The American Academy of Nursing (Academy) announced the 2024 Class of New Fellows earlier, there are 3 inductees from Hong Kong this year. Professor Rick Kwan, Associate Dean (Programmes) of the School of Nursing, Tung Wah College (TWC), has been inducted into the 2024 Class of Fellows of the Academy for his outstanding contributions to healthcare education and research.

Induction into the FAAN Fellowship is one of the highest international distinctions in the field of nursing. It demonstrates the outstanding teaching and research quality of the nursing scholars at TWC, which has been internationally recognised. Along with other nurse leaders from all over the world, Professor Kwan will be recognised at the Academy’s annual Health Policy Conference in Washington, D.C., USA on 2 November 2024.

Professor Rick Kwan is currently the Associate Dean (Programmes) of the School of Nursing. Before joining TWC, he served at the School of Nursing, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University for more than 10 years. His research specialises in gerontological nursing with a strong focus on employing technologies to promote the health behaviours of older people with cognitive frailty and enhance the independence and health of older people with dementia.

He also specialises in developing innovative teaching and learning methods, e.g. virtual reality, MOOC, inquiry-based learning, for students to learn various topics in the field of gerontological nursing.

He serves as key editorial roles in various professional publications journals including BMC Geriatrics, Frontiers in Psychiatry, Frontiers in Psychology, etc. He is also very active in serving in professional organisations related to nursing and gerontology. He is the President of the Pi Iota At-large Chapter, Sigma; Council Member of the Research and Scholarship Advisory Council, Sigma; Co-opted Member of the Registered Nurse (General) Examination Sub-Committee (RNGES), Nursing Council of Hong Kong; Council Member of the Hong Kong Association of Gerontology; External Examiner of the Higher Diploma in Nursing, School of Nursing, Hospital Authority; and Committee Member of the Chinese Association of Rehabilitation Medicine.

TWC currently has 4 scholars inducted into the Fellowship, including President Professor Sally Chan, who has been selected as a Fellow since 2013, and Professor Lorna Suen, Dean of the School of Nursing, Professor Simon Lam, Associate Dean (Research) of the School of Nursing, being inducted into the Fellowship in 2022.

About the American Academy of Nursing

The American Academy of Nursing serves the public by advancing health policy and practice through the generation, synthesis, and dissemination of nursing knowledge. Academy Fellows are inducted into the organisation for their extraordinary contributions to improve health locally and globally. With more than 3,000 Fellows, the Academy represents nursing’s most accomplished leaders in policy, research, administration, practice, and academia.