Winter Influenza | The Hospital Authority is worried about returning to the pre-epidemic level "corridor bed" or reappearing to be unsatisfactory

In the winter, influenza strikes at any time. Although there has been no major outbreak under the masks worn by all people in the past two years, the lack of antibodies to the public has caused the lack of community protection nets, which increases the risk of outbreaks.

The Hospital Authority is also worried that the influenza outbreak this winter will return to pre-epidemic levels, including more and more schools resuming full-time teaching, and public hospitals will add up to 800 temporary beds to respond, but admits that some beds will be in the corridors and the situation is not ideal. It was also revealed that the wastage of medical staff was also more serious than expected.

Since the new crown pneumonia struck early last year (2020), all people have worn masks, and there has been no major winter flu outbreak for two consecutive years.

Huang Liji, chief administrative manager (network operation) of the Hospital Authority, said that although influenza virus activity has been low in the past two years, the weather is still cold and the incidence is expected to be higher than usual. Since the first quarter of this year, the average weekly and daily The number of admissions to the internal medicine department in the Accident and Emergency Department is the same as before the epidemic, and 70% of the patients are elderly people aged 65 or above. Worried that the number of hospital admissions will continue to be high, remind friends to get flu shots.

Huang Liji said that more and more schools resume full-time teaching. "Return to normal social respiratory diseases will happen, and the higher the mutual infection will be." When a major outbreak occurs, there will be pressure on hospitals, urging school children to be vaccinated in addition to the new crown vaccine. Influenza vaccine, the authorities have a number of countermeasures to deal with influenza and the new crown epidemic:

1. Prepare for the addition of negative pressure isolation wards in the intensive care department of some hospitals

2. Preparing to transfer more than 100 nurses with pediatric experience to the temporary hospital (North Lantau Hospital Hong Kong Infection Control Center)

3. Prepare 800 temporary hospital beds to cope with the peak of winter flu. Some hospital beds will be located in corridors and the situation is not ideal, and the distance between beds in the ward is expected to be at least 1.5 meters.

4. Most hospitals have dedicated equipment for patients to avoid cross-infection

5. Buy a bed from St. Teresa's Hospital and Tsuen Wan Adventist Hospital. According to previous experience, a total of 20 public hospital patients will usually be referred within one month, involving clinical needs, patient wishes, etc.

Influenza vaccination rate is not ideal

As for the influenza vaccination rate, he said that the rate of medical care and vaccination for patients is slower than last year. The reason is that the staff had to be vaccinated against the new crown earlier, which is 20 to 30% less than last year. Currently, 30% of HA staff have received injections. .

In terms of manpower, he said with a smile, "A lot of water and cakes, and many people leave the HA." He admitted that the attrition rate of medical care was higher than expected, but he believed it would not hit a record high because of the new graduate medical supplements.

The Chairman of the Hospital Authority Fan Hongling said in September this year that the attrition rate of doctors and nurses from 2020 to 2021 was 4.1% and 5.8%; from July 2020 to July this year, the turnover rate of doctors rose to 4.9% and nurses rose to 6.7%. The increase was 19.5 and 15.5% respectively.

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