Page 13 - 香港嘉諾撒學校（校訊）2019-2020

A Hopeful Encounter againt COVID-19

MessageS from our Alumnus

Dr. Tom Wai-Hin Chung

Honorary Clinical Tutor, Department of Microbiology,
Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, China

As we step into the unpredictable Summer season in Hong Kong (HK), we are slowly recovering from
the traumatic and punishing experiences over the past twelve months. Since June 2019, the people of HK
has been torn apart by their differences in political ideologies and socio-philosophical disputes on freedom
and liberty. While these polarizing opinions remain unsettled, our attentions and efforts were focused on
protecting this city against the unrelenting spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
COVID-19 is caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The
viral genome of this novel coronavirus closely resembles that of SARS-CoV, which resulted in the deadly and terrifying
outbreak in HK during 2003; the same year that I graduated from Canossa. Sixteen years have passed since the last major
outbreak in HK. In this time, I have completed my medical education from the University of Hong Kong (HKU), and joined
the Department of Microbiology, under the tutelage of Professor Kwok-Yung Yuen. As a microbiologist-in-training, I
volunteered in February 2020 to join the isolation team of Queen Mary Hospital (QMH) to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.
The decision to join the isolation (‘dirty’) ward did not stem from any glorified sense of duty, and this choice was
disputed within my department. However, my interest had always been in virology, and COVID-19 presented itself as a
unique opportunity to learn about SARS-CoV-2 first-hand. Overall, based on our experiences of 2003 SARS-CoV and the
existing literatures on coronavirus, I felt that the risk of frontline service was minimal. Importantly, this decision was fully
supported by my family and loved ones.
In the beginning of the outbreak, all confirmed COVID-19 cases were clustered at Princess Margret Hospital (PMH),
which aimed to focus and streamline resources. However, as the demand for isolation facilities exceeded the maximum
capacity of PMH, the rest of the public hospitals were required to share the disease burden and patient load. Soon we were
pushed to our limits.
In mid-February 2020, around the time of the initiation of border restrictions, there were only a handful of COVID-19
patients in QMH. The workload was manageable, which was an important opportunity for me to study these patients
closely and conduct clinical research against SARS-CoV-2. It was also the perfect time for me to ease myself into this high-
stress environment. After all, the procedure of donning (wearing) and doffing (removing) of the personal protective
equipment (PPE) require diligent practice and discipline. I needed the practice urgently.
I officially started my isolation duty on a bright Sunday morning. Before attending my first patient, the nurses
suggested for me to apply a layer of soap water onto the inside of the face shield to prevent the build-up of fog. I did
not believe their advice and ended up being completely blinded by the haze of my own breathing. I was humbled by this
incident and grateful to learn from our nursing staff. Wisdom stems from experience. As the isolation capacity of QMH
expanded in keeping with the growing pandemic, I advised all isolation wards to be equipped with anti-fog or soap water
spray against this nuisance.
Due to the uncertain nature of COVID-19, majority of patient care was dedicated to detailed and careful counselling.
There were a lot of unknowns surround the disease, even though majority of patients suffered from mild illnesses only.
Nonetheless, there were no proven-effective treatments against this emerging pathogen. Fear was expected.
As the number of patients increased, our experience against this novel coronavirus also grew with time. Throughout
the entire period of my isolation duties, I was deeply engrossed with the HKU-led randomised controlled trial, which
tested a combination of drugs against SARS-CoV-2. My day-to-day interactions with all the patients taught me the effects
and side-effects of these regimens. I was intimately acquainted with their clinical progress. Crucially, with the enormous
resources of HKU and the incredible dedication of the laboratory research team, I was able to monitor their virologic
response in real-time. Therefore, laboratory information was translated directly to the bedside, which is a vital function of
clinical microbiology.
This experience also allowed me to conduct research into the neurological effects of SARS-CoV-2 infection. We
studied a subset of patients who complained of smell loss due to COVID-19 and confirmed that olfactory dysfunction is an
important clinical symptom of COVID-19.
Overall, this was an incredibly fulfilling experience for me personally, as a doctor and as a fellow human being. In
the five weeks that I served in the isolation wards against COVID-19, I took responsibility to care for many families, as well
as individuals of many walks of life. I was privileged to have worked with an incredible group of frontline staff to provide
care for our patients. I am grateful to our patients for their patience and understanding. It was profoundly gratifying to see
them go home to their families after an arduous journey of isolation. I am most thankful to see that they had made a full
recovery during their follow-up after hospital discharge.

13