Bulletin Spring‧Summer 2004

G.H. Choa Cardiovascular Centre Opens T he G.H. Choa Cardiovascular Centre officially opened at the Prince of Wales Hospital on 1st December 2003. The centre is funded by a generous donation from Dr. the Honourable Quo-wei Lee, chairman of Wei Lun Foundation Ltd. and former chairman of the University Council, and a matching grant f r om t he H o s p i t al Authority. The facility is named after the late Prof. Ge r a ld Hu gh Choa, former director of med i c al and h e a l th services of Hong Kong, founding dean of the CUHK Faculty of Medicine, and former pro-vice- chancellor of the University, in commemoration of his distinguished contributions to medical and health services and medical education in Hong Kong. The new centre is equipped with state-of-the- art facilities to ensure excellence in performance and safety of percutaneous coronary intervention or balloon angioplasty with stenting — an effective treatment for coronary artery disease. The newly acquired cardiovascular imaging biplane system in the centre can help medical workers complete intervention procedures with greatly improved image quality in a shorter time and with improved safety for both patients and operators. After the installation of the new equipment, the centre will operate with two cardiac catheter procedure rooms, and the Prince of Wales Hospital will be able to provide an expanded and improved cardiac service for New Territories East. Officiating at the opening ceremony were (from left) Dr. John Chan, chairman of the Hospital Governing Committee of the Prince of Wales Hospital; Dr. William Ho, chief executive of the Hospital Authority; Mrs. Peggy Choa; Dr. and Mrs. Quo-wei Lee; Dr. Fung Hong, cluster chief executive of New Territories East; Dr. Edgar Cheng, chairman of the University Council; and Prof. Ambrose King, vice- chancellor of the University. Virtual-Reality Training for Keyhole Surgery Soon to Be Introduced M inimally Invasive Surgery (MIS) has been widely applied to operations of the abdomen, chest, head and neck, brain, and vascular system. It has been proven safe and effective for children, even newborns. Currently at the Prince of Wales Hospital, 80 per cent of surgical operations are MIS. Unlike in conventional surgery, MIS surgeons operate through a television monitor with a flat two-dimensional image rather than relying on direct vision and the sense of touch. Their movements are also restricted by the keyhole access. In response to the urgent need for training and practising facilities in MIS, the Faculty of Medicine will introduce a revolutionary virtual reality surgical training programme from July 2004 for all surgical trainees and experienced s u r g e o ns a c r o ss s u r g i c al disciplines in the New Territories East Cluster of hospitals. The programme, the first of its kind in Hong Kong, will provide safe, efficient and repetitive training a nd p r a c t i ce in d i f f e r e nt simulations and scenarios in a cost-effective manner. Surgeons can test d a ng e r ous or new surgical procedures at no risk to patients. All surgeons in New Territories East will need to have undergone virtual reality training for accreditation before they are assigned to any MIS operation. 5 6 Chinese University Bulletin Spring • Summer 2004