Dr Vincent Yan is a pharmacist with expertise in pharmacoepidemiology research. He received his Bachelor of Pharmacy degree with first-class honours from The Chinese University of Hong Kong in 2018. After becoming a registered pharmacist, he joined the Centre for Safe Medication Practice and Research at The University of Hong Kong, where he obtained his PhD in Pharmacoepidemiology in 2024 under the supervision of Professor Esther Chan. He was also a Visiting Scientist at the University College London School of Pharmacy in 2023.

Vincent’s research focuses on investigating the safety, effectiveness, cost-effectiveness, patient preferences and utilisation trends of medications, in the areas of cardiovascular medicine, mental health and infectious disease, using multinational healthcare big data. He has applied the target trial emulation methodology to conduct robust evaluations of safety and effectiveness of cardiovascular medications including lipid-lowering and anti-hypertensive agents, as well as COVID-19 oral antivirals and monoclonal antibodies. He is also actively exploring the use of artificial intelligence to develop clinical risk prediction and decision support tools.

Vincent’s work has been published in over 70 peer-reviewed articles (h-index: 18), including respectable journals of the field such as JACC, Annals of Internal Medicine, Lancet family and BMJ family journals. His work has been cited in relevant local and national guidelines, such as the Interim Guidance Notes on Common Medical Diseases and COVID-19 Vaccination in Primary Care Settings published by the Centre for Health Protection of the HKSAR, and the Government of Canada’s Guidance on the Use of COVID-19 Vaccines in the Fall of 2023, informing clinical practice and health policy.

Honours and Awards

• International Society for Pharmacoepidemiology (ISPE) Scholarships, 2024 & 2026
• Faculty Outstanding Research Output Awards, 2022 & 2024
• ISPOR Europe Research Presentation Award - Top 5% Finalist, 2023
• Hui Pun Hing Memorial Postgraduate Fellowship, 2021

Memberships & Editorships

• Registered Pharmacist, Pharmacy and Poisons Board, Hong Kong
• Founding President, ISPE Hong Kong Student Chapter

• Pharmacoepidemiology, pharmacovigilance, real-world evidence (RWE) research
• Evaluation of the medication safety and effectiveness in cardiovascular disease (particularly oral anticoagulants, lipid-lowering agents, GLP-1 receptor agonists) and mental health (particularly antipsychotics) using target trial emulation and self-controlled case series
• AI in healthcare – clinical risk prediction and decision support tools, drug repurposing
• Pharmacoeconomics – evaluating the cost-effectiveness and budget impact of medications
• Drug utilisation research – monitoring global-level uptake of medications and income-driven disparities
• Health preferences research – eliciting patient preferences towards medication attributes using discrete choice experiments

Publication Highlights

• Yan VKC, Cheng FWT, Chui CSL, Lai FTT, Wong CKH, Li X, Wan EYF, Wong JSC, Chan EWY, Wong ICK, Kwan MYW, Ip P. Effectiveness of BNT162b2 and CoronaVac vaccines in preventing SARS-CoV-2 Omicron infections, hospitalizations, and severe complications in the pediatric population in Hong Kong: a case-control study. Emerg Microbes Infect. 2023 Dec;12(1):2185455. doi: 10.1080/22221751.2023.2185455. IF (2024): 7.5, 5-Year IF: 7.2. Rank 7/137 in Infectious Diseases.

Cited in the Government of Canada’s Guidance on the Use of COVID-19 Vaccines in the Fall of 2023

• Yan VKC, Wan EYF, Ye X, Mok AHY, Lai FTT, Chui CSL, Li X, Wong CKH, Li PH, Ma T, Qin S, Wong VKC, Tsang TC, Tsui SH, Chui WCM, Cowling BJ, Leung GM, Lau CS, Wong ICK, Chan EWY. Effectiveness of BNT162b2 and CoronaVac vaccinations against mortality and severe complications after SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.2 infection: a case-control study. Emerg Microbes Infec. 2022 Dec;11(1):2304-2314. doi: 10.1080/22221751.2022.2114854. IF (2024): 7.5, 5-Year IF: 7.2. Rank 7/137 in Infectious Diseases. 

Cited in the Interim Guidance Notes on Common Medical Diseases and COVID-19 Vaccination in Primary Care Settings published by the Centre for Health Protection of the HKSAR

• Wan EYF, Yan VKC (co-first author), Mok AHY#, Wang B, Xu W, Cheng FWT, Lai FTT, Chui CSL, Li X, Wong CKH, Li PH, Cowling BJ, Hung IFN, Lau CS, Wong ICK, Chan EW. Effectiveness of molnupiravir and nirmatrelvir-ritonavir in hospitalized COVID-19 patients: A Target Trial Emulation Study. Ann Intern Med. 2023 Apr;176(4):505-514. doi: 10.7326/M22-3057. IF (2024): 15.4, 5-Year IF: 20. Rank 9/332 in Medicine, General & Internal.

Cited in the BMJ Best Practice recommendations on COVID-19 Management Approach; and rated excellent evidence in 2 Minute Medicine, the leading authoritative medical news licensing service and the only with reports written by practicing doctors.

• Wei Y, Yan VKC, Castle DJ, Huang C, Deng EK, Leung SM, Yiu HHE, Lee KJ, Lui SSY, Ng VWS, Hayes JF, Lai FTT, Wang H, Yan EWC, Chan EW. Disease relapse, all-cause mortality, and adverse events associated with long-acting injectable antipsychotics versus oral antipsychotics in older people with schizophrenia in Hong Kong: a population-based within-subject analysis. Lancet Psychiatry. 2025 Nov;12(11):830-840. doi: 10.1016/S2215-0366(25)00268-8. IF (2024): 24.8, 5-Year IF: 33. Rank 2/288 in Psychiatry

Cited in the Chinese Experts Consensus on Maintenance Treatment of Schizophrenia since 2024

Selected Publications

• Yan VKC, Xu W, Taniguchi Y, Fung KK, Chan KH, Lau GKK, Chui CSL, Lai FTT, Li X, Iwagami M, Masuda R, Tamiya N, Dorajoo SR, Neo JW, Chan EWY, Wong ICK, Wan EYF. Myasthenia gravis following the initiation of statin therapy: A multinational self-controlled case series study. J Intern Med. 2026 Apr;299(4):502-514. doi: 10.1111/joim.70072. IF (2024): 9.2, 5-Year IF: 9.8. Rank 18/332 in Medicine, General & Internal.
• Yan VKC, Blais JE, Gamble JM, Chan EW, Wong ICK, Wan EYF Effectiveness and safety of statins in type 2 diabetes according to baseline cardiovascular risk: A target trial emulation study. Ann Intern Med. 2026 Feb;179(2):157-167. doi: 10.7326/ANNALS-25-00662. IF (2024): 15.4, 5-Year IF: 20. Rank 9/332 in Medicine, General & Internal.
• Yan VKC, Ju C, MacDonald TM, Mackenzie IS, Flynn R, Williams B, Chen Y, Chan EW, George J, Wei L. Comparative effectiveness and prescribing trends of modified release versus immediate release indapamide in patients with hypertension: cohort study. BMJ Med. 2025 Feb 25;4(1):e000857. doi: 10.1136/bmjmed-2024-000857. IF (2024): 10, 5-Year IF: 10. Rank 13/332 in Medicine, General & Internal.
• Yan VKC, Li HL, Wei L, Knapp MRJ, Wong ICK, Chan EW. Evolving Trends in Consumption of Direct Oral Anticoagulants in 65 Countries/Regions from 2008 to 2019. Drugs. 2023 Mar;83(4):315-340. doi: 10.1007/s40265-023-01837-0. IF (2024): 14.4, 5-Year IF: 13.2. Rank 1/106 in Toxicology.
• Yan VKC, Haendler M, Lau H, Li X, Lao KSJ, Tsui SH, Yap CYL, Knapp MRJ, Chan EW. Cost-Effectiveness of Midazolam Versus Haloperidol Versus Olanzapine for the Management of Acute Agitation in the Accident and Emergency Department. Value Health. 2022 Jul;25(7):1099-1106. doi:10.1016/j.jval.2021.11.1374. IF (2024): 6, 5-Year IF: 5.7. Rank 5/125 in Health Policy & Services.
• Yan VKC, Li X, Ye X, Ou M, Luo R, Zhang Q, Tang B, Cowling BJ, Hung I, Siu CW, Wong ICK, Cheng RCK, Chan EW. Drug Repurposing for the Treatment of COVID-19: A Knowledge Graph Approach. Adv Ther (Weinh). 2021 Jul;4(7):2100055. doi:10.1002/adtp.202100055. IF (2024): 2.6, 5-Year IF: 3.7. Rank 177/352 in Pharmacology & Pharmacy.
• Yan VKC, Blais JE, Li X, Chui CSL, Wei L, Yan BP, Knapp MRJ, Siu CW, Wong ICK, Chan EW. Trends in Cardiovascular Medicine Use in 65 Middle- and High-Income Countries. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2021 Feb 23;77(7):1021-1023. doi:10.1016/j.jacc.2020.12.025. IF (2024): 22.3, 5-Year IF: 24.2. Rank 4/231 in Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems.
• Yiu HHE, Yan VKC (co-first author), Au CCL, Deng EK, Wong MCS, Yan BP, Wong WCW, Liu SY, Wong CK, Chan EW; CSMPR Lipid-Lowering Agent Preference Study Group. Patient Preferences for Lipid-Lowering Agents in Hypercholesterolemia: A Discrete Choice Experiment. Value Health Reg Issues. 2026 Jun 17:101662. doi: 10.1016/j.vhri.2026.101662. IF (2024): 1.5, 5-Year IF: 1.7. Rank 136/188 in Health Care Sciences & Services.
• Blais JE, Yan VKC (co-first author), Chan EWY, Wong ICK, Wan EYF. Safety and Effectiveness of Statins for Primary Prevention in Adults With Type 1 Diabetes: An Emulation. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2025 Sep 16;86(11):797-809. doi: 10.1016/j.jacc.2025.07.013. IF (2024): 22.3, 5-Year IF: 24.2. Rank 4/231 in Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems.
• Wan EYF, Yan VKC (co-first author), Wong ZCT, Chui CSL, Lai FTT, Li X, Wong CKH, Hung IFN, Lau CS, Wong ICK, Chan EWY. Effectiveness of molnupiravir vs nirmatrelvir-ritonavir in non-hospitalised and hospitalised patients with COVID-19: a target trial emulation study. EClinicalMedicine. 2023 Sep 20;64:102225. doi: 10.1016/j.eclinm.2023.102225. IF (2024): 10, 5-Year IF: 10. Rank 13/332 in Medicine, General & Internal.

Full list available at https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Vincent-Yan-3/publications

• Health and Medical Research Fund 2024 (Ref: 23244221) - "Optimising antithrombotic therapy after percutaneous coronary intervention in patients with atrial fibrillation: target trial emulation using healthcare big data (OPTIM-AF-PCI)"
  [Role: PI; HKD 850,320; Nov 2026 – May 2029]
• Beat Drugs Fund 2024 (Ref: 240045) - “Identification of hidden substance users: a data-driven approach”
  [Role: Co-I (PI: Prof Esther Chan); HKD 2,503,194]
• Beat Drugs Fund 2022 (Ref: 220032) - “Short and long-term burden of COVID-19 in substance abusers: a cohort study
  [Role: Co-I (PI: Prof Eric Wan); HKD 372,453]
• HKU Teaching Development Grant “Interprofessional Interactive Learning Module on Inhaler Devices for the Management of Respiratory Disorders – a Student Partnership Approach” – a Moodle course on inhaler devices usage for BPharm, BNurs and MBBS students
  [Role: Co-I (PI: Prof Esther Chan)]
• HKU Teaching Development Grant “Online training for the reconstitution of Fosun/BioNTech: a learning platform to determine readiness for complex medication preparation procedures” – required training material for healthcare professionals working at the HKU Community Vaccination Centre during COVID-19
  [Role: Co-I (PI: Prof Esther Chan)]

Selected media releases and communications

ORCID: 0000-0001-5225-3032

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kcyan/

X: @VincentKCYan