Coronavirus: Hong Kong health expert warns of ‘very high risk’ to unvaccinated, seniors after cases detected at hospitals, homes for elderly
- Hong Kong confirms 140 cases on Sunday, with several infections being linked to homes for elderly and hospitals
- Respiratory expert warns of increasing infection risks for elderly and unvaccinated, who face a higher likelihood of ‘hospitalisation and possible mortality’
A rising number of Covid-19 cases were detected at Hong Kong hospitals and care centres for the elderly, with a health expert warning that unvaccinated and older residents were at risk.
Respiratory expert Dr Leung Chi-chiu said that outbreaks at care homes would increase the risk of infections for elderly and unvaccinated residents, noting they carried a “very high risk for hospitalisation and possible mortality.”
The city confirmed 140 cases on Sunday, the highest since July 2020, which saw 149 infections in a single day during the height of the third Covid-19 wave.
Among the confirmed cases, 125 were locally transmitted, including 17 from outside the estate and four with unknown sources. The other 15 were imported.
Several infections were linked to homes for the elderly and hospitals, with Hospital Authority Chief Manager Dr Larry Lee Lap-yip, confirming that two medical professionals had tested preliminary-positive for the virus.
One of the medical professionals, a 50-year-old assistant who worked at Prince of Wales Hospital in Sha Tin, lived in Yat Kwai House, where residents have been locked down with 126 recorded infections in total.
