The flu epidemic is gaining momentum, with an outbreak of influenza A virus affecting three individuals in a ward at Castle Peak Hospital, resulting in one fatality. The recent sudden death of artist Barbie Hsu (Big S) due to influenza complicated by pneumonia has sounded the alarm for epidemic prevention, sparking a wave of vaccinations and a rush to purchase antiviral drugs in Hong Kong.
Sunny Luk Wai-leung, President of the Hong Kong Doctors Union, disclosed to Wen Wei Po yesterday that vaccination rates have surged by 20% in recent days. However, due to the post-Chinese New Year off-season for flu vaccinations, some private clinics are facing inventory shortages. Some family doctors have already procured additional vaccines from suppliers. "There are four influenza vaccine suppliers in Hong Kong, one of which has run out of stock. If clinics wish to place additional orders, the price is now 30% higher than before," Luk stated. Local pharmacies in Hong Kong are also experiencing a surge in customers buying medication, but pharmacies assure that the current supply is sufficient."
Henry Yeung, Vice President of the Hong Kong Chinese Medical Association, which operates a private clinic in Tsing Yi, said that the people who came to his clinic for influenza vaccination are mainly high-risk groups such as the elderly and the young, with an average of three to four people getting vaccinated every day. However, the number of people who made enquiries and booked for vaccinations in the last couple of days has significantly increased to eight to ten, mainly middle-aged people, with some patients acting in a hurry, looking for vaccines at different clinics and asking for the availability of vaccination at any time.
It is now February, the end of the vaccination period, and Yeung has ordered a new batch of vaccine from influenza vaccine suppliers, but one of the four suppliers is out of stock. "As clinics usually order the new season's vaccines from suppliers in May and June, the price is 30% higher than before due to the temporary increase in orders." he said.
satisfactory, only about 2 million people have been vaccinated, that is, about 30% of the total population has been vaccinated, which is far from the 70% immunization rate of "community immunity" and is "not enough"; he pointed out that it usually takes one to two weeks for the antibodies to be activated after vaccination, "but it is better to be late than not at all, and it is a very critical period now.
As a result of the incident, patients have also taken the initiative to request for rapid virus testing to find out the source of the disease as soon as possible. "Normally, the cost of rapid test is HK$50, but most of them want to take the rapid test now to see if they are infected with influenza or COVID-19. The supply of test kits has been relatively stable and there has been no rush to buy them.
Family doctor Dr. Lee Fook-kay said the number of patients requesting flu vaccination at the clinic has increased by 20 to 30 percent recently, with many young women in the age of 30 to 40 years old. Some patients have even requested pneumococcal vaccination as a precautionary measure," he said. Some people who are planning to travel are also worried about contracting the disease and have sought prescriptions for antibiotics and anti-influenza drugs to minimize the risk of getting sick on the way," he said. He warned that although the flu may seem "easy to get rid of", complications from the flu can be serious for the frail or chronically ill.
Pharmacies in Hong Kong also have people buying cold and flu medicines. Some pharmacies told Hong Kong Wen Wei Po that although the number of people buying medicines has increased, there is still an abundant supply of painkillers, anti-fever medicines, test strips, as well as special medicines that require prescriptions.
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Outbreak of influenza A virus at Castle Peak Hospital: Three female patients infected, one fatality
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