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The Sha Tin District Office and Sha Tin District Council (DC) launched a flat cleaning campaign today (June 18) in which a social enterprise was engaged to provide free cleaning service for single elderly residents in the district to help control the spread of human swine influenza in the community.
Sha Tin DC Chairman, Mr Wai Kwok-hung, Sha Tin District Officer, Mrs Do Pang Wai-yee, and a number of Sha Tin DC members officiated at the launching ceremony at Sha Kok Community Hall. After the ceremony, the officiating guests visited some single elderly people in Sha Kok Estate and helped clean and disinfect their flats.
The two-month-long flat cleaning campaign was jointly organised with social welfare organisations in the district. Domestic helpers from Versatile Home Service, a social enterprise serving the Sha Tin community, were hired to provide one-off house cleaning service for the single elderly residents in the public housing estates in the district, helping them to maintain household hygiene.
About 1,300 single elderly people in 18 public housing estates are expected to benefit from the campaign. Disinfectant packs will also be distributed to the elderly to show the communityˇ¦s concern for them and to encourage them to pay attention to the personal, household and environmental hygiene.
Mrs Do Pang Wai-yee said, ˇ§The event has multiple meanings: first, to promote the importance of maintaining household hygiene to the community; second, to show our respect and care to the elderly and advocate a practice of respecting elderly people; and finally, to help promote social enterprises and create job opportunities.ˇ¨
She said, ˇ§Since May, the Sha Tin District Council and Sha Tin District Office have organised a series of cleaning and publicity activities to remind the residents to play a role in disease prevention. In view of the latest development of the pandemic, we plan to organise more publicity programmes to appeal for the communityˇ¦s participation in maintaining citywide hygiene.ˇ¨
To keep the elderly abreast of the latest disease information, a health talk was also held at the launching ceremony today to explain the symptoms, mode of transmission and prevention of human swine influenza, as well as the guidelines on maintaining personal and household hygiene.
Ends/Thursday, June 18, 2009
Issued at HKT 19:20
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