Wong Michael TH 黃德興

Dr Wong is currently Honorary Clinical Professor, Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Medicine, LKS Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong. 

Prof Wong is a medical graduate from The University of Hong Kong. He trained in Neuropsychiatry with Prof AW Lishman and Dr Peter Fenwick at the Neuropsychiatry & Epilepsy Unit, Maudsley Hospital, London. His Research Fellowship at Institute of Psychiatry University of London was on PET & MRI neuroimaging and neurophysiology. He was one time Visiting Fellow to the Center for Sleep and Chronobiology in University of Toronto (with Prof Harvey Moldofsky) and Academic Visitor to Faculty of Philosophy Oxford University (with Prof Bill Fulford).

He is a Fellow of professional colleges of psychiatrists in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong. He is also trained in theology, holding a master degree in divinity with a dissertation on theological anthropology. His two research doctorates are on MRI & PET brain imaging of violent offenders with schizophrenia (MD) and on how hermeneutics promotes dialogues between philosophy neuroscience psychiatry and theology (PhD) respectively.

His current major research interest focuses on:

Clinical presentation and treatment of major neuropsychiatric conditions - His newly set up Neuropsychiatry Clinic is building up clinical cohorts of psycho-immunology and psycho-endocrinology disorders, frontal-striatal dysfunctions, cortical dysregulation and cognitive disorders. Another focus is to develop Youth Neuropsychiatry as an innovative clinical and research paradigm.

Digitalization and Brain Health - Digitalization, in addition to urbanization, is becoming a major risk factor for brain and mental health risk. Excessive and problematic smartphone use has been shown to pose potential negative impact on brain development, cognitive capacity (attention, memory and executive function), sleep wake cycle, identity and personality formation, social skills learning and stress coping skills development. A pilot study on Smartphone Overuse Mindfulness & Mental Health in Hong Kong youth is in progress.

Psychiatry Philosophy & Humanities - His latest book, Ricoeur and the Third Discourse of the Person: From Philosophy and Neuroscience to Psychiatry and Theology, published by Lexington Books, London, develops a model drawing on his research on how hermeneutics facilitates dialogues between philosophy, neuroscience, theology (religion and spirituality), culture and humanities to promote a whole person and person centered psychiatry.