LCQ11: Measures to respond to the influenza surges
**************************************************
Question:
It is learnt that in recent months, there has been a substantial increase in the number of patients attending the Accident and Emergency (A&E) departments due to influenza and respiratory illnesses. The longest waiting time at certain A&E departments of public hospitals has exceeded 10 hours. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) given that public hospitals experience manpower shortages during the influenza surges, whether the Government has conducted any assessments of the existing and projected manpower shortfall in healthcare personnel during the current and future influenza seasons, and formulated short-term and long-term measures to address this shortage; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(2) of the cumulative number of healthcare professionals admitted under the Greater Bay Area Healthcare Talents Visiting Programmes since its implementation in 2022; whether the authorities have assessed the effectiveness of the Programmes in supporting the frontline clinical service needs of public hospitals; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(3) given that the Hospital Authority has collaboration with private hospitals over the past five years (including implementing special measures during periods of peak service demand) to refer patients from public hospitals to private hospitals, of the scope of coverage and specific effectiveness of such collaborative arrangements; whether the authorities have plans to further expand the scope of such arrangements and enhance the participation of private hospitals; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(4) whether the Government has made reference to the primary healthcare diversion arrangements and A&E response mechanisms adopted by the Mainland and other places around the world (such as Singapore, Europe and the United States) during peak periods of seasonal infectious diseases, and whether it has implemented measures in Hong Kong that are considered worthy of adoption; if not, the reasons for that; and
(5) whether the Government has considered further strengthening community-based diversion mechanisms through the Primary Healthcare Commission and District Health Centres in 18 districts in addition to the existing measures, with a view to alleviating the pressure on A&E departments and inpatient wards of public hospitals at source; if so, of the specific measures and targets; if not, the reasons for that?
Reply:
President,
In consultation with the Department of Health (DH) and the Hospital Authority (HA), the reply to the questions raised by the Hon Dominic Lee is as follows :
Hong Kong is currently in the influenza season. Local influenza activity increased with fluctuations from late June this year, reaching the peak in early September, and currently remains at a high level. In mid-October, the percentage of influenza virus positive detections in respiratory specimens remained above the baseline level. The Centre for Health Protection of the DH anticipates that influenza activity will continue to fluctuate at a high level in the coming weeks. Although influenza activity has remained at a high level, there is currently no information suggesting that the increase in attendances arising from influenza and respiratory illnesses in recent months has placed an excessive burden on the Accident and Emergency (A&E) departments in public hospitals.
The A&E departments in public hospitals aim to provide A&E services for critically ill or seriously injured people and victims of disasters. At present, 18 public hospitals under the HA provide A&E services. The A&E departments implement a patient triage system under which patients are classified into five categories, namely Critical, Emergency, Urgent, Semi-urgent and Non-urgent, based on their clinical conditions, and receive treatment according to the priority of their urgency category. The HA's service targets specify that all Critical patients (i.e. 100 per cent) will receive immediate treatment. Patients classified as Emergency and Urgent are also accorded priority treatment upon arrival at the A&E departments, with the targets being that most Emergency patients (95 per cent) and Urgent patients (90 per cent) will be treated within 15 minutes and 30 minutes respectively.
Following the implementation of the fees and charges reform for public healthcare, the efficiency of A&E services for patients requiring emergency care in public hospitals has improved. Taking September 2026 as an example, the service targets for Category I (Critical) and Category II (Emergency) patients were fully achieved, with 100% of Critical patients receiving immediate treatment and Emergency patients being treated within 15 minutes. The proportion of Category III (Urgent) patients receiving treatment within 30 minutes reached 90.6 per cent, higher than the 83.1 per cent recorded in the same month last year. As for Category IV (Semi-urgent) and Category V (Non-urgent) patients, the average waiting time was 152 minutes, which was comparable to that of the same month last year.
(1), (4) and (5) To effectively respond to the influenza season and alleviate the burden on the healthcare system, the Government has adopted a multi-pronged prevention and control strategy, with vaccination serving as the primary line of defence. At the same time, the Health Bureau (HHB), the DH and the HA have all along closely monitored the activity of seasonal communicable diseases and the service demand of public hospitals. Contingency arrangements have been formulated in advance, and resources and manpower are deployed as necessary in response to actual circumstances, with a view to ensuring that patients in need receive appropriate and timely treatment.
Vaccination has been scientifically proven to be one of the most effective means to prevent severe cases of seasonal influenza and its complications. It also reduces the risks of in-patient admission and mortality. All members of the public aged six months or above, except those with known contraindications, should receive seasonal influenza vaccination (SIV). The Government has all along encouraged the public to receive vaccination early, and has been providing free or subsidised SIV to eligible high-risk groups through various vaccination programmes. The 2026/27 SIV Programme commenced on September 17, 2026. With the concerted efforts of various sectors of the community, including the medical sector, schools, parents and residential care homes, as at October 19 this year, around 900 000 doses of SIV had been administered under the various SIV programmes in the 2026/27 season, representing a decrease of about 10 per cent compared with the same period last year. The current influenza season has lasted for nearly four months to date. As of October 22, there had been a total of 26 cases of severe paediatric influenza infection (of which 20 had recovered and been discharged, two are in serious condition, two are in critical condition, and two have died). Among these cases, 16 patients had not received SIV in the preceding season. A total of 869 adult cases of severe influenza infection, including 599 deaths, have also been recorded so far in current influenza season. Among these cases, 459 patients had not received SIV in the preceding season. Members of the public are urged to receive SIV as early as possible in order to build an immunity barrier in the community and reduce the risk of severe illness and mortality.
To facilitate vaccination for the public, vaccination venues under the SIV Programme are located across Hong Kong. Eligible persons may receive SIV at about 270 public service points, including around 110 designated clinics under the DH located in various districts across the territory; 77 Family Medicine Clinics and 38 public hospitals under the HA; and 45 District Health Centres, District Health Centre Expresses and their service points under the Primary Healthcare Commission. In addition, more than 1 900 private doctors have participated in the Vaccination Subsidy Scheme, providing vaccination services at over 3 100 service points across all districts of Hong Kong.
Moreover, the DH is actively collaborating with the District Councils and the District Services and Community Care Teams to encourage the organisation of vaccination activities in the community. The DH has also strengthened interdepartmental collaboration, including partnerships with the Social Welfare Department and the Hong Kong Housing Society, to promote SIV outreach activities at District Elderly Community Centres, Neighbourhood Elderly Centres and elderly housing projects.
Regarding hospital services, the HA closely monitors the service data of public hospitals and assesses service demand, as well as the corresponding resource and manpower requirements, having regard to a basket of parameters. The HA will activate service surge contingency measures in light of the actual situation. These measures include flexible manpower deployment and increasing service capacity through special honorarium schemes, with a view to alleviating short-term manpower pressure. In addition, to meet the clinical needs of elderly patients, the A&E departments work closely with geriatric departments and, through the Integrated Discharge Support Programme for Elderly Patients, provide transitional integrated support services for hospitalised patients aged 60 or above who are at a higher risk of emergency re-admission after discharge, thereby reducing the likelihood of emergency re-admissions and alleviating service demand for A&E services.
While enhancing the response capability of hospitals, the Government has also been promoting patient diversion to enable patients to receive treatment at the appropriate level of care. The Government has all along encouraged patients with milder conditions to make better use of primary healthcare services, including family doctor services in the community, so as to alleviate the pressure on the A&E departments in public hospital, allowing the A&E departments to focus resources on handling patients with urgent medical needs. Since January 1, the HA has regularised the A&E refund arrangement, allowing eligible patients with stable conditions to opt for consultation at other healthcare institutions while waiting, thereby providing greater flexibility in making alternative consultation arrangements.
To meet the primary healthcare needs of the public, 15 HA Family Medicine Clinics provide services during Sundays and public holidays. Having regard to days with high service pressure, the HA has also increased an additional 10 000 consultation quotas as necessary. Depending on the actual circumstances, the HA also increases the number of clinics providing services to 18 during public holidays such as Christmas and New Year, offering the public more options for seeking medical care.
As regards family doctor services, around 1 000 Western medicine practice premises and about 1 000 Chinese medicine practice premises currently provide evening consultation services under the Primary Care Directory. The Primary Healthcare Commission will continue to encourage primary healthcare service providers to provide services during long holidays, and will also consolidate information on private healthcare institutions providing services during public holidays across the 18 districts of Hong Kong. Members of the public may access information (including addresses, telephone numbers and service hours) on these healthcare institutions through the "Doctor Search" function on the eHealth website and the eHealth mobile application. This would facilitate members of the public in identifying suitable private healthcare services in the community during non-office hours and public holidays, thereby diverting non-urgent attendances from the A&E departments.
The HHB co-ordinates the policy measures for responding to peak seasons of seasonal communicable diseases, which are implemented by the DH, the HA and the Primary Healthcare Commission. They will continue to review the relevant arrangements, and keep in view and draw reference from good practices and experience in the Mainland and overseas jurisdictions, taking into account the healthcare system, service demand and operational circumstances in Hong Kong. Adjustments will be made where appropriate to continuously enhance local service arrangements.
(2) The HA has all along been actively promoting exchanges of healthcare professionals with the Mainland. Since the fourth quarter of 2022, the HA has launched the Greater Bay Area Healthcare Talents Visiting Programmes (the Programmes) to facilitate time-limited professional exchanges between healthcare professionals from the two places. The objective of the Programmes is not to alleviate service demand in public hospitals, but to enhance the quality of healthcare services in both places through mutual exchange and learning among healthcare professionals. The exchange period ranges from several weeks to 12 months and covers healthcare professionals from different disciplines, including doctors, nurses, allied health professionals and Chinese medicine practitioners. The Programmes have been well received by participating healthcare professionals from both sides.
Having regard to factors such as the clinical experience of Mainland healthcare professionals participating in the short-term exchanges and the operational needs of individual departments, the HA arranges for them to join clinical departments in HA hospitals and work alongside local healthcare teams. They may provide appropriate clinical services to patients, participate in clinical procedures, and take part in teaching and research activities where appropriate. As for Chinese medicine experts, their primary role is to provide training for local Chinese medicine practitioners participating in the HA's Integrated Chinese-Western Medicine services.
The table below sets out the relevant figures on healthcare professionals from the Greater Bay Area who came to Hong Kong for exchange under the Programmes since inception and up to September 30, 2026:
| Professionals | Cumulative Number of Greater Bay Area Healthcare Professionals Participating in the Programmes since Inception and up to September 30, 2026 |
| Doctors | 92 |
| Nurses | 333 |
| Allied Health Professionals | 72 |
| Chinese Medicine Practitioners (Note 1) | 26 |
(3) Through the existing Low-charge Hospital Beds Programme in private hospitals, as well as collaboration programmes with Gleneagles Hospital Hong Kong and the CUHK Medical Centre, the HA arranges, where appropriate, for suitable patients whose conditions are relatively stable to be transferred to the relevant private hospitals for the continuation of necessary treatment, such as post-operative care and rehabilitation services. The objective of the programmes is to alleviate bed occupancy pressure in public hospitals, rather than to specifically address influenza.
The HA will continue to make good use of the above programmes and, make appropriate arrangements having regard to service demand and hospital bed utilisation.
Note 1: The figure represents the cumulative number of Chinese medicine experts included in the Chinese Medicine Expert Database. Upon joining the Database, the experts may be invited by the HA from time to time to come to Hong Kong to provide clinical training in accordance with the relevant training programmes.
Ends/Wednesday, October 28, 2026
Issued at HKT 15:00
Issued at HKT 15:00
NNNN