As Hong Kong battles its fifth wave of Covid-19, our healthcare professionals have come under extraordinary pressure. Towards the end of February, case numbers had been increasing rapidly, reaching tens of thousands daily and threatening to overwhelm hospitals.
Throughout it all, the city’s the doctors, nurses, paramedics and all of the associated healthcare staff have continued to serve the city’s population with tireless devotion.
For the first two years of the pandemic Hong Kong managed to keep Covid largely under control, with virtually no local cases in the second half of 2021. But the Omicron variant put paid to that. As has been seen around the world, Omicron is incredibly infectious, which means it is almost inevitable that it will spread rapidly – especially in such a densely populated location.
The whole business community supports the work of the healthcare workers in Hong Kong who have been working around the clock in recent months.
“Although many businesses and office staff have been able to take the precautions of working remotely and staying at home as much as possible at times when the virus is spreading, healthcare workers haven’t had this option,” said Chamber Chairman Peter Wong. “We are extremely grateful to all medical staff for their dedication to serving Hong Kong’s people and helping us all get through the current exceptionally challenging situation.”
The city’s medical professionals are also supported by a huge number of other roles including cleaners, food service workers, and maintenance and administrative staff, who are also on the front line, dealing with an increased workload and the risk of infection.
George Leung, CEO of the Chamber, applauded the devotion and professionalism of all of these workers.
“The healthcare workers and all of the support staff are true Hong Kong heroes,” he said. “Their dedication and professionalism in the face of extreme pressure and risk is an inspiration to all of us in Hong Kong.”
At time of writing, the HKSAR Government was cooperating with authorities in the Mainland to import healthcare workers as well as staff to help operate the citywide testing programme planned for March and to build temporary facilities. The Chamber is grateful to all of these professionals for their work and expertise, and for the cooperation that is helping us to increase our capacity in the face of the spreading virus.
Helping vulnerable citizens
Taking a broader view, the current outbreak is having an outsize impact on some of the most vulnerable members of society. Working, studying or simply staying at home is not easy for citizens who do not have adequate living spaces. And as businesses have reduced their opening hours, many grassroots workers have lost their jobs or suffered wage cuts.
In recent weeks, however, the business community has been stepping up to help. Many of our members, including some of the city’s biggest companies, have been taking action to help the most vulnerable members of Hong Kong’s society.
Last month, for example, HSBC donated HK$100 million to provide care packages including testing kits, medicine and food supplies to vulnerable communities. It is also supporting a hotline run by the Red Cross to help people with information about quarantine, testing and other requirements.
Hang Seng Bank also announced a donation of HK$10 million for materials including 150,000 rapid test kits and 750,000 masks for grassroots households. It will also donate 5,000 rapid test kits to frontline staff who deliver meals and take care of the elderly in the community.
Hang Lung Properties will give HK$10 million in care packages to frontline workers including supermarket and health supplies, as well as a data SIM card to help students access online learning.
Corporates are also providing new technology products for more efficient monitoring of local people’s health. NWS Holdings will provide 10,000 oximeters – which measure blood oxygen levels – to help people who have tested positive to monitor their health while waiting for health care.
Meanwhile, Sino Group and its Ng Teng Fong Charitable Foundation are working with Government departments to distribute 500 Belun remote-monitoring systems to residential care homes.
“With the surging numbers of confirmed cases, there is enormous pressure on our public health system as well as care homes where many residents have to undergo quarantine on-site and need medical care,” said Daryl Ng, Deputy Chairman of Sino Group and Director of the Ng Teng Fong Charitable Foundation. “With efficient remote monitoring, carers can support residents in a timely manner.”
And SHK Properties and NWS are among those who have offered land for temporary hospital and isolation facilities as cases continued to surge.
Swire has pledged HK$15.5 million through its TrustTomorrow initiative to help the city’s vulnerable including the elderly, street cleaners, homeless and refugees.
Among other efforts to combat the pandemic, the MTR has provided rental relief for tenants and has offered 10,000 free City Saver tickets to healthcare workers. Standard Chartered has donated HK$10 million to provide 300 jobs for unemployed women, Dorsett Hotels has offered the use of some of its rooms for isolation facilities, while UMP Healthcare has offered free telemedical consultations to Covid patients. The Li Ka Shing Foundation and the Hong Kong Jockey Club have increased the funding available for Covid help.
Jardine Matheson, Deloitte, EY, AIA, Fosun Foundation, JD.com and Mead Johnson Nutrition are among those that have made donations of supplies including self-test kits and food supplies.
These examples are just a small sample of the many donations of funds, care packages, and goods and services from all types of businesses in the city. Chamber CEO George Leung said that it was heartwarming to see the Hong Kong business community come together to help the people in this time of need.
“It is not just large corporates – businesses of all sizes have been willing to help where they can,” Leung said. “In the early days of the pandemic, when masks were in short supply, many of our member companies pulled out all the stops to source masks and other protective equipment for Hong Kong people and businesses.”
Amid the current Omicron surge, some of the Chamber’s members have been sourcing rapid testing kits. In fact, HKGCC has just taken delivery of several thousand kits to be distributed to charities and our SME members to help keep the city safe and enable people to isolate sooner and stop the spread.
Throughout the past two years, many HKGCC members have also donated to the Chamber’s various community programmes. Their generosity ensured that our Hong Kong We Can Do It! Lucky Draw to encourage vaccination was a success, with more than $HK43 million in prizes. And we have worked together with members and various charity organizations in the city to distribute packages to help the elderly, children and families in need.
Vaccination is crucial
The only way back to normality, for businesses and for the whole community, is to ensure a higher level of vaccination. The Hong Kong population suffered very few deaths, compared to other major cities, in the first two years of the pandemic, but this has changed since the Omicron variant arrived. Most of the deaths from Covid in 2022 have been among unvaccinated people.
Widespread vaccination will also relieve the intense pressure on our healthcare staff, as vaccinated people are less likely to suffer serious ill effects. At time of writing, 77% of the eligible population had received two doses, with almost 90% of people having received one shot. So while we are moving in the right direction, there is still room for improvement.
The Chamber continues to urge everyone to get vaccinated and get boosted, so we can all move on past this current outbreak and return to a safe, secure and healthy environment.
“At times like this, it’s helpful to remember that Hong Kong has always emerged stronger from the trials it faced in the past,” said Wong. “Hong Kong is under intense pressure at the minute, and with the help of our front-line healthcare professionals working to get the city through the current crisis and back to normality, we will once again come back stronger, more adaptable and more prosperous.”
Covid Timeline
2019
31 December Wuhan authorities report a cluster of cases of an unknown pneumonia to WHO
2020
28 January Hong Kong introduces border controls and recommends work from home
6 March Daily cases in Mainland drop to below 100, following strict lockdowns across the nation
11 March WHO declares Covid-19 a pandemic
20 March Reports from Italy that hospital are being overwhelmed
25 March Hong Kong bans non-residents from entering the city and introduces 14-day home quarantine
5 May Hong Kong starts to ease restrictions. They are tightened again for a short time during the third wave in summer
23 November Hong Kong’s fourth wave starts, and a planned travel bubble with Singapore put on ice
8 December United Kingdom starts its vaccination programme
2021
18 January China reports 2.3% growth for 2020, following its rapid recovery from the Covid outbreak
22 February Deaths from Covid in the United States reach 500,000
26 February Hong Kong begins vaccination programme
3 June HKGCC announces Hong Kong We Can Do It! Lucky Draw for vaccinated citizens.
24 November Omicron first discovered in South Africa
2022
8 January Hong Kong sees first local untraceable infection in many months
8 January Death toll in Britain reaches 150,000 as infections plateau, but begin to steadily decline
24 February Vaccine pass introduced in Hong Kong
24 February England removes almost all Covid restrictions
25 February Hong Kong reports more than 20,000 new cases
We are very grateful to Jonathan Lamport, Chairman of the Asia & Africa Committee, for donating several thousand rapid testing kits to the Chamber. Our staff have used these kits to protect themselves and help keep the Chamber safe, and we will distribute the excess to charities and small businesses in need