Replies to LegCo questions
LCQ7: Alert system of the Hospital Authority
Following is a question by the Hon Ma Fung-kwok and a written reply by the Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food, Dr Yeoh Eng-kiong, in the Legislative Council today (November 26):
Question:
Regarding the red-yellow-green alert system introduced in all public hospitals throughout the territory by the Hospital Authority (HA) since September this year, will the Government inform this Council whether:
(a) it knows if any individual hospital clusters have decided not to operate the above alert system; if so, whether HA knew and agreed to the decision beforehand;
(b) it knows if various clusters have, since the introduction of the alert system, acted differently as regards when a particular alert colour should be raised;
(c) it knows if HA has modified or abandoned the alert system in the light of its actual implementation in various hospitals; if so, of the details; and
(d) the Health, Welfare and Food Bureau has discussed or followed up the implementation of the alert system with HA; if so, of the details?
Reply:
(a) The three-tier response structure, namely the red, yellow and green alerts, is part of the Hospital Authority (HA) Response Plan for Infectious Disease Outbreak. The Plan sets out in detail the contingency response to be taken by the HA in the event of an outbreak of infectious disease. It provides for a corporate-wide mechanism for providing early alert to abnormal clinical presentations indicative of infectious disease occurring, detecting outbreaks at the earliest opportunity, interrupting the transmission of infectious diseases and implementing actions to cope with the service needs in public hospitals. The Plan has been endorsed by the HA Board in September 2003 and observed by all HA hospitals since. No hospital or cluster is not operating the alert system or any other response mechanism set out in the Plan.
(b) When there is an unusual pattern of clinical presentations suggestive/indicative of infectious disease or of infectious diseases actually occurring in a HA hospital, the hospital infection control team together with the relevant specialists will investigate and analyse the incident. The hospital will assess the potential risk of transmission in the hospital setting and notify the HA Head Office and the Department of Health in accordance with existing guidelines. As the decision when to raise a particular alert is made jointly by the HA Head Office and the hospital concerned, there is no question of individual hospital clusters adopting different practices.
(c) The HA has not modified or abandoned its three-tier response structure.
(d) The Health, Welfare and Food Bureau has followed up closely, and has been in discussion with the HA, on the implementation of its Response Plan for Infectious Disease Outbreak by checking on the drawing up of response plans at both the cluster and hospital levels and by monitoring the testing of the Response Plan through exercises and drills. The HA will review the Plan from time to time, in the light of experience gained from the exercises and drills as well as new knowledge acquired on infectious disease control. The HA will keep the Bureau abreast of the latest developments.
Ends/Wednesday, November 26, 2003
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