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The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority:
With the extended holidays of Easter and the Ching Ming Festival approaching, the Hospital Authority (HA) said today (March 31) that emergency admission and occupancy of medical wards in public hospitals remain at a high level amid an apparent subsidence of seasonal influenza. Contingency measures at public hospitals are in place to cope with demand.
"In recent weeks, emergency admissions to medical wards via Accident and Emergency (E&E) Departments amounted to over 6,200 per week, some 20 per cent above the non-peak level of 5,725 admissions per week," the HA Chief Manager (Cluster Services), Dr Chung Kin-lai, said. "Consequently, medical ward occupancy continues to be above 100 per cent in a number of hospitals."
Dr Chung expressed appreciation for the understanding and co-operation of patients during the winter surge period which has helped bring attendance of A&E Departments to non-surge levels in the past couple of weeks.
But he cautioned that there were signs of a resurgence in demand for A&E services. "The daily attendance on recent Mondays surged over 6,000 again and hit the 6,500 level on the latest two Mondays, reflecting a typical post-holiday surge," he said.
To cope with the possible higher service demand towards the latter part of the extended Easter weekend, the HA has increased the consultation quota by 30 per cent in the holiday General Outpatient Clinics (GOPCs) on April 6 and 7, the last two days of the holiday. Patients can book an appointment via the usual telephone booking system at the 12 GOPCs opened during the five-day holiday. (Details are attached.)
"A&E Departments will issue special honorariums to enhance manpower during the holidays, alongside the established triage system to classify patients according to their clinical conditions. The waiting time is expected to be longer for semi-urgent and non-urgent patients, especially in the last two days of and the first working day after the Easter weekend," Dr Chung said. He urged patients to be tolerant while waiting, adding that there will also be more than 100 private clinics open during the five-day holiday as an option for patients with minor and non-urgent medical conditions.
Information on holiday GOPCs and private clinics available in the vicinity will be posted in all A&E Departments. Members of the public can also call the following numbers and browse the following websites for information:
1. HA Infoline at 2882 4866;
2. Hong Kong Medical Association Medilink at 90000-222-322;
3. Hong Kong Medical Association at www.hkma.org; and
4. Primary Care Directory of the Department of Health at www.pcdirectory.gov.hk or download the "Primary Care Directory" mobile app.
Ends/Tuesday, March 31, 2015
Issued at HKT 12:46
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