Under Secretary for Food & Health Prof Gabriel Leung urges the public, particularly high-risk groups and medical staff, to get flu jabs soon, as the flu situation will worsen in the next few weeks.
Speaking on a radio talk show today, Prof Leung said the number of flu cases have been rising in the past three weeks, triggering a surge in demand for outpatient services and admissions.
As Hong Kong has entered the flu winter peak, he expects more cases will be recorded in the next few weeks with the pinnacle arriving about two weeks after the Chinese New Year.
Although the winter peak arrived early, Prof Leung said it is too soon to predict whether it will finish early, depending on factors such as how long the colder weather will persist and how many people get the vaccination.
The Government is highly concerned about the flu situation while the Hospital Authority has outlined contingency measures to cope with the uptick in demand.
Since two patients suffered serious complications after receiving the flu jab, Prof Leung said the expert group will look into the cases and see whether they are Guillain-Barre Syndrome. There is no proof the vaccination causes such complications.
He reiterated the risk of serious complications or even death from flu is much higher than the risk of such complications from getting the jabs, and urged the elderly, young children, pregnant women, chronic patients and medical staff to get vaccinated as soon as possible.
When talking about adjusting the live chicken import quota, Prof Leung said he understands the demand for live chicken is higher during festive seasons but the authority also needs to consider the risk of bird flu.
