Flu jab inquiries, bookings rise in Hong Kong after death of Barbie Hsu

Hong Kong clinics have received a surge in inquiries and bookings for influenza vaccination following the death of popular Taiwanese actress Barbie “Big S” Hsu Shi-yuan, who died from flu-triggered pneumonia. Hsu’s death, which was publicly on Monday and happened while she was travelling in Japan with her family, not only sent shock waves through the Chinese-speaking world, but also appeared to prompt more Hongkongers to get flu vaccinations. A similar sudden surge in demand for flu shots was reportedly also seen in Taiwan. In Hong Kong, family medicine specialist Dr Angus Chan Ming-wai said on Tuesday there had been an increase in the number of people making inquiries and appointments for flu jabs at his private practice since the news broke. “There have already been about a dozen inquiries so far,” Chan said, referring to Tuesday morning, adding the number included those who made bookings for the next few days. He did not recall handling any inquiries around the same time in previous years, as people who routinely got vaccinated usually did so much earlier. But Chan said some Hongkongers often “made a last-minute effort” to get inoculated at a later date. He said those now rushing for injections included residents aged between 18 and 49, who did not benefit from government-subsidised flu jabs. Government-run flu vaccination programmes start in late September or early October each year and children aged below 18 and adults aged 50 or older are currently among those eligible for subsidised inoculations. General practitioner Dr Edmund Lam Wing-wo said his clinic had given eight to 10 people flu jabs on Tuesday morning, with some arriving as walk-in patients. “Some of them had never received a flu jab before and some were going on a trip soon. There were also some young people who were paying for the vaccine from their own pockets,” he said. Lam said the number of inquiries and bookings for flu jabs on Tuesday was 30 per cent higher than usual before the start of the Lunar New Year holiday period in late January. But he said the uptick in inquiries and bookings had also been observed in the past whenever there were news stories about people dying from flu infections. Respiratory medicine specialist Dr Raymond Tso said one clinic where he worked had received “20 to 30 more inquiries” after the news of Hsu’s death, compared with the same period last year. He added that elderly people were mostly the ones who were making inquiries at the clinic, which is operated by an NGO. All three doctors interviewed by the Post said they had not heard of any shortage of flu vaccines and that supply remained stable. Taiwan had also seen a rise in people getting flu jabs after Hsu’s death. In Taipei, the stock of government-funded flu vaccine dropped from 12,000 doses on Monday noon to 6,200 on Tuesday morning. Health and welfare minister Chiu Tai-yuan said the island still had around 160,000 doses of government-funded flu vaccines as of Tuesday, with priority to be given to older people or those with chronic conditions. Professor Lau Yu-lung, chairman of the Centre for Health Protection’s Scientific Committee on Vaccine Preventable Diseases, highlighted the importance of getting flu shots, including among people aged 18 to 49. He said 18 severe flu cases had been recorded within that age group this year, with four fatalities. “No one can predict who will have these serious complications. The first thing you can do is reduce the risk of serious complications yourself by getting a flu shot,” he said. Health authorities on Monday revealed that over 70 per cent of fatal flu-related cases involved victims who had not been vaccinated. Lau said people with chronic conditions, such as heart and lung disease, as well as diabetes and cancer, should receive flu shots as they were in the high-risk group. Pregnant women should also get inoculated. He said that while the number of flu cases had passed its peak in Japan, where Hsu died, infection rates remained at a high level. “I think the number of cases and the intensity of the flu outbreak in Japan far exceeds that in Hong Kong,” he said. Lau urged Hongkongers to wear masks when visiting Tokyo and Osaka, as both destinations were now crowded with visitors. He noted that travellers could prepare medication and pulse oximeters to measure their blood oxygen levels, especially if they visited remote areas which were far from hospitals.

Flu jab inquiries, bookings rise in Hong Kong after death of Barbie Hsu

Doctors say more people visiting clinics after news of Taiwanese actress’ death from pneumonia, triggered by flu