ultrasonography as a diagnostics tool to assess mammary glands in Atlantic bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) under human care. This presentation is part of her PhD thesis at City University of Hong Kong.

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Congratulations, Maria, for the amazing participation!"

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The 13th Leman China Swine Conference

11 November 2024 Dr Lip Tet Ng and Dr Joyce Ip, Swine Veterinarians of OHRP, attended the 13th Leman China Swine Conference & 2024 World Swine Industry Expo at Chengdu Tianfu International Conference Centre, Sichuan, China from 25 to 27 October 2024. The conference drew approximately 12,000 participants and had more than 1,200 exhibitors.

Highlights of the conference include focus on global perspective, promote Asia-Pacific communication; gather top experts and share authoritative insights; follow the cutting-edge trends and focus on the challenges of the pig industry; provide landing solutions to solve practical problems; gather leading enterprises to lead transformation and upgrading.

Dr Ng and Dr Joyce Ip aimed to utilize the information they obtained in the conference to enhance the productivity, efficiency, and overall quality of the pig farming industry in Hong Kong.

Swine Respiratory Diseases – Diagnosis, Treatment and Prevention

29 April 2024 Professor Heiko Nathues, Diplomate of the European College of Porcine Health Management (ECPHM), EBVS™ European Veterinary Specialist of Porcine Health Management and the current President of the European Board of Veterinary Specialisation (EBVS), gave a seminar “Swine Respiratory Diseases – Diagnosis, Treatment and Prevention”. Attendees included local veterinarians, government veterinary officers, local pig farmers, researchers from universities, veterinary laboratory technicians and BVM students. The seminar provided a comprehensive understanding of swine respiratory diseases, their diagnosis, and treatment. It was an invaluable learning opportunity for all attendees, equipping them with the knowledge to better manage these diseases and improve the health and productivity of the pig herds.

One Health Week 2023

27 Sep 2023 To commemorate the International One Health Day on November 3rd, 2023, the Centre for Applied One Health Research and Policy Advice (OHRP) at City University of Hong Kong has put together an exciting series of events for you to participate in and celebrate:

1. Photo Contest and Exhibition: We invite everyone to submit a photo showcasing your work or experiences related to this year's theme, "One Health in Action". The top 20 photos will be displayed at the Wofoo Foundation Gallery (Run Run Shaw Library) throughout the One Health Week, and the three best photos will receive awards (Festival Walk coupons for the 1st/2nd/3rd places: 1000/800/500 HKD) on November 3rd. For more information, please refer to the attached poster.

2. One Health Webinar Series (Oct 30th – Nov 3rd, 2023): We have gathered five distinguished speakers from Hong Kong and the region to share their insights and engage in discussions on topics related to the achievements and challenges of the One Health approach in safeguarding the health of humans, animals, and the environment. Stay tuned for the program details.

3. Infographic Exhibition: Our BVM Y1 students are working diligently on a series of infographics related to One Health. These infographics will be showcased during the One Health Week exhibition at the Gallery. Additionally, they will be shared on the OHRP website and across social media platforms to reach a wider audience in Hong Kong and the region.

If you have any questions or inquiries about the event, please feel free to contact the organizers, Sergio Guerrero (sergio.guerrero@cityu.edu.hk) and Angus Lam (angus.lct@cityu.edu.hk).

Mr. Angus LAM joined the One Health Poultry Hub in June

7 Jul 2023 Angus is currently a final year PhD candidate and Research Assistant at OHRP. He joined the One Health Poultry Hub in June 2023. He is the sixth researcher from OHRP to join the hub after Prof. Dirk U. Pfeiffer (co-PI), Dr. Anne Conan, Dr. Lorraine Chapot, Dr. Sara Sequeira and Ms Mila Xin. In the hub, Angus is involved in epidemiological research, including data manipulation and data analysis.

Talk on Hong Kong and Mainland pig farming industry

5 Jun 2023 Our visitor Mr Bill Wang, General Manager and Veterinarian of DanAg Agritech Consulting (Zhengzhou) Co. Ltd., gave a talk on Hong Kong and Mainland pig farming industry at Lecture Rooms 3-5, 1/F, HKFYG Leadership Institute on 2 June 2023. Audience included farmers from Hong Kong, representatives of Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department and veterinarians of OHRP. The talk provided new insights to pig value chain actors on potential opportunities to optimize production and improve pig and public health in Hong Kong.

The 11^th Leman China Swine Conference

25 Apr 2023 Dr Lip Tet Ng, Swine Veterinarian of OHRP, attended the 11^th Leman China Swine Conference & 2023 World Swine Industry Expo at Changsha, China from March 23-25, 2023. The conference drew approximately 6,000 participants and had more than 1,200 exhibitors.

Leman China conference was considered by Dr Ng as one of the most valuable meetings in the swine industry. He got the latest information and scientific solutions in swine production from presentations of swine experts from North America, China and Europe. They also shared the new development and research results in pig genetics and breeding, production technology, etc. Dr Ng hoped to make use of the information he obtained in the conference for improvement of the pig farming industry in Hong Kong.

One Health Seminar

21 Mar 2023 Li Ka Shing School of Professional and Continuing Education, Hong Kong Metropolitan University has invited our OHRP faculty member Dr. YUAN Hsiang-Yu to be one of the speakers at the "One Health" for a Sustainable Future seminar that will be held on March 25, 2023 (Sat) from 2-4pm at Lam Kin Chung Lecture Theatre (K1104), 11/F., Tower 2, Kowloon Commerce Centre, 51-53 Kwai Cheong, Road, Kwai Chung, New Territories. All are welcome to join!

Photos of the seminar:

Ms. Mila XIN joined the One Health Poultry Hub in December

16 Feb 2023 Xin Chen Mila, a Research Assistant from OHRP, joined the One Health Poultry Hub in December 2022. She is the fifth researcher from OHRP to join the hub after Prof. Dirk U. Pfeiffer (co-PI), Dr. Anne Conan, Dr. Lorraine Chapot and Dr. Sara Sequeira. In the hub, Mila is involved in epidemiological research, supporting data collection, data cleaning, data analytics, and creating R markdown reports by combing ODK and R.

“Working on this project [One Health Poultry Hub] allows me to apply data analytics and programming to real-work research projects, which makes me feel so excited! In addition, I realized that dealing with data should be done with care, responsibility, and persistence, sticking with one thing, day in and day out, and doing my best to make things happen.”, Mila said.

Mila has a multidisciplinary background in veterinary medicine and computer science and is interested in how information technologies empower epidemiological studies to prevent and control emerging infectious and zoonotic diseases. Mila works closely with Dr. Anne Conan (Research Associate Professor) on different projects from the centre.

Seminar and Workshop by Dr Ray Chan

1 Feb 2023 Dr Ray Chan from the University of Exeter delivered a seminar and a workshop on two consecutive days to OHRP researchers and veterinary practitioners during his short stay in Hong Kong.

The seminar on 31 Jan 2023 was titled “Mapping the Good Farmer: Using Narrated Mapping Methodology to Explore Pig Farming and Biosecurity Practices in the New Territories of Hong Kong”. Ray shared with the audience the broader methodological implications for the concept of good farming.

The topic of the workshop on 1 Feb 2023 was “Understand Animal Health Practices: A Social Science Approach”. Three major types of qualitative methodologies (i.e. in-depth interviews, biographical narrative approach and narrated mapping) were introduced to veterinary scientists to explore how farmers used antimicrobials, practiced vaccination and adopted biosecurity practices in their farms.

Happy Chinese New Year from The Centre for Applied One Health Research and Policy Advice (OHRP)

February 2023 Warmest Season's greetings from OHRP. May the Year of the rabbit bring you health, peace and happiness! Lunar New Year is one of the most important celebrations on the Chinese calendar, on this special occasion all the staff from OHRP gathered together to have lunch celebration at City U Chinese Restaurant and also welcomed new members Dr Lip Tet Ng (Swine Veterinarian) and Mr Gordon AU Yeung (Veterinary Assistant).

Internship of High School Student

9 Jan 2023 Steven Mao, Grade 11 student from Hong Kong International School (HKIS) who has an interest in public health and biology, joined OHRP for two internships in 2022 summer and winter. His visits were part of the “Science Internship Program” implemented by HKIS.

Steven worked with Dr. Anne Conan (Research Associate Professor) and Ms. Mila Xin (Research Assistant) on the project “State-of-the-Art Health Management for improved poultry production, product safety and quality in Hong Kong” by helping with data cleaning, data management, and data analysis using software like Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Access, and R studio.

“I feel a lot more adept in data management with the use of these programs, and I also have a more comprehensive understanding of the mission that One Health aims to achieve. Overall, I feel that my contributions to various projects have been meaningful toward enhancing public health, food safety, animal welfare, and the prevention and control of infectious diseases.”, Steven said.

One Health Day

13 Oct 2022 Join us on celebrating the One Health Day at City University of Hong Kong! ~~3rd November 2022 (Thu)~~ from 11am to 4pm at Wong's International Terrace B

3 Nov 2022 Due to bad weather condition, the One Health Day will be postponed to 4th November 2022 (Fri) from 11am to 4:30pm at Wong's International Terrace B

25 Nov 2022 The BVM Year 1 One Health Course celebrated One Health Day with a student poster competition on 4^th November 2022. A big thanks to all students for their enthusiasm and commitment to the activity! Posters presented by students:

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Epidemix Webinar: Modelling the spread of AI with Epidemix

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