Tag Archives: China

     The Customs and Excise Department (C&ED) fully supports and co-operates with the new recruitment arrangements implemented by the Civil Service Bureau. The C&ED will expand the entry requirements for the ongoing recruitment of Inspector of Customs and Excise to undergraduate students graduating in 2024 or 2025 from today (June 5). The application deadline for Inspector recruitment will be extended by two weeks to June 19. 

     Undergraduate students graduating in 2024 or 2025 can apply for the post of Inspector of Customs and Excise. Successful candidates who passed the assessment will be granted a conditional offer and join the C&ED upon graduation, subject to the completion of the relevant academic qualification within a stipulated period of time and passing the recruitment procedures.  Relevant entry requirements are set out in C&ED website (www.customs.gov.hk/en/about-us/recruitment-information/inspector/index.html).

     A Customs Recruitment Promotion Vehicle will continue to visit various districts across the territory to introduce the department’s multifaceted work and provide a walk-in application service and preparation tips. For details, please refer to the social media platform of C&ED, or call the C&ED recruitment hotline at 3759 3759.  read more

     The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health (DH) is today (June 5) investigating an outbreak of acute gastroenteritis (AGE) at a kindergarten in Sha Tin, and hence reminded the public and management of institutions to maintain personal and environmental hygiene against AGE.

     The outbreak involves 23 pupils, comprising 11 boys and 12 girls aged 2 to 6, and one staff member. They developed vomiting, diarrhoea and fever since May 31. Four of the affected pupils sought medical attention, three of whom required hospitalisation and two of them have been discharged after management. The stool specimen of one of them tested positive for norovirus. All patients are in stable condition.

     According to the CHP’s epidemiological investigation, there were students in the outbreak who vomited at school. The outbreak has a higher chance of person-to-person transmission or environmental contamination, while the chance of involving food poisoning is relatively low.
 
     Officers of the CHP have conducted a site visit and provided health advice to the staff of the kindergarten concerning proper and thorough disinfection, proper disposal of vomitus, and personal and environmental hygiene. The kindergarten has been put under medical surveillance.

     Investigations are ongoing.

     A spokesman for the CHP reminded that alcohol-based handrub should not substitute hand hygiene with liquid soap and water, as alcohol does not effectively kill some viruses frequently causing AGE, e.g. norovirus. Members of the public are advised to take heed of the following preventive measures against gastroenteritis:
 

• Ensure proper personal hygiene;
• Wash hands thoroughly before handling food and eating, after using the toilet or after changing diapers;
• Wear gloves when disposing of vomitus or faecal matter, and wash hands afterwards;
• Clean and disinfect contaminated areas or items promptly and thoroughly with diluted household bleach (by adding one part of bleach containing 5.25 per cent sodium hypochlorite to 49 parts of water). Wash hands thoroughly afterwards;
• Maintain good indoor ventilation;
• Pay attention to food hygiene;
• Use separate utensils to handle raw and cooked food;
• Avoid food that is not thoroughly cooked;
• Drink boiled water; and
• Do not patronise unlicensed food premises or food stalls.

     â€‹The public may visit the CHP’s website (www.chp.gov.hk) or call the DH’s Health Education Infoline (2833 0111) for more information. read more

     The Department of Health (DH) is today (June 5) investigating a licensed wholesaler of Chinese herbal medicines and proprietary Chinese medicines (pCm), Tung Yan Medicine (Holdings) Limited (Tung Yan Medicine), at Yuen Shun Circuit, Sha Tin, for suspected illegal possession of an unregistered pCm called 和信堂山æ�±æ�±é˜¿é˜¿è†  (no English name, see photo).
 
     Acting upon intelligence, the DH conducted a field investigation and seized the above unregistered pCm from Tung Yan Medicine. According to the content of the package insert, the product claimed that it can tonify qi and blood, replenish yin, moisten dryness, resolve phlegm, clear the lungs, inhibit tumours and be anti-shock. Investigations are ongoing.
 
     “The safety, quality and efficacy of an unregistered pCm are not proven. So far, no related adverse reports have been received,” a spokesman for the DH said.

     The DH endorsed Tung Yan Medicine to voluntarily recall the above unregistered pCm from the market, and Tung Yan Medicine has set up a hotline (3462 2890) for related enquiries. The DH will closely monitor the recall.

     According to section 119 of the Chinese Medicine Ordinance (Cap. 549), no person shall sell, import or possess any pCm unless it is registered. The maximum penalty is a fine of $100,000 and two years’ imprisonment. Upon completion of the investigation, the DH will seek advice from the Department of Justice on prosecution matters and will also refer the case to the Chinese Medicine Council of Hong Kong (CMCHK) to consider taking possible disciplinary actions.
 
     Members of the public who have purchased the above unregistered pCm should stop taking it immediately. Those who have consumed it and are feeling unwell should seek advice from healthcare professionals. People who have the product can submit it to the Chinese Medicine Regulatory Office of the DH on 16/F, AIA Kowloon Tower, Landmark East, 100 How Ming Street, Kwun Tong, during office hours for disposal. 

     “The public should not buy or use products of doubtful composition or from unknown sources. All registered pCms should carry a Hong Kong registration number on the product label in the format of ‘HKC-XXXXX’ or ‘HKP-XXXXX’. The list of registered pCms is published on the website of the CMCHK (www.cmchk.org.hk/pcm/eng/#main_listpcm.htm) for public reference,” the spokesman added.

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     The Expert Committee on Clinical Events Assessment Following COVID-19 Immunisation, set up under the Department of Health (DH) to provide an independent assessment on the potential causal link between Adverse Events Following Immunisation (AEFIs) and COVID-19 vaccination in Hong Kong, convened a meeting today (June 5) to assess serious adverse events relating to COVID-19 vaccination.
 
     According to the World Health Organization, an AEFI is any medical occurrence that follows immunisation and that does not necessarily have a causal relationship with the usage of the vaccine. The DH has put in place a pharmacovigilance system for COVID-19 immunisation, and is partnering with the University of Hong Kong to conduct an active surveillance programme for Adverse Events of Special Interest (AESI) under the COVID-19 Vaccines Adverse Events Response and Evaluation Programme (CARE Programme). The main purpose of the pharmacovigilance system is to detect potential signals of possible side effects of the vaccines.
 
     As of May 31, about 20.81 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines had been administered for members of the public in Hong Kong. Around 6.92 million people had received at least one vaccine dose. In the same period, the DH received 8 122 reports of adverse events (0.04 per cent of total vaccine doses administered), including 120 death cases with vaccination within 14 days before they passed away (0.0006 per cent of total vaccine doses administered).
 
     The Expert Committee had already assessed these 120 death cases and concluded that 118 death cases had no causal relationship with vaccination. In the remaining two cases a causal relationship with vaccination could not be established. The Expert Committee considered that there has been no unusual pattern identified so far, and it will continue to closely monitor the situation and collect data for assessment.
 
     The Expert Committee has also reviewed available clinical data and information for conducting causality assessments of other serious or unexpected AEFIs and AESIs. The results will be included in the updated safety monitoring report (as at May 31) to be published at the Government’s designated website on June 9. In addition, information related to AEFIs of COVID-19 vaccines and relevant statistics will also be released in the “Update on monitoring COVID-19 vaccination” press release and the Government’s designated website regularly. read more

     Hip Hing Construction Company Limited and Innovative Construction (Sino) Limited were fined $130,000 and $80,000 respectively at Kowloon City Magistrates’ Courts today (June 5) for violation of the Factories and Industrial Undertakings Ordinance and the Construction Sites (Safety) Regulations. The prosecutions were launched by the Labour Department.

     The case involved a fatal accident that occurred on April 18, 2022, at a building construction site in Kai Tak. In the accident, a worker while working on the 11th Floor of the building under construction was suspected to have fallen through a floor opening down to the ninth floor and died.

     Furthermore, Chi Kan Woodworks Company Limited and Tung Shan Construction Company Limited were fined $6,000 and $3,000 respectively for violation of the Construction Sites (Safety) Regulations discovered during the investigation of the accident. However, the violations were not related to the accident. read more