The decision by Hong Kong’s government to begin the Lunar New Year holidays early to stem the flu outbreak has paid off, as the number of infections drop in the city’s institutions.
This week it was announced that Kindergarten and primary school classes in Hong Kong will resume on 26 February following last week’s premature closing for the Lunar New Year holiday.
Local paediatricians have credited the school closures with helping to mitigate the spread of influenza across Hong Kong.
Minister Sophia Chan Siu-chee’s comments came more than a week after the government decided to shut the city’s 1,600 kindergartens, primary and special-needs schools to stop the spread of the outbreak.
“I went to a hospital on Thursday to understand the situation and there were paediatricians telling me that after the implementation of the early school holiday measure, they immediately felt the number of admissions had reduced,” she said.
For this reason, the measure had been effective, Chan said.
However, the Centre for Health Protection has warned that the likelihood of catching the flu remains highest at this time of year and that the next batch of vaccines may not arrive in time to ease shortages before students return to school.
The warning coincides with a study from the University of Hong Kong, which shows that the influenza virus may be more transmittable than previously thought.
According to the study, led by Professor Malik Peiris of the School of Public Health, the virus can spread not only by droplets but also airborne particles.
The South China Morning Post reported a spokesman for the Centre for Health Protection as saying that due to schools being collective assembly places, the flu could easily spread among people through their daily contacts.
“To prevent outbreaks of influenza and other respiratory infections, it is of prime importance that children with fever, regardless of the presence of respiratory symptoms, should not be allowed to attend school,” he said.
The spokesman said educators should measure and record students’ body temperature every day once classes resumed in a few days, and stressed pupils should seek medical advice and avoid school until 48 hours after the fever had subsided.
If an outbreak is suspected, schools should immediately report it to the centre for prompt follow-up, he said.
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