HK preps for flu season

December 18, 2019

Since July this year, I have already called a cross-bureau meeting in terms of looking at how to prevent and also to manage the situation of the winter flu season, both in terms of prevention, such as increasing the number of vaccinations and also the coverage. 

As you may know, this year we have started to go to schools, kindergartens and also childcare centres in terms of expanding the coverage, as well as increasing the target groups, such as people aged between 50 and 64 that the Government has provided with subsidies. We hope the general vaccination rate can improve among the citizens of Hong Kong. 

We have provided extra resources for the Hospital Authority in terms of more equipment, in terms of building more capacity, in terms of retention strategies and so on, and also increase the number of beds. All these would form the Hospital Authority's strategy in dealing with not only the daily demands due to ageing population, but also in terms of the winter flu surge. 

Not only are we using our capacity in the public system, we are also trying to work closely together with our private sector, our private general practitioners, our private hospitals as well as colleagues in the Chinese medicine sector.

(To watch the video with sign language interpretation, click here.)

The Government has adopted a multipronged approach to manage the coming seasonal influenza season, including allocating extra resources to the Hospital Authority to enhance its services and ordering additional flu vaccines.

Briefing the media on the anti-flu measures today, Secretary for Food & Health Prof Sophia Chan said the Government's efforts so far included expanding the vaccination coverage.

“Since July this year, I have already called a cross-bureau meeting in terms of looking at how to prevent and also to manage the situation of the winter flu season, both in terms of prevention, such as increasing the number of vaccinations and also the coverage.

“As you may know, this year we have started to go to schools, kindergartens and also childcare centres in terms of expanding the coverage, as well as increasing the target groups, such as people aged between 50 and 64 that the Government has provided with subsidies. We hope the general vaccination rate can improve among the citizens of Hong Kong.”

A total of 810,000 doses of flu vaccines have been procured for this year for use in government vaccination schemes, which Prof Chan said was an additional 150,000 compared to the previous year.

On funding for the Hospital Authority, Prof Chan noted $68.8 billion was earmarked for 2019-20 to boost medical services to cope with the flu surge.

“We have provided extra resources for the Hospital Authority in terms of more equipment, in terms of building more capacity, in terms of retention strategies and so on, and also increase the number of beds.

“All these would form the Hospital Authority's strategy in dealing with not only the daily demands due to an ageing population, but also in terms of the winter flu surge.”

She added that public-private co-operation will be enhanced including the General Outpatient Clinic Public-Private Partnership Programme which gives patients the choice of attending follow-up consultations either at Hospital Authority general outpatient clinics or receiving primary care services from the private sector.

"Not only are we using our capacity in the public system, we are also trying to work closely together with our private sector, our private general practitioners, our private hospitals as well as colleagues in the Chinese medicine sector."