Message from the President

On behalf of the Hong Kong Society of Behavioral Health (HKSBH), I welcome your visit to our website.

We all acknowledge that non-chronic diseases (NCD) and emerging infectious diseases present serious global health threats. Yet, a large proportion of such disease burdens and resulting mortality are preventable through behavioral changes. We come from various disciplines. Some of us are researchers, whilst others are health workers. But it is beyond doubt that all of us share the same vision to improve health of various populations by utilizing the skills and knowledge of our own discipline. An interesting question then arises: “What about pulling our strengths together?”

The HKSBH has hence been created to provide a platform for fostering interdisciplinary collaborations so as to improve population health. Our mission statement is: “Interdisciplinary action to promote population health”. Behavioral health (medicine) is defined as “The interdisciplinary field concerned with the development and integration of psychosocial, behavioral and biomedical science knowledge and techniques relevant to health and illness and the application of this knowledge and these techniques to prevention, etiology, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation” (International Society of Behavioral Medicine, 2013). Hence, we are not only looking at health-related behaviors. We are advancing a step further to integrate various disciplines of behavioral sciences with public health and clinical sciences!

The HKSBH is an open hub for health researchers and practitioners of different disciplines to meet, to exchange experiences and ideas, and to foster synergistic collaborations. The cross-disciplinary nature distinguishes us from many other societies that are based on a single discipline or target diseases. We are very blessed to have a very encouraging start. The background of our members, which have exceeded 100 in number and keep expanding, is truly interdisciplinary in nature. They include clinicians, public health workers, clinical and health psychologists, medical sociologists, medical anthropologists, health communication scientists, health economists, nurses, allied health workers, social workers, nutritional scientists, pharmacists, sport science specialists, NGO workers and members coming from other disciplines. Our research interests are therefore very diverse yet overlap, and we are going to learn from each other. Our logo of the three men in different colors carries the inspiration of the ancient Chinese saying that: “Walking in a party of three, I will certainly encounter my teacher”. Furthermore, the three colored people come from different disciplines but they face the same direction, the same vision and the same challenge.

We strongly believe that this platform is unique and important. We are organizing regular academic activities including seminars, conferences, training courses and special interest groups (SIG). We are also applying to become an organization member of the International Society of Behavioral Health. Connections to international organizations and researchers enhance learning and collaborations further. A platform is however, just a lifeless entity without your presence and involvement. Join us if you share our vision! I have enjoyed so much seeing new and old friends through the Society’s activities. I am sure that has happened or will happen to you.

With your participation, our mission statement is definitely an achievable one.