About Us

The Asia Pacific Bioethics Education Network (APBEN) was established in 2018 as part of an initiative led by the Chinese University of Hong Kong. Bioethics education is vital in assisting students, professionals, policy makers and the public to understand and address the ethical, legal and social dimensions of policy and practice.

 

APBEN aims to bring together academics and professionals working in bioethics education in the Asia Pacific region to create connections, facilitate collaboration and share ideas and innovations to enhance bioethics education.

 

We focus on education and training in the broad and interdisciplinary field of bioethics, with an emphasis on practical application of ethics in healthcare policy and practice. The network is therefore inclusive of health law and professionalism as well as health humanities scholarship. The network especially welcomes engagement by educators and practitioners in medicine, nursing, optometry, physiotherapy, medical radiation practice, social work, paramedicine, and other health professions, as well as researchers.

Executive Board

Chair

Wai-Tat Wong

Clinical Professional Consultant, Department of Anaesthesia and Intensive Care, the Chinese University of Hong Kong;
Research Fellow, CUHK Centre for Bioethics

Dr. Wai-Tat WONG is a specialist in internal medicine and critical care medicine. He is now working in the Department of Anaesthesia and Intensive Care, and the Centre for Bioethics at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK). He provides clinical service as a consultant in the intensive care unit (ICU) of the Prince of Wales Hospital. He is responsible for undergraduate teaching in acute medicine, anaesthesia, communication skills, professionalism and medical ethics in the Faculty of Medicine at CUHK. He has been working on research projects related to medical education, clinical ethics, end-of-life care in ICU, mechanical ventilation and infectious diseases.
Advisor

Ho Keung Ng

Professor, Department of Anatomical and Cellular Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, HKSAR

H.K. Ng is Chair Professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. His interests are in the molecular genetics of brain tumours, both adult and pediatric. He was previously Department Chairman. H.K. Ng is both a neuropathologist and a general pathologist.
H.K. was also Associate Dean (Education) of the Medical School of the Chinese University of Hong Kong from 2004 to 2019. As an educationalist, H.K. Ng organises the Bioethics curriculum in the medical school and was Chair of the Licentiate Examination of the Hong Kong Medical Council. He was convener of APBEN, driving its successful formation at the international. He also was the chair of the orgnaising committee of the first two APBEN annual conferences.
Vice-Chair

Pacifico Eric E. Calderon

Associate Professor and Chair, Department of Professionalism, Medical Ethics, and Humanities, St. Luke's Medical Center College of Medicine - William H. Quasha Memorial, Philippines

Pacifico Calderon is Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Professionalism, Medical Ethics and Humanities within St. Luke’s Medical Centre College of Medicine-William H. Quasha Memorial, Philippines. He has a keen interest in the moral and practical implications of virtues and cares ethics in teaching medical students, caring for patients and families, and supporting physicians and their wellbeing. Pacifico is presently a visiting fellow in clinical bioethics at Kyoto University, and his program of research evaluates the utility of the harm principle in shared decision-making in paediatrics within the Asian context.
Immediate Past Chair

Dominique Martin

Professor in Health Ethics and Professionalism

Dominique was the APBEN chairlady bwetween 2019 and 2022. She has extensive experience in teaching ethics and professionalism in online and located modes. In addition to her work as curriculum lead for Ethics, Law and Professionalism in the Deakin MD program, she has designed and developed units focused on Public Health Ethics, the Ethics of Ageing and Issues in End of Life Care, as well as Applied Ethics and Health Law and Ethics. She also designs and delivers tailored ethics programs, such as the Deakin Perioperative Ethics shortcourse, and Introduction to ethics for Clinical Ethics Committees.
Secretary

Olivia MY Ngan

Reserach Assistant Professor, Medical Ethics and Humnaities Unit, School of Clinical Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, HKSAR

Olivia Ngan has a multidisciplinary background in neuroscience (BS, University in Michigan – Ann Arbor), bioethics (MS, Columbia University), and public health (PhD, Chinese University of Hong Kong).

She is presently a lecturer at the CUHK Centre for Bioethics. Her primary work focuses on bioethics teaching and curriculum planning, developing courseware, supervising undergraduate and postgraduate student projects, and leading student-centred activities outside the classroom. Together with enthusiastic medical students and teachers, she co-founded a student-centred bioethics newsletter (CUBE). She has also been awarded courseware and teaching development grants, developing the learning interest and ethical sensitivity among medical students.

Timeline

2018

APBEN established

2021

Formation of Executive Board

2022

Launch of Special Interest Task Force

APBEN Constitution Bylaw

The Network was developed with the mission of promoting and supporting excellence in bioethics and professionalism education in the Asia Pacific region via international collaboration.

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