'Super Spreader Infected Over A Dozen At Hospital'

Government expert adviser Yuen Kwok-yung said on Saturday that an 84-year-old super spreader had caused a coronavirus outbreak at the palliative care ward at the United Christian Hospital.

Speaking after visiting the hospital to conduct a probe, the top microbiologist from the University of Hong Kong said the elderly woman had infected 10 other patients from the palliative care ward, and four medical staff.

"I think the cause of this outbreak is basically because the community epidemic pressure is now very high," said Yuen

"And you know around this area, in the Kwun Tong area, from Yau Tong to Richland Gardens, et cetera, everywhere there are buildings with clusters of cases.

He said many of these patients might be incubating an infection before they were diagnosed and sometimes were admitted to United Christian Hospital for other reasons.

Hospital officials said the woman was admitted on December 15 and tested negative for the coronavirus.

She was later transferred to the palliative care ward due to a bed shortage before she was found to be carrying the coronavirus.

Yuen described it as a "most unfortunate" super spreading event, adding that the virus might have been transmitted through the air in the palliative care ward.

"Because this is a palliative care ward, most of the patients there are suffering from very severe conditions, like terminal cancer, like major organ failures, their immune system is very poor and thus they are very easily infected," he said.

He added that a nurse was believed to have been infected after helping the elderly woman clean her mouth without wearing protective goggles.

The professor said he has recommended that the hospital give further coronavirus test for patients with negative results if there's an unexplained change in their lung condition.

Meanwhile, the Centre for Health Protection reported 59 new coronavirus infections on Saturday.

Fifty-three of the cases were locally transmitted, and officials could not trace the source of infection for 26.

One of the untraceable cases lives in Lei Sang House of Lei Yue Mun Estate, bringing the total number of infected cases there to six.

Health authorities said they were ordering mandatory testing for residents of that building because the new case brought the total number of affected units there to four.

The Centre for Health Protection also announced that a traveller from London had been confirmed to have been infected with a more contagious variant of the coronavirus that was first discovered in the UK.

It said the patient arrived from London on December 11 and developed a fever during hotel quarantine last Sunday before being confirmed with the virus.

Dr Albert Au from the centre said the traveller had had no close contacts, noting that it was a quarantine hotel and staff followed the CHP guidelines on using personal protective equipment and disinfecting the rooms properly.