Coronavirus: more than half of Hongkongers willing to stick with preventive measures, but most reluctant to get booster shots

More than half of Hongkongers have expressed a willingness to continue Covid-19 preventive measures, such as wearing masks, while the majority are reluctant to get another booster shot, a university study has found.

The paper, published by Chinese University on Monday, showed most interviewees approved of various health measures, including covering up while indoors and using alcohol-based sanitisers, representing a higher proportion than before the start of the pandemic in early 2020.

Members of The Jockey Club School of Public Health and Primary Care, which is part of the university’s medical faculty, surveyed 611 respondents in March, asking interviewees what disease prevention measures they had taken before and after the pandemic.

The study also found only 13 per cent of interviewees were willing to take a Covid-19 booster shot, prompting researchers to call for a coordinated effort to allay vaccine hesitancy as the city returned to normality.

Professor Samuel Wong Yeung-shan, director of the school, said it was worth investigating how sustainable voluntary measures, such as mask-wearing, were after the World Health Organization (WHO) last week announced the coronavirus was no longer considered a global public health emergency and amid the possibility that local authorities could adjust the city’s current emergency level response.