Healer with a Benevolent Heart

Dr Kwong Wing-yan has been involving in regular voluntary services since her secondary school days. She believes that to be a good doctor, besides delving into medical knowledge, developing a benevolent heart is crucial. "Through taking part in humanitarian services, we can gain greater understanding of the patients’ needs, and accumulate experience for protecting more lives." Thus, she has been actively participating in humanitarian relief work to apply her medical expertise to help people in different countries.

 

Continuous Participation in Humanitarian Services

In 2007, after having completed her third-year medical studies, Dr Kwong decided to take a gap-year to provide voluntary services in rural areas in Cameroon, Africa. She helped raise fund for the schooling of local children, and paid home visits to learn more about their needs. She also ran activities in schools to enhance students’ awareness towards AIDS.

Having integrated into the Cameroonian community, she gained first-hand experience of the people’s daily hardship. She had contracted malaria twice in Cameroon. Fortunately, in both times, she recovered after a few days of hospitalization. She was deeply touched by the care and concern of the local people when she fell sick, making her more determined in helping others.

Upon being a qualified medical practitioner in emergency medicine, Dr Kwong joined an
international humanitarian organization to serve in Ethiopia. She worked with medical
professionals from different countries to offer treatment to numerous residents in mobile clinics. In 2013, she served in Zambia, providing out-patient services for HIV-carriers.

In February 2015, Dr Kwong quitted her job to study tropical medicine in Liverpool, England. She also received Red Cross Emergency Response Unit training and became an overseas medical volunteer for various humanitarian agencies. In May 2015, she headed for earthquake-stricken Nepal and provided voluntary services in the disaster zone for a month.

At present, Dr Kwong has resumed work in emergency medicine. She hopes to accumulate more experience to better equip herself for future humanitarian endeavours. Through sharing her experience, she also hopes to encourage more people to join the humanitarian volunteering force.