Prof Michael Ni is currently Clinical Associate Professor in the Division of Community Medicine and Public Health Practice at the School of Public Health. He trained in internal medicine at Queen Mary Hospital, pursued postgraduate studies at Harvard University, and obtained a higher doctorate by research in psychiatric epidemiology from the University of Hong Kong. Prof Ni is a specialist in public health medicine and has been conferred Fellowships by the Hong Kong Academy of Medicine (Community Medicine), Hong Kong College of Community Medicine, and the United Kingdom’s Faculty of Public Health, and Membership of the Royal College of Physicians.

As a public health physician, Prof Ni’s interdisciplinary research spans across different fields while maintaining a focus on population mental health. His primary area of research is in psychiatric epidemiology, and revolves around emerging and prevailing determinants of mental health. Since 2014, Prof Ni’s research programme has been supported by over 40 grants and with funding over HK$100 million as PI.

Prof Ni is Programme Director for the FAMILY Cohort, a large population-based cohort  (n=46,001) in Hong Kong. Prof Ni is the Principal Investigator for the World Health Organization World Mental Health Composite International Diagnostic Interview-5 in Hong Kong, and serves as a Principal Investigator of the State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Sciences. Prof Ni is an elected member of the leadership for the World Psychiatric Association Epidemiology and Public Health Section. He is responsible for coordinating modules in both the undergraduate medical and postgraduate public health curricula. Prof Ni’s research has been cited in BBC, Bloomberg, CNN, The Guardian, among others.

AWARDS

Michele Tansella Award, World Psychiatric Association

Outstanding Young Researcher Award, The University of Hong Kong

Lo Ying Shek Chi Wai Foundation Award for Young Investigator

Distinguished Young Fellow, Hong Kong Academy of Medicine

Research Output Prize, The University of Hong Kong

Faculty Outstanding Research Output Award, LKS Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong

Various positions are available (https://www.familycohort.sph.hku.hk/a), including Research Assistant Professor, Postdoctoral fellows, Postgraduate and undergraduate students. For enquiries, please contact familyco@hku.hk

(* denotes corresponding author)

1. Ni MY*, Yao XI, Leung KS, et al. Depression and post-traumatic stress during major social unrest in Hong Kong: a ten-year prospective cohort.  The Lancet 2020 Jan; 395(10220):273-284 [IF 202.7] [link]
2. Ni MY*, Canudas-Romo V, Shi J, et al. Understanding longevity in Hong Kong: a comparative study with long-living, high-income countries.  The Lancet Public Health 2021 Dec; 6(12):E919-E931 [IF 72.4] [link]
3. Ni MY*, Leung CMC, Leung GM. The epidemiology of population mental wellbeing in China. The Lancet Public Health 2020 Dec; 5(12):E631-E632 [IF 72.4] [link]
4. Ni MY, Yao XI, Cheung F, et al. Determinants of Physical, Mental, and Social Well-Being: A Longitudinal Environment-Wide Association Study. International Journal of Epidemiology 2020 Apr;49(2):380-389 [IF 9.7] [link]
5. Ni MY*, Li TK, Pang H, et al. Longitudinal patterns and predictors of depression trajectories related to the 2014 Occupy Central/Umbrella Movement in Hong Kong. American Journal of Public Health 2017 Apr;107(4):593-600 [IF 11.6] [link]
6. Cheung F, Kube A, Tay L, Diener E, Jackson JJ, Lucas RE, Ni MY† (co-senior author), Leung GM†. The impact of the Syrian conflict on population well-being. Nature Communications 2020 Aug;11(1):3899 [IF 17.7] [link]
7. Leung GM, Ni MY*, Wong PTK, et al. Cohort Profile FAMILY Cohort. International Journal of Epidemiology 2017 Apr;46(2):e1 [IF 9.7] [link]
8. Yao XI, Ni MY*, Cheung F, et al. Change in moderate alcohol consumption and quality of life: evidence from 2 population-based cohorts. Canadian Medical Association Journal 2019 Jul;191(27):E753-E760 [IF 16.9] [link]
9. Gilman SE, Ni MY, Dunn EC, et al. Contributions of the social environment to first-onset and recurrent mania. Molecular Psychiatry 2015;20(3):329-36 [IF 13.4] [link]
10. Ni MY*, Chan BHY, Leung GM, Lau EH, Pang H. Transmissibility of the Ice Bucket Challenge among globally influential celebrities: retrospective cohort study. BMJ 2014;349:g7185 [IF 93.5] [link]