https://www.scmp.com/rss/522120/feed The latest news and top stories on Dr Albert Au Ka-wing. Known for his expertise in infectious disease control and public health surveillance, he is Head of the Communicable Disease Branch at Hong Kong’s Centre for Health Protection. He has a background in public health medicine since 2003, with responsibilities including outbreak investigation, disease surveillance and vaccination programmes. His work involves developing contingency plans for public health crises and he is currently active in... en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com SCMP Editorial SCMP Editorial A small outbreak of the deadly Nipah virus in India has prompted health alerts across Asia – including screening of inbound passengers in Hong Kong – because of the disease’s high fatality rate. Thankfully there are factors so far against the virus’ spread beyond Kolkata, the capital of the state of West Bengal. They include reports of containment, low transmissibility and the absence of a direct air link with Kolkata, where the central authorities say there are only two confirmed cases and... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3341661/hong-kong-right-remain-vigilant-against-nipah-virus-spread?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3341661/hong-kong-right-remain-vigilant-against-nipah-virus-spread?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 29 Jan 2026 22:45:07 +0000 Oscar Liu Oscar Liu Hong Kong health authorities have warned parents not to “blindly follow” overseas changes to childhood immunisation schedules, including for the hepatitis B birth dose, after the United States scaled back routine vaccine recommendations for infants. The city’s Centre for Health Protection issued the warning on Wednesday in response to a controversial overhaul by the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. Dr Albert Au Ka-wing, head of the Centre for Health Protection’s communicable... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3341491/dont-blindly-follow-us-changes-infant-vaccines-hong-kong-tells-parents?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3341491/dont-blindly-follow-us-changes-infant-vaccines-hong-kong-tells-parents?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 28 Jan 2026 03:34:40 +0000 Lo Hoi-ying Lo Hoi-ying Hong Kong reported its third locally acquired chikungunya infection on Monday, with health authorities saying that there could be a second source of the disease as this case was not related to the two detected earlier. Authorities said they would conduct health assessments on about 1,500 households near the patient’s home in Tsing Yi, but believed the transmission risk was not high due to its early detection and weather conditions that were unfavourable to mosquito breeding. The Centre for... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3331379/hong-kong-fears-new-source-third-locally-acquired-chikungunya-infection?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3331379/hong-kong-fears-new-source-third-locally-acquired-chikungunya-infection?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 03 Nov 2025 13:45:59 +0000 Leopold Chen,Emily Hung Leopold Chen,Emily Hung Hong Kong has recorded its first-ever locally acquired chikungunya fever case, with health authorities warning that the 10,000 people who live in the same neighbourhood as the 82-year-old patient face higher risks of infection. Authorities also announced on Sunday that citywide anti-mosquito work would be stepped up, especially around Fung Tak Estate in Diamond Hill, where the patient lived and was likely to have been bitten by virus-carrying insects. The patient developed pain in her ankle on... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/3330363/hong-kong-reports-first-local-chikungunya-fever-case-82-year-old-infected?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/3330363/hong-kong-reports-first-local-chikungunya-fever-case-82-year-old-infected?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 26 Oct 2025 08:37:33 +0000 Lo Hoi-ying Lo Hoi-ying Hong Kong confirmed three new cases of chikungunya fever on Wednesday, comprising a woman returning from Guangdong province’s Foshan and a father and son who had travelled to Bangladesh. The Centre for Health Protection on Wednesday said that it was investigating the three imported cases. Health authorities said the woman, 79, lived in Southern district and had visited the mainland Chinese city of Foshan from July 1 to 31 to see her relatives. The patient was unable to recall being bitten by a... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3320994/hong-kong-confirms-3-new-imported-cases-chikungunya-fever?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3320994/hong-kong-confirms-3-new-imported-cases-chikungunya-fever?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 06 Aug 2025 13:14:40 +0000 Lam Ka-sing Lam Ka-sing Hong Kong has confirmed its first imported case of chikungunya fever since 2019, involving a 12-year-old boy, with health authorities urging residents to step up vigilance against the mosquito-borne disease. Should residents worry about a local outbreak? What protective measures should be taken? The Post breaks down the details for you. 1. What happened to the boy? The head of the communicable disease branch of the Centre for Health Protection, Dr Albert Au Ka-wing, said the boy lived in Kwun... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3320556/how-can-you-protect-yourself-if-hong-kong-has-chikungunya-fever-outbreak?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3320556/how-can-you-protect-yourself-if-hong-kong-has-chikungunya-fever-outbreak?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 02 Aug 2025 15:15:56 +0000