Let private labs help to confirm infections: expert

A public health expert with the Chinese University on Tuesday urged the government to consider letting private laboratories help with conducting confirmatory tests, as a backlog in such testing is leading to a delay in the confirmation of Covid-19 infections.

The city reported 2,071 new cases on Monday, with the Centre for Health Protection conceding that another 1,000 preliminary positive samples had yet to be confirmed by public laboratories. There were also about 4,500 preliminary positive cases.

Kwok Kin-on told an RTHK programme that the city faces an “under-reporting” situation, because it now takes several days before a preliminary positive case can be confirmed by the authorities.

The expert pointed out that some patients who are asymptomatic or experience only mild symptoms may opt for self-care at home, adding that their family members could also be infected.

“It’s estimated that between 6,000 and 7,000 people are being infected everyday,” he said.

Kwok said he hopes things will improve after the temporary “Fire Eye” laboratory comes into operation at the Ma On Shan Sports Centre.

“If there’s an extra pair of hands to help with testing and increase the capability in reviewing the preliminary cases, then people who are infected can take infection control measures at home to prevent spreading the disease to family members,” he said.

“Private laboratories as well as the ‘Fire Eye’ laboratory can help review specimens and see if that helps the situation.”

The expert called on patients who are waiting at home to be hospitalised to head to accident and emergency departments right away if they develop symptoms such as breathing difficulty, chest pain, and recurring high fever.

Meanwhile, another expert with the Chinese University, Liona Poon, has called on pregnant women to get vaccinated against Covid-19, saying 30 pregnant women have come down with the virus in the past week compared with 50 over the last two years.

The professor from the university’s department of obstetrics and gynaecology said those infected could develop serious complications, such as premature birth, high blood pressure and pre-eclampsia.

She told an RTHK programme that the vaccines are safe for pregnant women, adding that breastfeeding mums should also consider getting inoculated.