(Year-end special) Hong Kong｜Central support to stabilize and control the epidemic Hong Kong's precise anti-epidemic is moving towards normal
China News Agency, Hong Kong, December 28 (Reporter Han Xingtong) After summarizing experience from the painful lessons of the fifth wave of the epidemic, Hong Kong has shifted its anti-epidemic goals to a more practical and clear direction of "reducing severe illness and reducing death", and pushed forward The high vaccination rate has established an immune barrier to protect "one old and one young", and has embarked on a scientific and precise anti-epidemic path, striking a balance between social normalization and epidemic prevention.
On December 22, the 56th Industrial and Commercial Exhibition being held in Victoria Park, Hong Kong was resumed to try food.
Starting today, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government has relaxed some social distancing measures, including allowing outdoor eating and drinking in places of public entertainment and event venues.
Photo by China News Agency reporter Chen Yongnuo
Lu Chongmao, Director of the Medical and Health Bureau of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, published a blog on his first day in office. He proposed that the first task after taking office is to take scientific and precise prevention and control measures to obtain the greatest effect with the smallest cost.
He said that although the road to fighting the epidemic is still full of challenges, the SAR government will do its best to fight the epidemic and win the war.
Looking back on 2022, Hong Kong's anti-epidemic work has experienced challenges.
At the beginning of the year, the fifth wave of the epidemic broke out in Hong Kong, and residential care homes for the elderly were the first to bear the brunt. The exponential growth of admitted patients put the public medical system under severe pressure, and it was almost on the verge of collapse.
At this critical moment, as the strong backing of Hong Kong, the country extended a helping hand in time.
Anti-epidemic materials and goods for people's livelihood from the Mainland have been continuously imported into Hong Kong.
The central government has successively dispatched a number of anti-epidemic medical teams and anti-epidemic experts to Hong Kong to assist in the fight against the epidemic.
In just over a month, the six shelter hospitals assisted by the central government were all completed and put into service, providing a total of about 20,000 isolation beds.
In addition, the Central Aid Hong Kong Emergency Hospital Project and the Penny's Bay Community Isolation Facility in Hong Kong have been completed successively, adding further assistance to Hong Kong's fight against the epidemic.
The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government has listened to the opinions of the central government’s assistance to Hong Kong experts and established a five-tier triage measure to divert patients to different types of hospitals and community isolation facilities according to their age, condition, and ability to take care of themselves.
Conditional mild patients are allowed to be isolated at home, and medical staff will conduct video consultations and arrange for the delivery of new crown oral medicines.
Data map: On March 22, the Sham Shui Po District Office of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government held a new crown vaccination campaign to attract parents to take their children to the open-air square of Haiying Village, Cheung Sha Wan to receive the new crown vaccine.
Photo by China News Agency reporter Li Zhihua
"This arrangement has greatly relieved the pressure on the medical system, shortened the course of the patients' illness, and reduced the possibility of them turning into severe cases," said Xu Shuchang, an expert consultant to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government and a chair professor of respiratory system at the Chinese University of Hong Kong.
This layered triage structure helped Hong Kong survive the most difficult period of fighting the epidemic, and it has been used to this day. When the number of confirmed cases exceeded 10,000 in the second half of the year, it still played a buffer role, so that the public medical system still has a certain amount of room for operation. .
Since late April, as the epidemic has eased, Hong Kong's entry quarantine requirements and social distancing measures have been "relaxed" several times, but no major outbreaks have been seen.
In the final analysis, Jin Dongyan, a professor of biochemistry at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Hong Kong and a virologist, believes that this is due to the establishment of an immune barrier. On the one hand, it comes from the antibodies acquired by the people from natural infection. High vaccination rates.
In order to establish an immune barrier as soon as possible, the SAR government has launched a new crown vaccination plan called "Citywide Vaccination Quickly", which encourages and promotes citizens to get vaccinated by means of "vaccine passports". For the elderly and young children, the SAR government also launched Various facilitation measures to increase the vaccination rate of "one old and one young".
As of December 27, the total number of doses of the new crown vaccine in Hong Kong reached 20.26 million, and the population who had received the first, second and third shots reached 6.907 million (94.6%), 6.786 million (93.0%) and 5.788 million, respectively. (83.1%).
The National Health and Medical Commission announced on the evening of December 26 that it would change the name of the new coronavirus pneumonia to the new coronavirus infection. From January 8, 2023, the new coronavirus infection will be implemented as "Class B and B Control". Quarantine and infectious disease management measures shall be adopted for goods, etc.
The SAR government took immediate action to advance the preparatory work for "customs clearance" between Hong Kong and the Mainland in parallel.
In response to the epidemic trend after "customs clearance", the Hong Kong Hospital Authority (HA) has done everything possible to prepare. The chief executive of the HA, Gao Basheng, revealed that these preparations include isolation facilities, drugs, protective equipment, etc. , and draw up a plan for the development of the epidemic, which is believed to be able to deal with the relevant situation.
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