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The Secretary for Education and Manpower, Professor Arthur K C Li, was awarded the Honorary Fellowship by the College of Surgeons of Hong Kong, A Government spokesman said today (October 13).
The conferment took place at the college's Diploma Presentation Ceremony last night where Professor Li also delivered the college's first Arthur Li Oration.
"Over the past two decades, I have had the honour to witness and participate in the preparation, establishment and development of the College of Surgeons of Hong Kong. Today, the college is playing an important role in the surgical field and I am most grateful to receive from it this highest honour," Professor Li said.
The award was to recognise Professor Li's outstanding contributions to the surgical field in Hong Kong and to the College of Surgeons of Hong Kong.
In 1982, Professor Li was appointed to the Foundation Chair of Surgery at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK). Within a decade, he had established the department as one of the leading surgical centres. Under his capable leadership, many local and overseas surgeons who worked in his department had now become international leaders in their own right.
When he was Dean of the Faculty of Medicine of CUHK, he led the Faculty to new heights. Many important breakthroughs were achieved in various aspects of medicine. Moreover, Professor Li saw the tremendous potential of minimal access surgery and promoted its application in different branches of surgery.
The citation highlighted Professor Li's efforts in fostering closer links between local and overseas surgical colleges. Professor Li foresaw the need of an organisation responsible for post-graduate surgical training and the maintenance of surgical standards. The idea of a college was thus conceived. As President of the Hong Kong Surgical Society in 1985, Professor Li took the lead to develop the society into a college, which was formally established in 1990. Professor Li played a most important pivotal role throughout this development.
From 1993 to 1996, Professor Li was the President of the College.
Ends/Friday, October 13, 2006
Issued at HKT 15:00
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