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Hong Kong has also maintained close communication and co-operation with the Mainland and Macao. The three places jointly conducted a drill codenamed 'Exercise Great Wall 2008' on December 16 to test their joint response to public health hazards occurring at their common boundaries.
Other Communicable Diseases
The number of statutory notifiable infectious diseases occurring in Hong Kong. has increased from 32 to 45 since July 14. During the year, about 16 700 cases of notifiable diseases were reported, of which about 5 700 were diagnosed as tuberculosis.
Children in Hong Kong are protected against communicable diseases such as tuberculosis, hepatitis B, poliomyelitis, diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, measles, mumps. and rubella under a plan called 'Childhood Immunisation Programme'. To minimise the adverse effects of vaccination, the inactivated oral poliovirus vaccine (OPV) and whole-cell pertussis (wP) vaccine were replaced by the inactivated poliovirus vaccine (IPV) and acellular pertussis (aP) respectively. On the advice of experts and the Centre for Health Protection, the Government has also decided to include pneumococcal conjugate vaccine in the Childhood Immunisation Programme starting from September 1, 2009.
In addition, the Government introduced in November the new 'Influenza Vaccination Subsidy Scheme' to encourage children to be vaccinated against influenza. The vaccine given to Hong Kong children between the age of 6 months and under 6 years by participating doctors, is subsidised.
Non-communicable Diseases
Health problems in Hong Kong are mostly associated with lifestyle. The biggest killers are cancer, heart and cerebrovascular diseases, which together accounted for about 55 per cent of all registered deaths in 2008. Elderly people are the biggest victims of these chronic non-communicable diseases which will continue to cause the largest number of deaths in Hong Kong as the population ages. The Department of Health drew up a strategic framework called 'Promoting Health in Hong Kong: A Strategic Framework for Prevention and Control of Non-communicable Diseases' in 2008 to combat this problem. A steering committee comprising representatives from the Government, public and private sectors, academia, professional bodies, industry and other key partners was formed to oversee the framework's implementation. Meanwhile, the Centre for Health Protection will continue to step up surveillance, prevention and control of non-communicable diseases through a scheme called the 'Behavioural Risk Factor Surveillance System' and other health surveys.
A Cancer Co-ordinating Committee has been formed to make recommendations for preventing and controlling cancer which claimed more than 12 000 lives in Hong Kong in 2008.
To reduce the mortality rate of cervical cancer victims, the Department of Health, together with other healthcare providers, launched a Cervical Screening Programme in 2004 to provide screening for women aged between 25 and 64. It