A plastic surgeon working at the public Conde de São Januário Hospital Centre failed to report to his superior that he had visited Qingdao before returning to work in Macau, and continued to carry out his clinical work at the hospital, the Health Bureau (SSM) announced in a statement last night.
While the Chinese-language statement did not mention the doctor’s gender, the Portuguese-language statement said that he’s male.
The statement underlined that the doctor has tested negative for COVID-19 twice so that there is a low possibility that the patients and colleagues who have been in touch with him have been infected with the novel coronavirus disease.
The statement said that Health Bureau officials held a meeting yesterday where they discussed how to handle the doctor’s case.
According to the statement, the plastic surgeon visited Qingdao between September 25 and October 5, before returning to work in Macau the next day. The statement pointed out that the Health Bureau imposed its 14-day quarantine for arrivals from Qingdao last Tuesday due to the COVID-19 epidemic situation there – all those who have been in the north-eastern port city within the 14 days prior to their entry into Macau must undergo 14 days of quarantine and medical observation at one of the government’s “quarantine hotels”.
The statement said that the Macau Health Code of those who have been in Qingdao within the past 14 days but had already entered Macau before last Tuesday’s quarantine measure is indicating yellow.
Yellow Macau Health Code rules
The statement pointed out that those with a yellow Macau Health Code are required to practise 14 days of “self-health management” in line with the Health Bureau’s guidelines.
The statement said that according to the guidelines, the plastic surgeon was required to tell his superior about his travel history, in which case the superior would have arranged for him to work in a way that his contact with others would be kept at a minimum.
However, the plastic surgeon failed to report his travel history to his superior after returning from the northern port city and continued to carry out his clinical work, the statement said, adding that the doctor also failed to present his Macau Health Code when arriving at work so that the Health Bureau did not discover that his Macau Health Code was indicating yellow during the period.
The statement pointed out that the plastic surgeon had already left Qingdao for 14 days on Monday, adding that he has not come down with any COVID-19 symptoms after returning from the port city in Shandong province.
According to the statement, the Health Bureau has confirmed that the plastic surgeon has not been infected with the novel coronavirus disease after he has tested negative for COVID-19 twice in both nucleic acid tests (NATs) and antibody tests. Therefore, the bureau has concluded that the patients and colleagues who have been in touch with the doctor have a low possibility of having been infected with the disease, the statement said.
The statement said that the Health Bureau has ordered the public Conde de São Januário Hospital Centre to review the incident. The public hospital has suspended the plastic surgeon for seven days as a precautionary measure, and launched an investigation into his conduct, the statement said.
According to the statement, the Health Bureau has carried out nucleic acid tests on the patients and colleagues who have been in touch with the plastic surgeon. The statement did not mention their test results.
The statement also said that the Health Bureau has ordered senior officials to ensure that their subordinates report their travel history, and also to ensure the strict implementation of the measure according to which all staff members must present their Macau Health Code when arriving at work.
The statement said that senior officials should properly arrange for their subordinates with a yellow Macau Health Code to work in a way that their contact with others will be kept at a minimum.
This photo taken early this year shows residents walking outside the public Conde de São Januário Hospital Centre. Photo: Tony Wong
