The decision to perform a second round of citywide mass Covid-19 testing would not be necessary if no one currently quarantined in relation to the four newest patients test positive, Dr. Tai Wa Hou, coordinator of the Health Bureau’s Covid-19 Vaccination Operation, said at the media briefing yesterday.
However, once a positive case is found during this round, an “inevitable” second round will kick off immediately after the first, Tai did confirm.
Claims have been made among the population that those who have contracted the coronavirus and are in the early stages may not have been discovered in this round, given the extended incubation period for the Delta variant.
Tai acknowledged this issue and responded that “carrying out the second round of mass test is certainly more effective in smoking out invisible transmission chain,” and the earlier the next round commences, the better and safer for public health.
Nonetheless, Tai said other factors should also be considered when reaching a decision, including the global pandemic situation, the impact of mass testing on the community, and more.
All tests negative
The government has revealed that, as of August 8 at 2 a.m., all sample results tested have come back negative.
The city’s first-of-its-kind mass Covid-19 test scheme processed 614,465 people, together with another 101,786 people who underwent the test on their own outside the citywide testing program since August 3 — totaling 716,251 people.
The scheme “basically” completed its target of sampling the city’s entire population of 682,500 last Friday morning, which also marks the third and last day of the scheme.
Some media figures have questioned whether mismanagement and inconsistent messaging were underlying factors in the scheme causing chaos across town, especially on its first day, which saw hordes of locals lining up at some test centers.
At the press conference, Tai said technical glitches in the health code system did cause extended wait times, but he regarded the scheme as an achievement, not a “failure,” as the testing was completed earlier than expected. He vowed the government would learn from the experience and, if necessary, carry out a second round more rapidly and efficiently.
Close Contacts
As of 2 p.m. on August 6, the government has ordered 792 residents to undergo medical observation — among them, 76 were close contacts and 531 were secondary close contacts.
There were 287 people undergoing quarantine in the red-code zone. They all tested negative for their second nucleic acid tests (NATs).
Leong Iek Hou, coordinator at the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, reconfirmed that all 29 members of Hou Kong Middle School and a Mainland tour guide also tested negative for Covid-19. The other 10 members, who are currently in Guangdong Province, Fujian Province, Hunan Province and Hong Kong, tested negative as well.
Outreach Test
The government deployed special teams to carry out outreach testing for those with movement difficulties.
In a preliminary estimation, around 3,000 people from 30 care centers and around 100 with limited mobility benefited from the outreach.
Oropharyngeal sampling
made available
Given that a large number of people had opted for oropharyngeal sampling, the government announced on August 5, the testing method became available at all testing stations. The exception was the Pac On Ferry Terminal, which was previously the only center to provide the service.
However, some locals complained that they went to other centers and asked for oropharyngeal approaches but were denied.
In response to this, Tai said it required some time for the new mandate to be conveyed to each medical staff at centers, and additional time for them to get set up with the required equipment for oropharyngeal tests. All these factors resulted in a lagged delivery.
After the mass testing, the government may offer oropharyngeal sampling as part of standard operation at some test stations in the future, he added.
Medical Staff Shortage
The media questioned whether the city is enduring a lack of medical staff, considering that the government had to ask Guangdong Province for help in conducting the mass testing. A delegation of 300 medical staff from the province came to Macau to offer assistance in the testing last Thursday.
Tai said Macau has 2.7 doctors for every 1,000 residents, which is above average by global standards. In terms of the number of nurses, Macau retains 3.7 per 1,000 residents, which is slightly lower than average.
In general, the city has sufficient medical manpower, but during unprecedented times which requires dealing with the whole population, like the mass testing effort, the personnel numbers are certainly insufficient, Tai said.
On the Mend
The family of four infected with the highly contagious Delta variant are on the mend. Their symptoms have been improving and they have not needed assisted respiration, Tai said.
DSEDJ has plans to initiate online classes
Owing to the ongoing pandemic, the Education and Youth Development Bureau (DSEDJ) stated it is already geared up for the worst case scenario and has plans underway to coordinate institutions to conduct online classes.
The above information was delivered by Wong Ka Ki, head of the department of non-tertiary education at the DSEDJ during the media briefing last Friday.
In accordance with the government’s anti-pandemic efforts against the newly reported Delta infections, all summer activities organized by the Sports Bureau (ID) and the DSEDJ were called off from August 6.
Some tertiary institutions will embark on the academic year as early as August 18, and hence will deploy online courses at this stage, Wong stated.
For non-tertiary institutions, “I believe the schools, teachers, students and their parents already acquired a particular experience [of online classes] last year,” Wong opined.
“We already developed an online platform previously [last year]. For the worst scenario, we can carry out online classes,” he stated.
Wong was asked by the media again whether the DSEDJ should be held accountable for the four confirmed cases in Macau. He reiterated that the DSEDJ had issued a travel advisory to all schools to avoid traveling to medium and high-risk areas in China on June 8.
Complaints from red & yellow code zones
Some people currently being quarantined in red code zone have complained that the government’s arrangements were confusing and not thoughtful enough.
Apart from the three meals offered every day, some living in red zones said they are being kept in the dark about the arrangement of Covid-19 tests, including when they will be conducted.
They attempted to seek more information through the official phone line but found it was jammed. They also complained that it is not considerate to only allow their relatives and friends to deliver daily necessities or food to them from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m., as it is during standard office hours.
Red code zone is now imposed on the Mei Lin Building, home to a family of four, and three adjacent residential buildings — a grocery store where the mother of worked, nearby shops, and one adjacent residential building.
Those in the yellow code zone are asked to undergo NAT at Kiang Wu Hospital within 24 hours of the regional lockdown and are required to closely monitor their health for at least 14 days.
However, some living in the yellow code zone said that they rarely receive information from the government about movement guidelines.
They also think it is contradictory for the government to ask them to self-monitor their health, yet require them to take a NAT at Kiang Wu Hospital which was full of crowds.
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