HKSAR Chief Executive Carrie Lam welcomes a team of mainland TCM experts on March 29, 2022. Photo:Takungwenwei

A team of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) experts from the mainland arrived in Hong Kong on Tuesday in response to a request by the government of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR). The team will visit makeshift hospitals and care homes for the elderly to advise on epidemic prevention and plan treatments with local experts.

HKSAR Chief Executive Carrie Lam Lam and the Secretary for Food and Health Chan Siu-chee welcomed the seven-member team, which is led by Tong Xiaolin, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and head of the expert committee on TCM Disease Prevention and Control.

There were 7,685 local infections reported in Hong Kong on Monday, a decline in the number of daily infections from the past four days. A total of 168 new deaths were reported on the same day, bringing the total number of deaths this year to 7,207, according to statistics from News.gov.hk.

Symptoms of the Omicron variant are more pronounced in the upper respiratory tract, including cough, sore throat and phlegm, which can be treated with TCM, Tong noted.

Besides, "the epidemic in Hong Kong is mainly affecting the elderly, including severe illness and a high mortality rate," said Tong, noting that TCM is effective and helpful in treating the underlying diseases of elderly patients.

Lam said that TCM has been effective in reducing severe cases and deaths, and its application has played an important role in the fight against COVID-19.

As many people in Hong Kong, including the elderly, have recovered from COVID-19, TCM can provide further assistance in terms of rehabilitation and recovery. "The experts have been asked to visit care homes for the elderly if time allows to make further recommendations on TCM treatment," said Lam.

Lam also hopes that the mainland experts will bring new knowledge and further promote the development of TCM in Hong Kong through their visits.

Apart from providing advice on the fight against COVID-19 by using TCM, the team will also arrange meetings with local TCM experts to exchange views on the epidemic prevention and control.

Global Times