Coronavirus: 18 infected by ‘super spreader’ patient at public hospital, triggering review of preventive measures as 59 new cases confirmed in Hong Kong
- Elderly woman first tested negative after being admitted for a complication of diabetes but later contracted the virus and spread it to at least 18 others
- The outbreak was made worse by practice of moving patients to different areas and the failure of a worker to wear full protective gear, expert finds
A top infectious disease expert said the spread of the coronavirus at United Christian Hospital in Kwun Tong was helped by a practice of shifting patients to different beds and the failure by a staff member to wear full protective gear. The Hospital Authority pledged to review his suggestions before implementing enhanced measures.
The cluster was revealed as health officials confirmed another 59 new cases, of which 26 were untraceable and six imported. Authorities also said a third person who had recently returned from Britain was found to be carrying the mutant strain of the virus that is sweeping across England, while mandatory screening was ordered at a public housing estate hit by a worsening outbreak.
About 50 people also tested preliminary-positive, including eight patients and seven staff members from the hospital ward, which also provides acute medical services. Another 83-year-old patient who stayed in the ward last week but was discharged has also tested initially positive, while three patients were confirmed as infected earlier this week, pushing the total number of known and suspected cases tied to the outbreak to 19.
The super spreader woman was in a coma when she was admitted to hospital suffering from diabetic ketoacidosis, a serious complication of diabetes, according to Professor Yuen Kwok-yung, an infectious disease expert at the University of Hong Kong who inspected the facility on Saturday. An initial X-ray revealed she also had mild pneumonia but this was a common occurrence in patients in a confused state who often had difficulties managing to keep saliva from entering the lungs. She tested negative for Covid-19 and was admitted to the ward.
A later screening found a separate patient was infected and after contact tracing determined the elderly woman was at risk, a second test came back positive for the virus. She had a low cycle threshold value of between 14 and 18, which indicated she had a high viral load, Yuen said. He suspected the coronavirus was spread through to others through the air.
“This is an unfortunate super spreading event that affected other patients,” he said. “It is a palliative care ward, and most of the patients there are suffering from very severe conditions … their immune system is very poor, and thus they are very easily infected.”