The mainland medical expert delegation exchanges clinical experience with a team from Pamela Youde Nethersole Eastern Hospital in treating critically ill COVID-19 patients, on Feb 23, 2022. (PHOTO / INFORMATION SERVICES DEPARTMENT, HKSAR)

BEIJING / HONG KONG - Two batches of mainland health experts have arrived in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region to work with the HKSAR government in fighting the latest COVID-19 outbreak, a health official said on Saturday.

The central government will continue to support Hong Kong in epidemic prevention and control, with mainland experts continually working closely with their Hong Kong counterparts, National Health Commission official Wu Liangyou said at a press conference. 

The central government will continue to support Hong Kong in epidemic prevention and control, with mainland experts continually working closely with their Hong Kong counterparts, National Health Commission official Wu Liangyou said at a press conference

As the epidemic situation has been rapidly escalating in Hong Kong, it has become a top priority that various measures should be taken to suppress the coming epidemic peak, a mainland expert said.

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Feng Zijian, who participated in the supervision of the mainland's anti-epidemic efforts in Hong Kong, told Xinhua in a recent interview that the mainland expert teams had smooth communication with the Hong Kong side, and conducted in-depth exchanges and discussions on the treatment and prevention of COVID-19, as well as the mainland's relevant experience.

"Since the outbreak of COVID-19 two years ago, the medical community in Hong Kong has been paying close attention to the successful experience of the mainland in fighting the epidemic, and the medical staff of the two sides have exchanged views in their daily work," Feng said.

Feng, also Executive Vice President and Secretary General of the Chinese Preventive Medicine Association, believed that the experience of the mainland would play a positive role in Hong Kong's fight against the epidemic.

Hong Kong reported 17,063 new COVID-19 cases and 66 deaths on Saturday, according to local health authorities.

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Feng admitted that the fifth wave of the epidemic in Hong Kong is rapidly escalating, which will put great pressure on Hong Kong's medical system.

Feng said that with the full support of the central government, the HKSAR government is doing its utmost to increase the number of hospital beds. Also, the construction of eight mobile cabin hospitals built with the assistance from the mainland is underway.

Feng said that Hong Kong's Hospital Authority is optimizing patient assessment and triage, prioritizing medical resources to critical patients to minimize avoidable deaths.

Mainland COVID-19 medical experts visit the Pamela Youde Nethersole Eastern Hospital on Feb 23, 2022. (PHOTO / INFORMATION SERVICES DEPARTMENT, HKSAR)

Feng said the top priority for Hong Kong in containing COVID-19 is to take non-medical public health measures to suppress the peak of the epidemic and reduce the pressure on the medical system as much as possible.

He said the mainland expert teams and Hong Kong health officials and experts discussed the necessity and timing of further tightening public health and containment measures.

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"As the epidemic continues to develop, the window period for tightening public health and social prevention and control measures is getting shorter and shorter," Feng said, stressing that the timing is very important.

On Thursday, the HKSAR government announced the gazettal of the Emergency (Exemption from Statutory Requirements) (COVID-19) Regulation (the Regulation) made pursuant to the Emergency Regulations Ordinance (Chapter 241), with a view to providing the legal basis for the HKSAR government to implement the anti-epidemic measures supported by the Central People's Government (CPG), including the construction of hospitals and isolation facilities, etc. The Regulation came into operation on Thursday.

The Regulation empowers the Chief Secretary for Administration of the HKSAR government to, for preventing, protecting against, delaying or otherwise controlling the incidence or transmission of the specified disease or treating patients with the specified disease, having regard to the factors set out in the Regulation, grant an exemption in writing to persons or projects such that they do not have to comply with certain requirements under enactments (including a requirement for licence, authority, approval, exemption, permit, registration, standard or specification).

Some Hong Kong media interpreted that the regulation provided a legal basis for mainland medical workers to come to Hong Kong to help treatment of COVID-19 patients. No authoritative information has been released on whether the central government will send medical workers from the mainland to Hong Kong to help treating the COVID-19 patients.

Feng said that the current health care system in Hong Kong is facing the risk of overload, and the shortage of medical staff is the bottleneck. It will be a major breakthrough if medical workers from the mainland were allowed to participate directly in Hong Kong's fight against the epidemic.

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Talking about the future trend of the epidemic, Feng said that the situation is indeed serious, but there are also advantages for Hong Kong in the battle. Firstly, Hong Kong has the full support of the central government and the concerted efforts of Hong Kong society. Secondly, people in Hong Kong have a strong awareness of law-abiding and epidemic prevention.

Thirdly, Hong Kong has advanced medical technologies and equipment, and its medical staff are highly qualified. Fourthly, the mainland has rich experience in fighting COVID-19, which Hong Kong can learn from, he said.