[Group Photo caption : From left to right; Dr. Eddie Cheung, Consultant In Paediatrics, Hong Kong Adventist Hospital Foundation (Stubbs Road) Chairman, Children’s Medical Fund of Hong Kong Adventist Hospital Foundation (Stubbs Road); Mr. Philip Mok, Chairman, Board of Governors (Stubbs Road), Hong Kong Adventist Hospital Foundation; Mr. Andy Cen, Chief Finance Officer, Hong Kong Adventist Hospital; Mr. Alex Lan, President / CEO, Hong Kong Adventist Hospital; Mr. Chris Sun, JP, Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Labour and Welfare Bureau; Dr. Adrian Cheng, SBS, JP, Founder, The WEMP Foundation; Mr. Peter Cheng, Director, New World Development Co. Ltd., Advisor and Member, Board of Governors (Tsuen Wan), Hong Kong Adventist Hospital Foundation; Ms. Vanita Cheung, Director, The WEMP Foundation; Mr. Kenneth Chan, Advisor, The WEMP Foundation, and Executive Director and CEO, Sun Hing Printing Holdings Limited]
The WEMP Foundation, which is dedicated to enhancing the mental health of underprivileged children and youth, and the psychiatric and paediatric developmental team of Hong Kong Adventist Hospital Foundation – Stubbs Road (HKAHF-SR) have jointly launched the “SEN CONNECT” programme to subsidise pupils suspected of having special educational needs (SEN) from underprivileged families in seeking diagnosis and treatment at Adventist Child and Adolescent Development Center. At the programme launch held on 23 August, officiating guest Mr Chris Sun, Secretary for Labour and Welfare, relayed the government’s full support of the two organisations in providing relevant assistance to 1,000 eligible pupils in the first phase of the programme.
The WEMP Foundation and HKAHF-SR will arrange diagnostic assessment to potential SEN pupils aged between 3 and 14 from underprivileged families already waiting in line to receive preliminary assessment. The programme will include arranging assessments for eligible pupils and providing subsidies for medication and various treatments as required, thus helping the children seize the prime time to have treatment and build a healthy and inclusive environment for them to grow up in.
Build a Healthy and Inclusive Environment to Alleviate Endless Anxiety for Underprivileged Families
Mr. Chris Sun, Secretary for Labour and Welfare, expressed that the government is very supportive of this joint programme of The WEMP Foundation and HKAHF-SR to let underprivileged pupils in need receive timely assessment and treatment, that they may have appropriate support to grow up smooth and healthy.
Dr. Adrian Cheng, founder of The WEMP Foundation, said, "For underprivileged families in dire need of relevant attention, the programme does not only provide early detection and timely treatment to SEN pupils, giving them a healthier and inclusive growth environment, but can also spare their families and carers of the pain and never-ending anxiety from waiting in the long queues.”
Mr. Andy Cen, Chief Financial Officer of Hong Kong Adventist Hospital (HKAH), said, “As Hong Kong Adventist Hospital noticed the number of SEN children surging in the past 10 years and concerned about the long waiting time for public services, we have established the Adventist Child and Adolescent Development Center and introducing an inter-professional medical team and supporting facilities, especially designed for serving SEN children. Hong Kong Adventist Hospital Foundation (Stubbs Road) has allocated HK$20,000,000 to subsidise the medication and treatment expenses of eligible children. SEN CONNECT focuses on ‘early identification’ and ‘early intervention’ to offer support to underprivileged children with special educational needs. Our medical team is dedicated to creating comprehensive tailored treatment plans to help eligible children overcome learning difficulties and improve their physical and mental well-being.”
Subsidises Underprivileged Pupils Aged 3-14 to Receive Early Assessment and Treatment
The WEMP Foundation will liaise closely with local primary and secondary schools and non-governmental organisations to collect cases of potential SEN pupils, then arrange for eligible pupils to receive comprehensive assessment and diagnosis by psychiatrists at the Child and Adolescent Development Center of the Hong Kong Adventist Medical Center to help draw up appropriate treatment and follow-up plans for them.Four Key Symptoms to
Identify SEN Pupils and Provide Early Intervention to Facilitate Improvement
Dr. Eddie Cheung, a consultant in paediatrics at Hong Kong Adventist Hospital (Stubbs Road) and Chairman of Children’s Medical Fund of Hong Kong Adventist Hospital Foundation (Stubbs Road) said, “According to information released in 2022 by the Research Office of the Legislative Council Secretariat, the number of SEN pupils is almost 60,000 in recent years, doubling the 28,000 confirmed cases in 2012.
Dr. Cheung stated that, the pandemic, which had lingered, barring children growing up from normal social activities and changing their living environment, might be to blame, and society should pay more attention to children with special learning difficulties, detect potential cases early via On-site Pre-school Rehabilitation Services (OPRS) and refer them to professional teams for follow-up.
Dr. Cheung further indicated that the common symptoms of SEN children included difficulties in expressing themselves and coordinating body movements, lacking social skills and the ability to focus, and relevant research have found prime time treatment can raise treatment efficacy as well as lower the risk of developing related mental conditions, such as anxiety and depression, at adolescent and adult stage, and parents can learn early proper ways to teach and communicate with SEN children to help correct their behavioural problems, as such can also help reduce the burden on public healthcare resources from delay in treatment.
Dr. Jackie Fu, Specialist in Psychiatry, pointed out that, treatment for children is often delayed as psychiatric medications are conventionally perceived as having side effects, when the fact is medication is just an aid, and new generation drugs can meet the needs of different patients and have fewer side effects while producing the best therapeutic results. SEN CONNECT, he said, tailors training and treatment plans for individual pupil, covering medication, group activities, and assistance from occupational therapists, speech therapists, and clinical psychologists, and occupational therapists will design and provide appropriate training for school children, pinpointing questions raised by service users, analyse them and intervene, plus discuss and formulate appropriate treatment plans with the children and their families.
Dr. Fu concluded that school children should receive behavioural treatment and medication, complementary to each other, he added, and that in addition to cooperation between doctors and parents can produce the best treatment results.
The WEMP Foundation believes every child is special and the better the society knows about the spectrum of mental abilities of children, the more helpful it is for it to build an inclusive environment for children to grow up happy and healthy.
Hong Kong Adventist Hospital Foundation (Stubbs Road) trusts that SEN CONNECT is a holistic programme which can detect the source of the problem during the crucial treatment period, promote family harmony and enhance children’s learning ability.
For enquiries, please contact The WEMP Foundation or Hong Kong Adventist Hospital Foundation (Stubbs Road).
The WEMP Foundation
Email : sen-connect@hkwemp.org
Whatsapp : 5635 8737
Hong Kong Adventist Hospital Foundation (Stubbs Road)
Email : foundation@hkah.org.hk
Whatsapp:9765 2061
