The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority:

     The spokesperson for Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH) gave the following update today (July 8) regarding patients confirmed to be Candida auris and Vancomycin Resistant Enterococci (VRE) carriers:  
 
     An 84-year-old female patient in a surgical ward of PMH was confirmed to carry Candida auris on July 4, without symptoms of infection. In accordance with the prevailing guidelines, the hospital has conducted contact tracing for patients who have had close contact with the index patient. One more 85-year-old female patient who stayed in the same ward was confirmed to be a Candida auris carrier without symptoms of infection. Both patients are now being treated under isolation. The 84-year-old patient is in stable condition, while the 85-year-old patient is in critical condition due to her underlying illness.
 
     In addition, regarding an earlier announcement on a cluster of patients confirmed to be carriers of VRE, PMH has conducted contact tracing and identified one more 72-year-old male patient as a VRE carrier without symptoms of infection. The patient is being treated under isolation with stable condition.
 
     In accordance with the prevailing guidelines, the hospital has adopted the following enhanced infection control measures:
 
1. Thorough cleaning and disinfection of the wards concerned;
2. Enhanced patient and environmental screening procedures; and
3. Applied stringent contact precautions and enhanced hand hygiene of staff and patients.
 
     The hospital will continue to closely monitor the situation of the patients. The cases have been reported to the Hospital Authority Head Office and the Centre for Health Protection for necessary follow-up.

Ends/Thursday, July 8, 2021
Issued at HKT 19:15

NNNN