1. Future trajectory of respiratory infections following the COVID-19 pandemic in Hong Kong.
- Author
-
Cheng, Weibin, Zhou, Hanchu, Ye, Yang, Chen, Yifan, Jing, Fengshi, Cao, Zhidong, Zeng, Daniel Dajun, and Zhang, Qingpeng
- Subjects
COVID-19 pandemic ,RESPIRATORY infections ,HOSPITAL beds ,HOSPITAL supplies ,RESPIRATORY diseases - Abstract
The accumulation of susceptible populations for respiratory infectious diseases (RIDs) when COVID-19-targeted non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) were in place might pose a greater risk of future RID outbreaks. We examined the timing and magnitude of RID resurgence after lifting COVID-19-targeted NPIs and assessed the burdens on the health system. We proposed the Threshold-based Control Method (TCM) to identify data-driven solutions to maintain the resilience of the health system by re-introducing NPIs when the number of severe infections reaches a threshold. There will be outbreaks of all RIDs with staggered peak times after lifting COVID-19-targeted NPIs. Such a large-scale resurgence of RID patients will impose a significant risk of overwhelming the health system. With a strict NPI strategy, a TCM-initiated threshold of 600 severe infections can ensure a sufficient supply of hospital beds for all hospitalized severely infected patients. The proposed TCM identifies effective dynamic NPIs, which facilitate future NPI relaxation policymaking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2023
- Full Text
- View/download PDF