HONG KONG LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL 18 January 1989
一九八九年一月十八日 香港立法局
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renewed, the premises and equipment for manufacture and storage and the vehicles for conveyance are inspected to ensure safety precautions against fire or explosion.
There are at present no legislative controls over the administration of gases such as oxygen or nitrogen to patients in hospitals or clinics. Neither gas is dangerous in itself and suppliers and hospitals are already under a common law duty of care to patients to ensure that the correct gas is supplied and administered.
In the five major government hospitals, regular checks are carried out to ensure the integrity of the piping system for the supply of oxygen to operating theatres and wards. As a part of this procedure, the identity and quality of the oxygen is also checked.
Subvented and private hospitals operate their own systems and procedures. Enquiries made after the tragic incident last Saturday, 14 January, revealed that not all subvented or private hospitals carried out similar checks on a regular basis.
In order to ensure the safety of patients, the Medical and Health Department has, since last Saturday, carried out tests on all oxygen tanks and cylinders in every government hospital and clinic. As a result, I can confirm that all these tanks and cylinders contain oxygen of the specified quality. I can also confirm that all operating theatres are designed in such a way as to guard against connections to the wrong gas source.
In addition, the department has advised all subvented and private hospitals to take appropriate measures to ensure that the oxygen stored in those institutions is in fact oxygen and that there is no possibility of the wrong gas being administered to patients. Checks carried out by those hospitals since last Saturday confirm that their oxygen supply is in good order.
The Medical and Health Department will continue the emergency measures in government hospitals until the reason for the mistake in question has been identified and permanent steps have been worked out to prevent the occurrence of a similar incident in the future. The department has advised all subvented and private hospitals to do likewise.
Sir, I have described the emergency action that has been taken to ensure there will no repetition of this tragic accident in the immediate future.