As the rainstorm warning has been issued by the Hong Kong Observatory, the Labour Department (LD) reminds employers and contractors that they should adopt necessary work arrangements and take suitable safety measures to protect the safety of their employees when they are carrying out electrical work or handling electrical plant.

     A spokesman for the LD said today (May 20) that employers and contractors should avoid assigning employees to carry out electrical work (like electric arc welding work) or handle electrical plant at places affected by rainstorms, and should refer to the "Code of Practice in times of Typhoons and Rainstorms" and the "Guide on Safety at Work in times of Inclement Weather" issued by the LD.

     Even if electrical work is carried out or electrical plant is handled at places not affected by the rainstorm, suitable safety measures must still be adopted to prevent electric shock as the air would be more humid. Such measures include:

(i) Ensure that all live parts of an electrical installation are isolated from the power supply source and rendered dead, and the isolation from the power supply source must be maintained as long as electrical work is being carried out;

(ii) Before carrying out any electrical work or handling any electrical plant, cut off and lock out the power supply source, then test the circuit concerned to confirm it is dead and display suitable warning notices, and issue a work permit thereafter;

(iii) Ensure that protective devices (such as suitable and adequate fuses and circuit breakers) for the electrical installations or electrical plant have been installed and maintained in good working order, and portable electric tools must be double-insulated or properly earthed;

(iv) Provide suitable personal protective equipment such as insulating gloves and insulating mats for employees; and

(v) If live electrical work is unavoidable, a comprehensive risk assessment should be conducted by a competent person and the appropriate safety precautions should be taken to remove or properly control the electrical hazards involved before such work can proceed.

     In addition, employees should co-operate with the employer or contractor to follow the safety instructions and use the safety equipment provided.

     The LD has published guidebooks and leaflets on electrical work safety. These safety publications are available free from divisional offices of the department or can be downloaded from its website (www.labour.gov.hk/eng/public/content2_8.htm).

     Should there be any questions about occupational safety and health matters, please contact the Occupational Safety Officer of the LD at 2559 2297.

Attention duty announcers, radio and TV stations:

Please broadcast the following as soon as possible and repeat it at suitable intervals:

     Members of the public are advised to report any street flooding that comes to their notice to the Drainage Services Department by calling the 24-hour drainage hotline on 2300 1110.

     â€‹The Secretary for Food and Health, Professor Sophia Chan, today (May 20, Geneva time) attended the 72nd World Health Assembly (WHA) of the World Health Organization (WHO) in Geneva, Switzerland.
      
     Professor Chan attended the 72nd WHA as a member of the People's Republic of China delegation. The agenda of this year's assembly will cover a wide range of issues with public health importance requiring global attention and concerted efforts from all member states, including health and environment and climate change, prevention and control of non-communicable diseases, ending tuberculosis and global shortage of, and access to, medicines and vaccines.
      
     In addition to the plenary session, Professor Chan also attended a side event with the theme "Primary Health Care towards Universal Health Coverage and Sustainable Development Goal" to listen to a presentation by the Minister of the National Health Commission, Mr Ma Xiaowei, about the on-going development of primary healthcare services in the Mainland.
      
     She also took the opportunity to learn about the experience of other countries in developing primary healthcare services.
      
     "The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government is committed to enhancing district-based primary healthcare services in Hong Kong with an emphasis on medical-social collaboration and public-private partnership," Professor Chan said.
      
     "The Government will set up a District Health Centre (DHC) in all districts in the next few years. The services offered in the DHCs will focus on primary, secondary and tertiary prevention, including health promotion, health assessment, chronic disease management and community rehabilitation.
      
     "This new service model of DHCs will echo the principle of universal health coverage. We will share with the WHO our insight and experience gained from this new service model and our upcoming blueprint for primary healthcare development of Hong Kong."
      
     Professor Chan also exchanged views on healthcare-related issues with senior officials of other member states and WHO at the WHA.
         
     Professor Chan will continue to attend the WHA tomorrow (May 21, Geneva time). She will depart Geneva in the morning on May 22 and arrive in Hong Kong on May 23.

      

The following is issued on behalf of the Legislative Council Secretariat:

     The Legislative Council (LegCo) will hold a meeting on Wednesday (May 22) at 11.30am (or immediately after the meeting for the Chief Executive's Question Time to be held at 11am) in the Chamber of the LegCo Complex.  During the meeting, Mr Tommy Cheung will move a motion for the adjournment of the Council under Rule 16(4) of the Rules of Procedure.  The motion states: "That this Council do now adjourn for the purpose of debating the following issue: the relaxation of the internship requirement of the non-locally trained specialist doctors by the Medical Council of Hong Kong."
 
     Members will also debate a motion on the Report of the Subcommittee to Follow Up Issues Relating to the Unified Screening Mechanism for Non-refoulement Claims.  The motion, moved by Dr Elizabeth Quat, states: "That this Council notes the Report of the Subcommittee to Follow Up Issues Relating to the Unified Screening Mechanism for Non-refoulement Claims."
 
     In addition, Dr Priscilla Leung will move a motion on keeping up with technological development and enhancing the protection of people's privacy.  The motion states: "That serious incidents relating to large-scale leakage of personal privacy and data have occurred many times in Hong Kong, for example the uncovering of the resale of the data of 2.4 million customers by the Octopus Card Limited to other companies for marketing use in 2009, the Registration and Electoral Office's loss of a notebook computer containing the personal data of 3.78 million Geographical Constituencies electors across the territory in 2017, and the leakage of the personal data of 9.4 million passengers by the Cathay Pacific Airways in 2018; the Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance came into force in 1996 and the Government only amended the Ordinance once in 2012, and given that the rapid technological development of the Internet, social media, big data, artificial intelligence, etc. has created privacy risks and that the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) of the European Union (EU) has come
into force, the Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance has appeared to be even more lagging behind and its personal data privacy protection is apparently inadequate; in this connection, this Council urges the Government to keep up with technological development and comprehensively review the policy on personal data privacy protection, so as to enhance the protection of people's privacy; the relevant proposals include:

1. by drawing reference from EU's GDPR and the relevant laws of other jurisdictions, amending the Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance expeditiously and comprehensively, including requiring data users to notify the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data (PCPD) and data subjects of any data leakage incidents within a specified timeframe and raising the penalty to enhance the deterrent effect;
 
2. conferring on PCPD the power to exercise administrative penalties (such as fines);

3. requiring all government departments and public and private organisations to review their policies on processing personal data and security precautions, so as to avoid the recurrence of infringement of people's personal data privacy; and

4. enhancing public promotion to raise the understanding and awareness of the people as well as of public and private organisations on protecting and respecting personal data privacy."

     Mr Alvin Yeung, Mr Charles Mok and Dr Elizabeth Quat will move separate amendments to Dr Priscilla Leung's motion.

     During the meeting, Members will also ask the Government 21 questions on various policy areas, 6 of which require oral replies.

     The agenda of the above meeting can be obtained via the LegCo Website (www.legco.gov.hk).  Please note that the agenda is subject to change, and the latest information about the agenda could be found on the LegCo Website.

     Members of the public are welcome to observe the proceedings of the meeting from the public galleries of the Chamber of the LegCo Complex.  They may reserve seats by calling 3919 3399 during office hours.  Members of the public can also watch or listen to the meeting via the "Webcast" system on the LegCo Website.

     The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health (DH) is today (May 20) investigating a case of measles infection.
 
     The case involves a worker at a shop in Tsim Sha Tsui where an outbreak of measles infection was announced last week. The patient is a 29-year-old man with good past health, who has developed fever since May 13 but with no rash. He sought medical advice from a general practitioner on May 15 and attended the Accident and Emergency Department at Alice Ho Miu Ling Nethersole Hospital on the same day. He was admitted to the Hospital for treatment on May 17 and was discharged after management.
 
     A laboratory test of his respiratory specimen was positive for the measles virus. He has been in a stable condition all along. The patient has received two documented doses of measles vaccination and recently one mop-up measles vaccination. He had no travel history during the incubation period and communicable period. His home contacts have remained asymptomatic so far and have been put under medical surveillance.
 
     Upon notification of the case, the CHP immediately commenced epidemiological investigations and conducted relevant contact tracing. Investigations are ongoing. The public places the patient visited during the communicable period are listed in the appendix.
   
     A spokesman for the DH said, "Those who might have had contact with the patients during the period of communicability are urged to observe if they have developed measles-related symptoms, and to seek medical treatment immediately if such symptoms appear. If they need to visit any health care facilities during the period of medical surveillance, they should also report whether they have symptoms and prior measles exposure history to the healthcare workers so that appropriate infection control measures can be implemented at the concerned healthcare facilities to prevent any potential spread."
     
     The spokesman explained that measles is a highly infectious disease caused by the measles virus. It can be transmitted by airborne droplets or direct contact with nasal or throat secretions of infected persons, and, less commonly, by articles soiled with nose and throat secretions. A patient can pass the disease to other persons from four days before to four days after the appearance of skin rash.
 
     "The incubation period (the period from infection to appearance of illness) of measles ranges from seven days to 21 days. Symptoms of measles include fever, skin rash, cough, runny nose and red eyes. If symptoms arise, members of the public should wear surgical masks, stop going to work or school and avoid going to crowded places. They should also avoid contact with non-immune persons, especially persons with weakened immunity, pregnant women and children aged below 1. Those suspected to have been infected are advised to seek medical attention as early as possible and reveal relevant contact history of measles to healthcare professionals," the spokesman advised.