To assist social service facilities in strengthening the prevention and control of COVID-19 and preparing for the resumption of operation, the Social Welfare Bureau (IAS) has recently issued a number of guidelines on epidemic prevention to all social service facilities. All facilities are required to strictly implement the guidelines, especially to make proper contingency plan and arrangements in key areas such as environmental hygiene, staff management, facility operation, service arrangements and emergency response.

To resume operation on October 4, all social service facilities, especially subsidized nurseries, day care centres for the elderly and rehabilitation facilities for the disabled, have been doing preparatory work since October 2, including cleaning the environment, disinfecting equipment, implementing various preventive and control measures, contacting families to understand the health conditions of service users, and reminding staff and service users to pay attention to the epidemic prevention requirements of the facilities and fulfil the requirements to safeguard personal and public health.

At the stage of regular prevention against the pandemic, the IAS and social service facilities have established regular mechanisms and contingency plans to implement various epidemic prevention requirements in daily operations. In view of the recent wave of cases, the IAS again urges social service facilities to raise their awareness of epidemic prevention and review and strengthen their relevant measures to protect the safety and health of service users and staff.