Unlimited Service

The wonderful Chinese medicine practitioners from the School of Chinese Medicine at Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBUCM) are CA volunteers. They have made it possible for young adults with disabilities and special needs at Xining Social Welfare Institute to receive professional healthcare services.

Since 2015, HKBUCM has been visiting Qinghai for service trips and study tours, but in 2020, the relentless wave of coronavirus restrictions prevented them from meeting our service users face-to-face. The physical distance, however, did not end the relationship with the serving hearts of HKBUCM volunteers. With technology, HKBUCM swiftly set up an online service. It offered real-time clinical assessment and acupuncture and manipulations training, so that young adults could continue receiving free healthcare services.

In 2021, HKBUCM optimised the online service by initiating four days of Chinese acupuncture and manipulations therapy. The new electronic service model is more individualised, professional and collaborative. HKBUCM not only tailored individual plans for the young adults to enhance their self-care abilities and communication skills, but also provided one-on-one assessments for the staff. In the process, HKBUCM Chinese medicine practitioners discussed and exchanged expert opinions about specific cases to accelerate positive outcomes for the young adults. Most importantly, there was a joint meeting among members from Christian Action, HKBUCM and the Social Welfare Institute to evaluate the service experience.

This groundbreaking attempt at combining online clinical services benefited a total of 33 young adults, staff and participants. We are now looking to establish a trans-disciplinary team of Chinese medical practitioners, healthcare specialists and social workers by bringing in state-of-the-art therapies and social work service models.