The Transport Department (TD) today (January 25) reminded members of the public that the Public Transport Fare Subsidy Scheme has been implemented from January 1. Under the Scheme, only the public transport expenses p… read more
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is today (January 25) investigating two cases of severe paediatric influenza A infection.
The first case involves a 15-year-old boy with underlying illnesses, who has presented with fever and malaise since January 22. He was admitted to Queen Mary Hospital (QMH) on January 23 and was transferred to QMH’s paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) for further management yesterday. His nasopharyngeal aspirate (NPA) tested positive for influenza A virus upon laboratory testing. The clinical diagnosis was influenza A infection complicated with severe pneumonia. He is now in a critical condition.
Initial enquiries revealed that the patient had not received seasonal influenza vaccination for the current season and had no travel history during the incubation period. One of his home contacts had upper respiratory tract infection recently and had recovered. His other home contacts have remained asymptomatic so far.
The second case involves a four-year-old girl with underlying illnesses, who has presented with fever since yesterday. She was admitted to QMH on the same day and subsequently developed respiratory distress and was transferred to QMH’s PICU for further management today. Her NPA tested positive for influenza A virus upon laboratory testing. The clinical diagnosis was influenza A infection complicated with severe pneumonia. She is now in a critical condition.
Initial enquiries revealed that the patient had not received seasonal influenza vaccination for the current season and had no travel history during the incubation period.
The CHP’s investigations are ongoing.
“The latest surveillance data indicated that the local seasonal influenza activity may continue to rise in the period ahead. We urge the community to continue heightening its vigilance against seasonal influenza. As young children are particularly affected in the influenza season, we appeal to parents who have not yet arranged vaccination for their children in this season to do so as soon as possible to strengthen their personal protection,” a spokesman for the CHP said.
“Apart from children, people aged 50 to 64 years, the elderly and those with underlying illnesses who have not yet received influenza vaccination this season are also urged to get vaccinated as early as possible to prevent seasonal influenza as it takes about two weeks for antibodies to develop in the body after vaccination. Medical advice should be sought promptly if influenza-like symptoms develop so that appropriate treatment can be initiated as early as possible to prevent potential complications. Parents and carers are reminded to render assistance in prevention, care and control for vulnerable people,” the spokesman added.
Besides receiving seasonal influenza vaccination as early as possible for personal protection, the public should maintain good personal and environmental hygiene for protection against influenza and other respiratory illnesses. For more information, please visit the CHP’s influenza page and weekly Flu Express. read more
The Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mr Edward Yau, urged members of the World Trade Organization (WTO) to preserve a well-functioning WTO by lifting the blockage to the Appellate Body appointment at the WTO Informal Ministerial Gathering in Davos, Switzerland, today (January 25, Davos time).
Held on the margins of the World Economic Forum, the Informal Ministerial Gathering provided an opportunity for participating ministers to discuss ways to advance the trade agenda and to preserve the relevance and credibility of the multilateral trading system, including ideas for reforming the WTO.
“That the WTO has imperfections to fix is no excuse to shut down its engine and grind its core functions to a halt,” Mr Yau said.
“Hong Kong stands ready to discuss the WTO’s imperfections, and appreciates the good intentions of all the WTO reform proposals for improving the dispute settlement mechanism,” he said.
The dispute settlement mechanism of the WTO that keeps the multilateral trading system going will stall by the year’s end if new Appellate Members are not appointed in the coming months.
Mr Yau added that attempts to negotiate new rules on e-commerce, domestic regulations and fisheries subsidies should move forward in parallel.
Before the Informal Ministerial Gathering, Mr Yau also attended the Informal Ministerial Meeting on Electronic Commerce in which participating ministers shared their views on the topic “How can WTO negotiations capture opportunities offered by electronic commerce for all WTO Members?”
He said it is important that the negotiations cover all essential elements for building a predictable and conducive e-commerce environment for global trade and the outcome should lead to a set of trade rules which give both suppliers and consumers the confidence they need to engage in and reap the benefits of e-commerce.
Mr Yau will return to Hong Kong tomorrow (January 26). read more
Attention TV/radio announcers: Please broadcast the following as soon as possible and repeat it at regular intervals: Here is an item of interest to swimmers. The Leisure and Cultural Serv… read more
The Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) will present a Lunar New Year thematic lantern display entitled "Glittering Peacocks in Full Bloom" at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre (HKCC) Piazza from today (January 25)… read more