Health, Safety and Environment Committee
Subsite Background

Update on Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Preventive Measures

NOTICE

 

Ref. : HSE0055/22-23
To : All Staff & Students
From : Prof Jonathan FONG 
Chairman, Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) Committee
Date : 9 December 2022

 

Dear Colleagues and Students,

 

In view of the latest epidemic trend, the Government announced to maintain the existing social distancing measures. Please stay aware of personal hygiene and the health advice / measures announced by the HKSAR Government as below.

 

 

1. Extension of Social Distancing Measures

The Government maintained the existing social distancing measures and simultaneously strictly implement the various anti-epidemic measures including compulsory testing, quarantine/isolation, social distancing and Vaccine Pass (including Red Code and Amber Code).

The mandatory mask-wearing requirement still prevails under the Prevention and Control of Disease (Wearing of Mask) Regulation (Cap. 599I). Also, unless exempted, group gatherings of more than 12 persons in public places remains prohibited.

For details, please refer to:

 

 

2.  Updated Vaccine Booking Set

Persons aged 18 or above may make appointments for receiving the BioNTech bivalent vaccine as the third dose (or the second dose for recovered persons).

Starting from December 16, for persons aged 18 or above and who had received four doses (or recovered adults who had received the third dose and had received the last dose or recovered for more than six months), they may make appointments for receiving the fifth dose (or the fourth dose for recovered persons) for better protection. Relevant persons may choose to receive the Sinovac, the BioNTech ancestral strain vaccine or the BioNTech bivalent vaccine.

For details, please refer to

 

 

3.  Adjustment on the Period of Isolation and Quarantine and the Testing Arrangement

Based on the principle of proper management of infection risk and the epidemic development, the Government announced that the period of both the isolation order for COVID-19 patients and quarantine order for close contacts will be shortened by two days.

In principle, the isolation period for infected persons is still 14 days. If people infected with the virus obtain negative rapid antigen test (RAT) results on Day 4 and Day 5 after testing positive, they may be discharged from isolation after reporting the test result on Day 5. If they obtain one positive RAT result on any of these two days, they are required to take RATs and obtain negative results on any two subsequent consecutive days during the isolation period and report the testing results to be discharged from isolation.

Close contacts of COVID-19 patients may be discharged from quarantine on Day 5 if they obtain negative daily RAT results.

The five-day rule also applies to inbound travellers, but they will still need to undergo a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test after arrival. All inbound travellers arriving in Hong Kong on December 2 and any date thereafter are only required to undergo RATs daily until Day 5 after their arrival in Hong Kong. The existing "test-and-go" arrangements upon arrival at the airport and nucleic acid test on Day 2 remain unchanged.

For details, please refer to

 

 

4. Health Advice

To lower infection risk, all members of the Lingnan community are always advised to maintain strict personal and environmental hygiene, which is the key to personal protection against infection and prevention of the spread of the disease in the community. Special attention to the following highlights is required:

  • The HSEC has revised the COVID-19 related guidelines on HSEC website COVID-19 - Communicable Diseases - HSE Committee, Lingnan University (ln.edu.hk)
  • All members shall always wear masks on campus including indoor and outdoor settings. It is important to wear a mask properly, including hand hygiene before wearing and after removing a mask.  All members shall note the followings when wearing a mask:

    1. Choose the appropriate mask size to completely cover your nose, mouth and chin without gaps.

    2. Attain good seal with the face by minimizing air leak from edges.

    3. Masks with exhalation valve or vents which allow exhaled air to escape should not be used since exhaled air is unfiltered and may pose a risk to surrounding people if the wearer is infected with COVID-19 or other respiratory infectious diseases.

    For details, please refer to the Supplementary Note on Use Mask Properly at https://www.chp.gov.hk/files/pdf/supplementary_note_on_use_mask_properly_choose_the_right_surgical_mask_eng.pdf
  • All members shall check their body temperature before returning to campus and are advised to take RAT on a regular basis. Members can also conduct free nucleic acid test at Community Testing Centres and mobile specimen collection station (Community Testing Centres). All individuals who have tested positive by RAT shall truthfully register their results on the "Declaration System for individuals tested positive for COVID-19 using Rapid Antigen Test" (the Declaration System) of the Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health as soon as possible.
  • If you have any symptoms of COVID-19, such as fever, respiratory symptoms or sudden loss of taste or smell, you should seek medical advice promptly and not return to campus for classes or work.
  • Perform hand hygiene properly. It is advised to clean hands with liquid soap and water when hands are visibly dirty or visibly soiled with blood and body fluid, after using the toilet. When hands are not visibly soiled, hand hygiene with 70–80% alcohol-based handrub is also an effective alternative.
  • As lavatories are shared for use in hostel blocks and on campus, all users are reminded to be considerate and keep the facilities clean after use.
  • Under Cap.599I, any person who is entering or present in a public place cannot take off their mask for smoking. The scope of reasonable excuses for taking-off mask under Cap.599I does not include smoking. Smokers are more likely to touch their mask and face with their hands during smoking, leading to increased chance of infection. Besides, smoking damages lungs and weakens immunity. Smokers who have contracted COVID-19 are more likely to develop severe complications. We appeal to all members to avoid smoking in public places, including along the bridge connecting Main Campus and SEK Campus and Pan Sutong Sports Ground, and to quit smoking whenever possible. For information on smoking and COVID-19, please visit the website of the Tobacco and Alcohol Control Office or dial Quit line 1833 183.

 

 

 

Resource Corner

For information on COVID-19, please refer to the following links:

  1. HKSAR’s Thematic webpage on COVID-19: https://www.coronavirus.gov.hk/
  2. Webpage of Health, Safety and Environment Committee: https://www.ln.edu.hk/hse

  3. Tested positive or preliminary positive by RAT: https://www.chp.gov.hk/ratp

  4. Tested positive or preliminary positive by Nucleic Acid Test: https://www.chp.gov.hk/cdpi

 

 

 

If you are confirmed as infected or under compulsory quarantine, please notify your department / office or any of the following teams as soon as possible:

 

During Office Hours 
COFMD (O&M) – Campus Support Office 2616-7134
Human Resources Office 2616-8962
Office of Student Affairs 2616-7309
During Non-Office Hours 
Security Control (24-hour) 2616-8000

 

Thank you for your kind attention.

 

Best Regards,

Jonathan FONG
Chairman, Health, Safety and Environment Committee