Coronavirus: Hong Kong health officials urge staff at care homes to undergo more frequent PCR tests amid worsening outbreaks at facilities

Hong Kong health officials have urged staff at care homes to undergo more frequent polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests for Covid-19 amid worsening outbreaks at such facilities and a rising trend of infected employees spreading the virus to residents.

Six care homes for the elderly and disabled reported new Covid-19 cases on Sunday, while 48 logged infections in the past week, according to Dr Albert Au Ka-wing of the Centre for Health Protection. Occupants of one facility were evacuated last week to AsiaWorld-Expo after officials were informed that a staff member and a resident had tested positive for the coronavirus, which later spread to 19 residents and employees.

“We urge staff members of care homes to undergo daily rapid antigen tests and more frequent PCR testing,” Au said.

Hong Kong on Sunday recorded more than 6,000 Covid-19 cases for the fourth day in a row, with 6,513 new infections, including 237 imported ones. Three more people died. The city’s tally stands at 1,458,238 cases and 9,605 related fatalities.

Au said there was an increasing trend of staff at care facilities getting infected before spreading the virus to residents. Nursing home workers are currently required to take a rapid antigen test (RAT) each day and a PCR test every seven days.

“Because of the lower sensitivity of RAT, if someone is asymptomatic before their RAT turns positive, the person is already contagious and will transmit the illness to others,” Au said, adding that employees should not turn up for work if they had any symptoms, even if they had tested negative.

At least 787, or 98 per cent, of the city’s care homes had recorded cases as of early April.