Press Releases
Acting SFH on condition of Hong Kong tour member in Manila
Following is the transcript of remarks (English portion) made by the Acting
Secretary for Food and Health, Professor Gabriel Leung, and the Director
(Quality and Safety) of the Hospital Authority, Dr Leung Pak-yin, on the
condition of Hong Kong tour member Mr Jason Leung, who was injured in the
Philippines hostage incident and is still in Manila, at a media session at
the ground floor lobby, West Wing, Central Government Offices today (August
26):
Acting Secretary for Food and Health: As I have tried to explain last
evening, the condition of Jason (Leung) has improved a little this morning
after some adjustments to his medication last night by Dr Dawson Fong in
consultation with the local medical team. His Glasgow Coma Scale score last
night was 5, and it has improved slightly to 7 this morning. However, Dr
Fong reminded me that in these situations, it is not unusual or uncommon for
there to be fluctuations in the patient's clinical status throughout the
day, and in fact it could change quite quickly one way or another. While we
remain optimistic, I think it should be guarded optimism. Having weighed the
pros and cons of transporting Jason back to Hong Kong for medical treatment
versus staying in the Philippines, the professional expert opinion of Dr
Fong and his colleagues in Manila is such that the benefits would far
outweigh the risks, and therefore in consultation with Mrs Leung, his
mother, and having sought her agreement, in fact she asked and requested the
Government to arrange for Jason's transfer back to Hong Kong as soon as
possible. That is why we have this decision and indeed we are planning for
Jason to be back here towards sometime this evening.
Reporter: (on risk of transferring the patient)
Director (Quality and Safety) of the Hospital Authority: As mentioned by
Professor Leung, there are of course certain risks of transporting a
severely ill patient. The situation can fluctuate. Upon his coming back, we
will actually organise a multi-mission team at Tuen Mun Hospital. Because Dr
Fong is a very experienced neurosurgeon, when Jason actually comes back, we
need to do further assessment and some diagnostic tests to see whether there
are any other bone fragments remaining. The surgery will mainly focus on
whether any blood remains there or any other bone fragments are there, and
early removal will be beneficial for early recovery.
(Please also refer to the
Chinese portion of the transcript)
Ends/Thursday, August 26, 2010
Issued at HKT 15:23
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