Letters | Coronavirus: kudos to Hong Kong medical workers and government for a battle well-fought

Despite proximity to mainland China, which was hit the hardest, Hong Kong has managed to keep more than 99.99 per cent of its population safe from Covid-19

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Carrie Lam (left) and Secretary for Food and Health Sophia Chan Siu-chee highlight precautions to be taken if a family member contracts Covid-19 or when receiving a patient, at the Chief Executive’s Office in Admiralty on March 17. Photo: Robert Ng

Published: 5:25pm, 19 Mar 2020Updated: 5:25pm, 19 Mar 2020

Think of this – in Hong Kong, 99.998 per cent of the population have not contracted Covid-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus. Of the tiny number of people who have, about half have recovered and are healthy again. Hong Kong has created an amazing record in handling the coronavirus outbreak, especially since we are sitting on the doorstep of mainland China, which was hit the hardest.

Some medical professionals say the effort to promote hygiene here may have even prevented death or illness from other diseases.

Isn’t it time we expressed our appreciation to Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, the Hong Kong government and medical professionals, for their tremendous effort in controlling this contagion and making the Hong Kong people aware of what is required to keep safe?

I know it is not over yet so we cannot let our guard down, but I believe we have gone through the worst of it in Hong Kong with the minimum of grief.

I have no doubt we will be back on our feet in the coming months and the people here will show the world just what a dynamic city Hong Kong is.

Jim Thompson, Shouson Hill