Hong Kong expert on healthcare system amid surging Covid cases
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Patient laying in hospital bed waiting to be treated at temporary shelter outside Caritas Hospital in Hong Kong on February 16, 2022.
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A health expert said that Hong Kong must protect its healthcare system. The situation is extremely stressful right now, with coronavirus outbreaks increasing.
The more transmissible Omicron strain is driving Hong Kong’s fifth wave. From just over 100 cases per hour at the beginning of February to an unprecedented 6,166 new cases by Thursday, cases have exploded sharply.
Gabriel Leung (dean of medicine, University of Hong Kong) stated that “essentially, in Hong Kong at the moment, what we have to do is protect the integrity of our health system.” “The current stress on Hong Kong’s health system is immense.”
According to authorities, the increase was caused by the “extreme transmission speedThe omicron variant said “far exceeded” its capacity to handle news cases.
The government stated this week that hospitals face “immense pressure”. According to data from Hong Kong’s Hospital Authority, the occupancy rate in public hospitals stood at 92% on February 18, according to figures.
Media reports claim that there was a scene of patients sleeping on open beds outside hospitals as the facilities were overwhelmed.
Leung stated to CNBC’s Street Signs Asia that Leung believes the city must slow down the pace of the surge.
“The best way to slow it down is to reduce the number of people moving in and out of the city,” he stated.
“So whether you call that a lockdown, or whether you call that enhanced or stepped up public health and social measures, I don’t really mind — the jargon is not the important thing.”
A temporary triage area near the Caritas Medical Center in Hong Kong was set up to assist a patient with Covid symptoms by healthcare professionals wearing PPE. It took place on Wednesday February 16, 2022.
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He stated, “What we must do urgently is ensure the integrity of our hospital system so that we prevent patients from further deteriorating if there are really people who need assistance in the hospitals.”
Carrie Lam, Chief Executive of Hong Kong, stated Tuesday that there are no plans for a citywide lockdown.
“The immediate response of the Hong Kong SAR Government … is to enhance the capacities at various parts of this anti-epidemic effort, and we are doing this,” she said.
Reporters were told by her that “We do not have any plans to lock down large cities like you’ve seen in other places.”
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