HKU Medical Professor Paul Tam awarded the prestigious Denis Browne Gold Medal by the British Association of Paediatric Surgeons

(Photo credit: the British Association of Paediatric Surgeons)

Professor Paul Tam Kwong Hang, Chair of Paediatric Surgery and Li Shu-Pui Professor in Surgery at the Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine of the University of Hong Kong (HKU), was presented the Denis Browne Gold Medal by the British Association of Paediatric Surgeons (BAPS) in a ceremony held during BAPS’s Annual International Congress on July 20 (Thursday, UK time). Professor Paul Tam is currently Provost and Deputy Vice-Chancellor of HKU.

At the BAPS Congress, the Peter Paul Rickham Prize for the best basic science paper was awarded to HKU MBBS-PhD student Ms Rachel Yiu for her paper “Birth of the first “human ba organoids”- hinting on the aetiology and disease progression of isolated biliary atresia?” Ms Yiu’s research has unravelled new understandings of biliary atresia, a paediatric liver disease, with the successful use of "organoids in a dish". The Prize was fiercely competitive. The winner was decided by a panel of international judges on the basis of the scientific content of the paper and the author’s presentation and response, following a shortlist of the abstracts of the highest scores to enter the final contest. 

The Denis Browne Gold Medal received by Professor Tam is the highest honour awarded by the British Association of Paediatric Surgeons, one of the oldest and most established paediatric surgical associations in the world. It is named after Sir Denis Browne, regarded as the Father of Paediatric Surgery in the UK, and a pioneer of the specialty worldwide. The award is made on an annual basis to one individual from worldwide nominations.

Professor Tam is the first surgeon in Hong Kong, and the fourth surgeon in Asia to be presented with this prestigious award since its inception in 1968.

Professor Tam was delighted to receive the award, and said: “I am deeply honoured to be included in the list of Denis Browne Medallists, which reads like a ‘Who’s Who’ for paediatric surgery. It has to be a dream come true for any paediatric surgeon.”

“I accept the award both with humility and on behalf of all those associated with me. For this is not a personal recognition but rather a recognition of my family, colleagues, mentors, students, friends, peers and patients. While I cannot hope to inspire the next generation of paediatric surgeons the way those giants of the past generation inspired me, I hope my experience in one form or another can encourage my younger colleagues to enjoy and advance the specialty we all love and care about.” He added.

Professor Tam has special interests in minimally invasive surgery, genetics and regenerative medicine of birth defects such as Hirschsprung’s disease. He has made significant contributions to paediatric surgery. He serves on many international professional associations and has led a number of projects in developing paediatric surgery in less affluent communities, especially in China, in the past two decades. He has nurtured a generation of over 2,000 paediatric surgeons in China through a training programme with far-reaching impact. 

Recipients of the Denis Browne Gold Medal since 1968 constitute the Who's who in Paediatric Surgery, including surgeons who devised new operations that have saved thousands of lives (Swenson for Hirschsprung's disease, Kasai for biliary atresia) and world leaders (Koop, former Surgeon General of USA).

For BAP’s introduction of Professor Paul Tam, please visit:
https://congress.baps.org.uk/schedule/day-3/denis-browne-gold-medal-presentation-to-professor-paul-tam/

For media enquiries, please contact Ms Melanie Wan (Senior Manager (Media), Communications and Public Affairs Office) tel: 2859 2600 email: melwkwan@hku.hk.