Episode 41: Conversation with Professor Ivan Hung

More than two years into the global pandemic, COVID-19 continues to impact the ways we work, live, and interact, and new variants of the virus continued to emerge.  The peak of the fifth COVID-19 wave in Hong Kong has passed, but what can we do to protect ourselves from new COVID-19 variants? What is the future of Covid management, vaccination and treatment in Hong Kong?

Asia Society Hong Kong Center continues to bring you regular updates on the COVID-19 situation in Hong Kong, and around the world. We are pleased to host on-the-ground public health experts and internationally renowned specialists as they share the latest facts and evidence-based findings on the global pandemic. Over the past two years, this groundbreaking series has featured more than 40 episodes and welcomed more than 250,000 online views.

In this episode, S. Alice Mong, Executive Director of Asia Society Hong Kong Center will host Professor Ivan Hung. This episode will explore questions including: What is the latest on the COVID pandemic in Hong Kong? What is the future of COVID vaccines and omicron vaccine efficacy? How long can we expect to keep wearing masks outdoors and indoors in Hong Kong? Will home quarantine for overseas arrivals in Hong Kong remain in the near future? How much longer can we expect the flight-suspension mechanism to remain in place? What is Hong Kong doing to be prepared for Omicron BA.2 and subsequent variants?

Professor Ivan Fan Ngai Hung is currently Ru Chien and Helen Lieh Endowed Professor in Health Sciences Pedagogy, Clinical Professor and Assistant Dean (Admissions), Chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, LKS Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, and Honorary Consultant in Queen Mary Hospital, Hong Kong. 
Professor Hung is a dual specialist in Infectious Disease and Gastroenterology & Hepatology. He obtained his medical degree from the University of Bristol Medical School, England in 1996. After working in the University of Cambridge Medical School and Charing Cross Hospital, London, he returned to Hong Kong in 1999 and joined the Department of Medicine, Queen Mary Hospital. He was awarded the Anti-SARS gold badge award by the Hospital Authority in 2003 for his role in combating SARS as frontline medical officer. He received the Sir Patrick Manson Gold Medal award for best M.D. thesis. He was awarded the Richard Yu Lectureship and medal in 2016 by the Hong Kong College of Physicians. He is currently the Fellow of Royal Colleges of Physicians of London and Edinburgh. 
Professor Hung has published more than 200 international peer reviewed original articles, including research articles in the Lancet, the Lancet Infectious Diseases and the Clinical Infectious Diseases. His research interest includes influenza, SARS-CoV-2 and other respiratory virus antiviral treatment and vaccinology. He and his team have pioneered the use of topical imiquimod before intradermal influenza vaccination, which results in protection against heterologous non-vaccine and antigenically drifted viruses. His team was also the first to prove convalescent plasma and H-IVIG reduced mortality in patients with severe influenza infection in prospective clinical trials. He is ranked as HKU Scholars in the world top 1% in 2013, 2018 and 2019. 
As a clinician scientist, Professor Hung believes in innovation, team-work and clinical application of translational research in tackling threats from emerging infectious diseases. 

The views and opinions expressed are those of the speakers and participants and, unless expressly stated to the contrary, do not reflect the opinion, position or official policy of Asia Society Hong Kong, its members, or its committees. Asia Society Hong Kong does not endorse or approve, and assumes no responsibility for the content of the information presented.