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Following is the transcript of remarks made by the Secretary for Food and Health, Dr Ko Wing-man, after inspecting the implementation progress of the Government Vaccination Programme 2013/14 at Ngau Tau Kok Jockey Club General Out-patient Clinic this afternoon (November 6):
Reporter: (On whether there is a high risk for avian influenza A(H7N9) coming into Hong Kong)
Secretary for Food and Health: There will be two possible channels that avian influenza A(H7N9) would be brought into Hong Kong. The first channel is through an infected human case and the second is through chickens. For a human infected case, the assessment has all along been that a person might possibly be infected on the Mainland and without the relevant symptoms when he or she travelled to Hong Kong. This possibility is always present. That is why we have to strengthen all the risk and infection control measures, including body temperature surveillance at the border. The more important end is at the frontline of our medical facilities. Early identification of such cases will lead to early isolation of patients and this will help us bring down the possibility of the spread of avian influenza A(H7N9) infection among the population of Hong Kong.
(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the transcript.)
Ends/Wednesday, November 6, 2013
Issued at HKT 20:09
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