'Shortcomings' in HK SARS outbreak

Hong Kong - Hong Kong's response to the flu-like SARS epidemic earlier this year had "significant shortcomings" in its early phases, according to a report.

The SARS report, released Thursday by a government-appointed panel of health experts, said while the epidemic was handled well overall, shortcomings at the beginning of the outbreak were aggravated by key officials becoming ill with SARS.

But the report added no individuals should be singled out for the spread of the disease, which infected 1,755 people in the territory and killed 300 after surfacing in March.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) broke out in neighboring Guangdong province on the Chinese mainland in late November, but it was only several months later that Hong Kong authorities were made aware of the outbreak.

The disease spread rapidly in its first few weeks, sickening entire hospital wards when little was known about the respiratory illness and how it spread.

Fears escalated when SARS broke out for the first time in the community, infecting more than 300 people in one housing estate alone.

From Hong Kong it spread by air travel to more than 30 nations, infecting more than 8,400 people and claiming over 900 lives. Hong Kong was the second hardest hit area after China, but its infection rate was much higher.

Health authorities battling to control the disease had to resort to age-old methods of isolation and quarantine, and they had no reliable tests or vaccines.

Hong Kong residents criticized the government and Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa for not being quick enough to stop the rapid onset and spread of SARS.

Criticism was also leveled at officials for failing to protect front-line health workers and for not closing down schools and hospitals soon enough.

The mishandling of the crisis was one of several issues that brought out half a million people on Hong Kong streets in July.

The 172-page report agreed there were a number of problems in the way SARS was handled.

It listed poor links between the health department and private and public hospitals, ineffective chains of command, a lack of contingency plans, poor infection control in hospitals and staff that were not properly trained.

In advising the government on how to ensure Hong Kong is better prepared for any other disease outbreaks amid fears SARS could reemerge this winter, the panel of experts made 46 recommendations under 12 key themes.

Among the most noticeable:

• Review links between the Health, Welfare and Food Bureau and other government departments.

• Set up a Center for Health Protection, which among other things would advise on health protection, food safety and hygiene and veterinary issues.

• Come up with a contingency plan to cope with a major outbreak, which would need to be done closely with the neighboring Pearl River Delta region.

• Set up a small command group, chaired by the Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food and other government departments, who would make major decisions during an outbreak.

• Invest in hospital facilities, especially isolation rooms, and boost clinical skills.

Hong Kong still monitors all border points and air travellers entering the territory for fevers, a key symptom of the disease, and has set up an alert warning system. -- CNN News

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