No plans to revive mask mandate or border tests as Hong Kong braces for flu season peak and rise in coronavirus infections, health chief says
- Waiting time at accident and emergency departments of 10 hospitals stretches longer than eight hours
- Hospital Authority had added more beds, strengthened triage services and increased number of places at general outpatient clinics to cope with rise in infections
Hong Kong’s seasonal peak in flu and Covid-19 infections may stretch into March, but the government has no plans to revive the mask mandate or a testing regime at border control points, the health chief has said.
The city is bracing for an expected surge of flu and coronavirus cases next week, and the healthcare system is already showing signs of strain. The waiting time at the accident and emergency departments of 10 public hospitals, out of 18 providing the services, occasionally stretched longer than eight hours on Saturday.
Health officials earlier reported that the hospital admission rate for patients with a principal flu diagnosis already exceeded the threshold signalling the start of the peak season, while the city was also recording more Covid-19 infections.
“We expect the peak to appear around January and February,” Secretary for Health Lo Chung-mau said in a television interview. “Generally speaking, our winter peak often lasts even until March.”
But Lo said the government had no plans to reintroduce the mask mandate. Neither would authorities carry out testing on arrivals at the airport or other control points, unless new infectious diseases emerged, he added.
“The severity of viruses is lower, and we also have effective vaccines, treatments and diagnosis, while the public is generally more aware of the disease,” he said. “We are coping with a new model, and there is no need to use a coercive method to control the disease.”
Mask sales rise as Hong Kong heads into flu season and Covid cases climb
Lo said the Hospital Authority had added more beds, strengthened triage services in emergency departments and increased the number of places at general outpatient clinics to cope with the rise in infections. The minister appealed to high-risk groups such as the elderly and children to get inoculated.
Authorities were also investigating a severe influenza A infection contracted by a 13-month-old girl, according to the Centre for Health Protection. She developed a fever on December 28 and was brought to the accident and emergency department of the Prince of Wales Hospital.
On Monday, two days after she was discharged, she developed convulsions again and was admitted to the paediatric intensive care unit of the Prince of Wales Hospital the next day.
Her respiratory specimen tested positive for the influenza A subtype H3 virus, while her clinical diagnosis was influenza A infection complicated with encephalitis. The girl was now in stable condition.
At Kwong Wah Hospital in Mong Kok, the Post observed that dozens of people had been there since early morning, with most of the available seats in the emergency room waiting area occupied by 11am.
Sam Lee, who works in the renovation industry, said he and his wife had waited for at least three hours after they arrived at the hospital at 7am to see a doctor for their 15-month-old daughter’s fever.
“For babies, you really cannot wait if they have a fever,” he said. “If it is a regular cold or cough, then you can wait a bit, but it is really troublesome if it is a fever.”
Others waiting for their turn included a 36-year-old man who identified himself only by the surname Tam, who waited for at least three hours for treatment to an injured ankle.
Health officials expect peak winter flu season to hit Hong Kong next week
The public health researcher said he decided to seek medical care at a government hospital as it had the diagnostic imagery equipment needed to examine his injury and that the treatment was cheaper compared to private healthcare providers.
“If I didn’t have the need, I would not come to the emergency room to queue for the better half of the day,” he said.
The inpatient bed occupancy rate at acute care hospitals stood at 116 per cent as of Wednesday, while the figure for paediatric departments was 92 per cent.
Health officials on Thursday said serious flu cases had increased slightly. Statistics showed 23 cases were registered last week, up from 14 the week before.
The percentage of respiratory specimens handled by public laboratories was also approaching the threshold signalling the start of a peak season.
The Covid-19 viral load found in sewage samples surged by about 40 per cent between December 24 and 30 compared with the week before. But authorities said serious or fatal Covid-19 cases had not registered a significant increase.
