The awardee of the Second Hong Kong Humanity Award - Dr FAN Ning

Dr Fan Ning believes that one's life is interconnected with the lives of other human beings. Regardless of background, each person chooses how to live their life and is ultimately responsible for their decisions, both big and small. Attitude towards life generally defines the way a life is lived. As the President of Medecins Sans Frontieres (Hong Kong Office), Dr Fan participated in the humanitarian relief works in the Gaza Strip in early 2009. To him the basic principle of humanitarianism is the idea of respect for human life – the life of another should be valued as if it were one's own. Everyone, everywhere in the world has to face birth, ageing, sickness and death. However local health care conditions have a direct impact on people's emotions and attitude towards these inevitable experiences. The health needs of people in remote, poor or politically unstable areas are often neglected and they might lack access to even basic medical services throughout their lives. Dr Fan believes that the efforts of international relief organizations are vitally important to people living in the regions without adequate health care. As a medical professional, Dr Fan often wonders if health workers can really make a difference to disadvantaged people in third world countries. Medical professionals certainly cannot solve all the issues associated with insufficient and ineffective medical services that arise from social problems, ethnic conflicts, political instability and poverty. Yet medical professionals can and should provide suitable and timely treatment to the patients they encounter and help them to overcome the difficulties in their daily lives. Over the past few years Dr Fan has joined a number of Hong Kong Red Cross relief operations around the world as a professional medical volunteer. After the 5.12 Sichuan earthquake, he went with the first Hong Kong Red Cross medical team to Sichuan Province to provide emergency medical services in the hardest hit region, Beichuan County. He is also involved in the relief work of the Hong Kong SAR Government Flying Service on a voluntary basis. Dr Fan enthusiastically shares his experiences serving regions such as Sri Lanka, Kenya and Sichuan with other medical workers. Dr Fan believes every humanitarian mission he joins offers him the opportunity to rethink the value of his life. He said,"I ask myself if I were the one who sought help, what kind of assistance would give me the chance to positively face every single day in future? ” "Every person's story is wonderful and the value of each life is unique,” he added.