Lingnan University organises a professional exchange in elderly care to lobby for the collaborative development of institutions in the Greater Bay Area

Lingnan University organised the "Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Elderly Care Professionals Exchange and Service Improvement Activity” from 25 to 26 April, which was attended by representatives from 11 of the main elderly care service centres and social work organisations in the Greater Bay Area, and provided a knowledge exchange and business learning platform for stakeholders to raise the overall quality of elderly care services in the region.

On the first day, representatives from several elderly care institutions visited the headquarters and LinkAges Lam Ki Yip Centre of the Aberdeen Kaifong Welfare Association, and the Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui Western District Elderly Community Centre to see the development and operational models of community-based elderly care service providers in Hong Kong. This showed them their professional capabilities in management, frontline service delivery, and technical applications, and the Hong Kong SAR government’s support policies and welfare arrangements for home-based elderly care.

Both of the centres they visited practise home-based care. They described the dietary arrangements for the elderly in the region, and the ongoing home services provided by their integrated care teams. The visitors toured the kitchen of the LinkAges Lam Ki Yip Centre, where they watched meals being prepared for seniors and gained an understanding of the food delivery workflow. At the Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui Western District Elderly Community Centre, home care staff demonstrated the use of the "ecHome" application to record seniors' personal information, vital signs, and service appointments and records, and explained that it also allows family members to access the information, thereby enhancing transparency.

On the following day, representatives from the elderly care institutions took part in the "2025 Health and Wellbeing Symposium: Best Practices for Healthy and Age-Friendly Cities", hosted by the Lingnan University School of Graduate Studies. There were lectures by several distinguished scholars in the elderly care sector, addressing topics such as urban design, the health needs of cross-border seniors in the Greater Bay Area, and collaboration in long-term care. The forum provided a platform for information exchange between social service practitioners, policymakers, and stakeholders from different countries and regions, and encouraged the creation of inclusive urban spaces to contribute to the health and well-being of the elderly.

Following the forum, the representatives from the elderly care institutions expressed appreciation for the considerable benefits gained from the discussions, which not only helped them to understand the differences and challenges faced by elderly care services across various countries and regions, but also broadened their perspectives and shared valuable experience. Furthermore, it advanced the consolidation of government, industry, academia, and research considerably, and demonstrated the latest research outcomes, promoting technological integration and eliminating disparities, while also providing practical advice in overcoming policy barriers between government departments in the Greater Bay Area, thus synchronising the elderly care industry in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

This was the inaugural event of Lingnan University's initiative to enhance elderly care services in the Greater Bay Area through knowledge sharing and capacity building, supported by the Lingnan University Innovation & Impact Fund, and sponsored by the Research Grants Council's Knowledge Transfer Project Fund. Prof Shi Cheng, Research Assistant Professor at Lingnan's School of Graduate Studies and Institute of Policy Studies, is responsible for overseeing the project, alongside Dr Chloe Sui Pui-yi , Senior Lecturer at the School of Graduate Studies and Institute of Policy Studies, and Dr Fung Ming-sui, Deputy Director of the Asia-Pacific Institute of Ageing Studies. The event also received generous support from the HE Foundation.

Participating Institutions (in alphabetical order):

Dongguan Pengxing Social Work Service Center

Foshan Chunhui Social Work Service Center

Foshan Nanhai District Taoyuan Welfare Center Co., Ltd.

Foshan Shunde District Hetai Elderly Care Center

Foshan Shunde District Shanqi Home Elderly Service Co., Ltd.

Foshan Shunde District Yixin Social Work Service Center

Guangzhou Ci Ai Jia Elderly Service Center

Guangzhou COSCO Shipping Health Management Co., Ltd.

Jiangmen Pengjiang District Hengai Social Work Comprehensive Service Center

Zhongshan Qichuang Social Work Service Center.