TNAG-1362-FCO40-1808-Hong-Kong-Hansard-reports-and-minutes-of-the-meetings-of-the-1985 — Page 149

Supplementary to question No. 3 in the

Legislative Council on 1 May 1985

Dr. Ho:

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Sir, is the Director of Medical and Health Services

satisfied with the adequacies of isolation facilities for paediatric

patients especially in the old hospitals which were built some 20

or 30 years ago ?

Director of Medical and Health Services : Sir, special facilities

for babies who are in need of isolation are provided in all hospitals

and these include isolation wards, side wards and isolation rooms and

when necessary, infectious cases can also be treated at the Prince

Margaret Hospital's Infectious Diseases Unit. In all these areas

the strictest isolation techniques are practised and I am satisfied

generally that there are adequate provisions for the isolation of

babies who are in need of these facilities. As for the old hospitals,

for example in the Queen Mary, there are certain facilities already

for isolation. Of course in this case since the hospital was built

as long ago as 1937, there must be room for improvement and more of

these facilities will become available once the extention project

in regard to queen Mary is completed by 1987-88.

Dr. Ho : - Sir, what is the rate of occurrence of cross infection

in Hong Kong and how does that rate compare with other countries,

for example the UK or the USA?

Director of Medical and Health Services : Sir, as we all know by

nature of the functions of hospitals, cross infection is always a

potential in any hospital and in fact occurs usually at a certain

low level in most if not all hospitals. Now according to our

available data from our surveillance system there is only an average

incidence of 2 to 3% which compares very favourably with similar

studies, for example in the USA, where the Centre for Disease Control

reported a 5 6% infection of all hospitalised patients.

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