Chairman's Address
Ever since October 2000, Kwai Tsing District has driven to be a safety community with international standard. With the joint efforts of the Kwai Tsing District Council, Princess Margaret Hospital, Occupational Safety and Health Council, government departments, NGOs and private enterprises, Kwai Tsing District was accredited to be the 73rd Safe Community by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2003. In addition, we have become the Founding Member of the Health Cities Alliance in West Pacific in 2004.
2004-2005 was a challenging year to us. Nevertheless, we are proud of the outcomes. We consolidated our works in upholding high level of safety and health standards though the setting approach. Various accreditation programs were designed to examine the effectiveness of these standards in our neighborhoods, which include the Safe and Healthy Estates, Safe and Healthy Schools, and Safe and Healthy Elderly Homes.
Moreover, we succeeded in obtaining funding support from the Community Investment and Inclusion Fund (CIIF). The fund will be used to launch a 3-year project for the Safe and Healthy Estate in Cheung Tsing. Through this project, we shall enhance services provided by the Tsing Yi Community Health Centre; such as the setting up of a resource pool, forming the mutual help groups and service networks. An inclusive and harmonious community is expected to emerge.
For 2006 – 2007, we shall direct our focus on the following programs:
- Enhance services of Tsing Yi Health Community Centre
Through the collaboration with the Hong Kong Family Welfare Society, an experience social worker was deployed to participate in the Healthy Estate Project. A network will be established to enhance the strength of families in the community.
- Expand the Diabetes Retinopathy Screening Program
This is a district-based screening project for diabetes retinopathy provided by the Hong Kong Poly University School of Optometry in collaboration with the Family Medicine of the Kowloon West Cluster of the Hospital Authority.
- Extend the Safety and Health Charter
The Safety and Health Charter is provide information and to organize health programmes for the community through the collaboration of Community Nurses and local leaders. The target for 2006 is to prevent the 3 Highs i.e. hypertension, high blood sugar and high blood cholesterol.
- Strengthen the collaboration among community partners
In building a Safe and Healthy Community, we need the total participation of private and public organizations. The effort is enormous. Apart from the collaborative projects and networks, we hope to integrate health and safety in our daily lives. The Steering Committee will be re-established and consolidate the experiences in the routine operations.
With all your supports, we look forward to another safe and healthy year in Kwai Tsing.
Chow Yick Hay
Chairman
Kwai Tsing Safe Community and Healthy City Association Limited