Vaccinations are the most protective way to prevent serious flu complications, and the Government and schools in Hong Kong share the same mission of ensuring children receive the necessary protection in the winter influenza season.
 
Secretary for Health Prof Lo Chung-mau made the statement today after the Centre for Health Protection received a notification yesterday about a severe paediatric case of co-infection with influenza A and invasive pneumococcal disease in a young child who had yet to receive the seasonal influenza vaccination.
 
Prof Lo said: “While we have stepped into 2025 for just 11 days, and the flu season has just started, we have already had one kid, a four-year-old kid who had not received influenza vaccination while the school has not offered the outreach vaccination programme, suffer severe flu complications; and has now been hospitalised in the Intensive Care Unit.”
 
He also noted that in addition to the Department of Health repeatedly reminding every school to join the outreach vaccination programme arranged for them in an effort to help them prepare for the flu season, it also listed out all the schools, in November, that had not joined the outreach programme.
 
“If the parents are not aware that their schools are not offering the programme, they would not be aware of the fact that they would need to bring their kids to private clinics, or whatever facilities, to arrange vaccinations for their own kid(s), so this is very important that I do think that we have the responsibility to inform the public, especially the parents. I do feel that it is not a matter of affecting the reputation of certain schools, I think this is the fact,” Prof Lo pointed out.
 
“We all have the same mission - that is to protect our kids, especially in this winter influenza season,” he added.