Coronavirus: Hong Kong doctor recalls Covid-19 battle on the front line, tears of despair at lack of prompt treatment for patients

Despite having worked on the front line for more than three decades, Dr Ho Hiu-fai recalled how helpless he and his colleagues felt when they saw how Hong Kong’s fifth Covid-19 wave left hospitals overwhelmed with patients who were unable to receive immediate help.

The sense of helplessness became so strong that Ho, a consultant in the accident and emergency department of Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) in Yau Ma Tei, broke down in tears during a meeting on March 9 when he briefed staff on the arrangements for the hospital’s conversion to a designated Covid-19 facility.