{"id":14015,"date":"2022-09-27T11:50:00","date_gmt":"2022-09-27T03:50:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.primecare.com.hk\/?post_type=media_news&#038;p=14015"},"modified":"2022-09-30T11:54:22","modified_gmt":"2022-09-30T03:54:22","slug":"%e5%85%ac%e9%99%a2%e8%a6%96%e5%83%8f%e8%a8%ba%e7%97%87%e5%85%92%e7%ab%a5%e7%84%a1%e4%bb%bd-%e5%ae%b6%e9%95%b7%e6%80%a5%e7%97%87%e5%ae%a4%e8%8b%a6%e7%ad%89-%e7%a7%81%e9%86%ab%e7%9b%b8%e9%97%9c%e6%9c%8d","status":"publish","type":"media_news","link":"https:\/\/www.primecare.com.hk\/en\/media_news\/a10-bosco\/%e5%85%ac%e9%99%a2%e8%a6%96%e5%83%8f%e8%a8%ba%e7%97%87%e5%85%92%e7%ab%a5%e7%84%a1%e4%bb%bd-%e5%ae%b6%e9%95%b7%e6%80%a5%e7%97%87%e5%ae%a4%e8%8b%a6%e7%ad%89-%e7%a7%81%e9%86%ab%e7%9b%b8%e9%97%9c%e6%9c%8d\/","title":{"rendered":"Public hospitals' video consultations exclude children, parents face long waits in A&amp;E. Private doctor services see up to a 60% rise in consultations."},"content":{"rendered":"<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><a href=\"https:\/\/skypost.ulifestyle.com.hk\/sras001\/%E6%B8%AF%E8%81%9E\" rel=\"noopener\">Hong Kong News<\/a><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Published: 27\/09\/2022<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">During the pandemic, video consultations have become a new emerging service. Many private clinics have reported a 20% to 60% surge in paediatric consultations during the recent peak of the pandemic. However, public hospitals do not offer video consultation services for children. Concerned organisations have pointed out that parents from lower socio-economic backgrounds have to wait 7 to 8 hours in accident and emergency departments for treatment. Experts explain that the condition of children can change rapidly, and they cannot be given antiviral medication once infected, hence the lower priority for such services in public hospitals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Hospital Authority also stated that, taking into account the clinical treatment needs of individuals under 18, designated clinics will reserve quotas for kindergarten and primary school students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Since the fifth wave of the pandemic, nine children under the age of 11 have died. However, public hospital telemedicine consultations do not include children under 18, meaning they must seek \"in-person\" medical attention once infected. The vice-chairperson of the Society for Community Organisation, Sze Lai-shan, stated that during the peak of the pandemic, the appointment lines for designated clinics were often \"unobtainable,\" and some grassroots parents and their children had to wait \"seven to eight hours\" in accident and emergency departments before receiving medical care.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Recording for the doctor to hear, worried about child's vocal tics.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The demand for private video consultations has thus surged. Dr Ho Hok-gung, a specialist in Paediatric Immunology, Allergy and Infectious Diseases, stated that many families have had adults fall ill first, and fearing they might infect their children, they sought medical advice via video consultations. \"Some people worry their children will be isolated for treatment at public hospitals and they won't be able to stay by their side.\" He revealed that the volume of video consultations at Health To Medical rose by 20% in late August compared to the period before. \"Some parents, fearing their children might have croup, would record audio for doctors to listen to their breathing sounds. During our consultations, we teach parents how to count their child's heart rate and breathing, and to check for indents between the ribs when breathing. If there is any suspicion, the child needs to be hospitalised.\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Dr. Chan Yan-wing, Medical Director of The Centre for Paediatrics and The Centre for Child Psychology, Health and Development, stated that there has been an increase in video consultations since August. During the first week of September, a greater number of children aged three to four sought consultations, with kindergarteners making up the majority. Most presented with coughs and fevers, with the youngest being just one month old. \"Parents do not want their babies admitted to hospital, so they prefer daily video monitoring.\" Additionally, some cases showed early symptoms of croup, but fortunately, the clinic provides a medication delivery service, and affected children showed improvement within half to one day of taking steroids. He noted that many children experience high fevers in the early stages of illness but remain alert, prompting parents to opt for video consultations to ensure their peace of mind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Liu Yuyang, Medical Director of Western Medicine at Quality HealthCare, noted that the majority of children seeking telemedicine consultations were under 12 years of age, with the number of consultations in August rising by nearly 60 per cent compared with July; adult consultations also increased by 25%, with the majority presenting with symptoms of upper respiratory tract infections.Hong Kong Sanatorium &amp; Hospital also noted that, among telemedicine cases in August and September, children accounted for 5%, the majority of whom were rapid test-positive or suspected cases; overall demand for telemedicine has risen, with the number of cases in the first seven days of September already equalling the total for August, which stood at 38%.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Leung Tsz Chiu: Children's conditions change quickly, lower priority<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Regarding public hospitals lacking corresponding services, respiratory specialist Dr. Leung Chi-chiu stated that because children's conditions change rapidly and most antiviral drugs are not applicable, unlike the elderly and immunocompromised individuals who can receive prompt treatment through video consultations and medication delivery services, this has a lower priority. Dr. Kwan Yat-wah, Honorary Associate Professor of Paediatrics and Adolescent Medicine at the University of Hong Kong, agreed that providing video consultations for children could alleviate pressure on accident and emergency departments, but this would depend on arrangements made by the authorities based on staffing levels in individual departments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Hospital Authority announced that as of September 13th, eight designated clinics had provided over 181,000 consultations, with 90% of patients being over 18 years old; remote consultations supported nearly 32,000 cases. The authority stressed that, taking into account the clinical needs of children and adolescents under 18, designated clinics have reserved slots for higher-risk patients such as kindergarten and primary school students. A dedicated hotline is also available for appointment assistance, and services, including the applicable age range for users, will be adjusted in the future as needed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Reporter: Chut Ji-ching<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Art: Yan Yu-ling<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/resource01-proxy.ulifestyle.com.hk\/res\/v3\/image\/content\/3360000\/3362289\/20220927JAB006__20220927_S.jpg\" alt=\"\u516c\u9662\u8996\u50cf\u8a3a\u75c7\u5152\u7ae5\u7121\u4efd \u5bb6\u9577\u6025\u75c7\u5ba4\u82e6\u7b49 \u79c1\u91ab\u76f8\u95dc\u670d\u52d9 \u6c42\u8a3a\u6700\u591a\u589e6\u6210\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25b2Accident and Emergency departments in several public hospitals were chronically overcrowded during the epidemic, with many patients having to wait a long time before receiving medical treatment. (File photo)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/resource01-proxy.ulifestyle.com.hk\/res\/v3\/image\/content\/3360000\/3362289\/002_01_b_20220927_L.jpg\" alt=\"\u516c\u9662\u8996\u50cf\u8a3a\u75c7\u5152\u7ae5\u7121\u4efd \u5bb6\u9577\u6025\u75c7\u5ba4\u82e6\u7b49 \u79c1\u91ab\u76f8\u95dc\u670d\u52d9 \u6c42\u8a3a\u6700\u591a\u589e6\u6210\"\/><\/figure>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u6e2f\u805e \u767c\u4f48\u6642\u9593: 2022\/09\/27 \u75ab\u60c5\u4e0b\u8996\u50cf\u8a3a\u75c7\u6210\u65b0\u8208\u670d\u52d9\uff0c\u591a\u9593\u79c1\u5bb6\u8a3a\u6240\u6307\uff0c\u5728\u8fd1\u6708\u75ab\u60c5\u9ad8\u5cf0\u671f\uff0c\u5152\u7ae5\u6c42\u8a3a\u6025 [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":14016,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"default","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"default","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}}},"categories":[76],"interviewee":[22],"class_list":["post-14015","media_news","type-media_news","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-76","interviewee-a10-bosco"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.primecare.com.hk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media_news\/14015","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.primecare.com.hk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media_news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.primecare.com.hk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/media_news"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.primecare.com.hk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media_news\/14015\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14017,"href":"https:\/\/www.primecare.com.hk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media_news\/14015\/revisions\/14017"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.primecare.com.hk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14016"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.primecare.com.hk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14015"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.primecare.com.hk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14015"},{"taxonomy":"interviewee","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.primecare.com.hk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/interviewee?post=14015"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}