Hong Kong can learn from Singapore by buying flu vaccines for 2 hemispheres, expert says
- Professor David Hui says shots designed for northern and southern hemispheres will bolster protection if city’s flu seasons run year-round
David Hui Shu-cheong, a professor of respiratory medicine at the Chinese University of Hong Kong and a member of the government’s Scientific Committee on Vaccine Preventable Diseases, said on Saturday the move could be needed to combat the changing pattern of influenza seasons after the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Before the pandemic, we would have a huge outbreak from January to March and a smaller outbreak from July to September,” he told a radio show. “As many people are still wearing masks, the possibility of having a major outbreak is not high. The outbreaks may come in a continuous and small-scale manner.”
Hui said Singapore authorities acquired vaccines designed for the northern hemisphere in the fourth quarter and southern hemisphere shots in the second quarter, as the city state’s flu seasons ran throughout the year.
“If Hong Kong’s flu outbreak pattern consistently follows the year-round pattern in Singapore, we cannot rule out the possibility that we may need to learn from Singapore’s model and procure vaccines designed for both hemispheres,” he said.
Hong Kong currently only uses those for the northern hemisphere.
