By Daisy CL Mandap
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| Record number of cases and deaths marked HK's worst day for Covid-19 (File) |
Hong Kong has posted its worst ever Covid-19 tally today, Feb 16, with 4,285 confirmed cases and 7,000 preliminary positive cases, most of them with the Omicron variant.
Nine deaths were also recorded, including a three-year-old
girl with no known illnesses. It is
Hospitals remain full, with thousands of infected people stuck at home or outside hospitals and public clinics, all waiting to be admitted to an isolation facility.
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Among them are at least five Filipino domestic helpers with
nowhere to go, and were forced to stay outside
According to Dr Sara Ho, chief manager of the Hospital Authority, a total of 2,654 patients are being treated at public hospitals and two infection control centres which are operating at full capacity.
Penny’s Bay which serves as an isolation centre for those with mild or no symptom, has about 2,000 patients in its care.
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Media reports say between 10,000 to 12,000 patients are waiting to be placed in hospitals or isolation facilities, but Dr Ho said she did not have the exact figure.
She said the HA is exploring all avenues to find a solution to the shortage of facilities for Covid-positive patients.
Chief Executive Carrie Lam announced yesterday a plan to convert 3,000 public housing flats and10,000 hotel rooms into isolation facilities, but there is still no word yet on when this could take place.
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Dr Ho said the nine patients who passed away in the past 24 hours were:
1. An 82-year-old female who died
at 3:45pm at
2. 100 years old, female, 8:01pm at
3. 3-year-old gir, 8:37pm, Children’s Hospital
4. 72 years old, male, 10:14pm,
5. 90 years old, female, 10:17pm at
6. 75 years old, female, 11:07pm,
7. 97 years old, male, 2:26am,
8. 97 years old, female, 5:55am,
9. 37 years old, male, 9:53 am,
The deaths raised
Dr Ho added 17 other patients are in critical condition, and their ages range from 45 to 91 years old.
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| Dr Ho urged parents to get their children vaccinated after two young kids died of Covid within days |
Of those who tested positive in the last 14 days, she said 17% were aged 17 and below, and 9% of these were aged 6 and below, indicating the vulnerability of young children to the new coronavirus strain.
Asked about the three-year-old girl who is now on record as
She added that the girl, who carried the Omicron variant, had no major illnesses, and was not infected at home. She had a younger brother who was not infected.
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She appealed to parents to get their young children vaccinated against Covid-19, given their apparent susceptibility to Omicron. Just last week, a 4-year-old boy who tested preliminary positive for the virus also died shortly after being taken to hospital.
Kids as young as 3 are now allowed to get vaccinated with Sinovac, while a reduced dosage of BioNTech is recommended for those aged 5 and up.
As for the 37-year-old male patient, Dr Ho said he was in a care home and suffered from chronic illnesses.
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She also revealed that the number of hospital staff who have tested positive for Covid-19 has risen to 120, with 20 new close contacts being identified. Twenty patients have also tested preliminary positive, with 100 others being classified as close contacts.
Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan of the Centre for Health Protection said 20 more residential care homes have had either residents or staff testing positive.
But unlike in the past when residents were moved to an isolation facility after a case was identified, they are now kept at the care home and tested. Only those who test positive are admitted to hospital.
Dr Ho said that even those who had been moved out have been sent back to the care homes, to reduce the chances of infection at the hospitals.
