Home quarantine challenges families

A 78-year-old surnamed Mui and his wife, Hui, 73, felt a huge sense of relief when their 14-day home quarantine ended on Feb 27. Being stuck at home, they felt like prisoners. Moreover, during the whole time, they felt guilty for causing inconvenience to people who helped them during their ordeal.

The couple had visited relatives in Taishan, a city in southern Guangdong province. When they got back in Hong Kong on Feb 13, they were told they could not step out of their 20-square-meter apartment until they finished their quarantine.

The Hong Kong government announced a mandatory 14-day self-isolation for all arrivals from the Chinese mainland in early February. That was among the emergency measures enacted to curb the coronavirus outbreak, whose epicenter is on the mainland.

They might otherwise have stayed on the mainland, but decided to return to Hong Kong to replenish Hui's nearly exhausted supply of medications she needs to treat diabetes.

The couple said they submitted to the "necessary" and "acceptable" quarantine, and they did go through challenges and "awkward moments" during their confinement.

Smart wristbands

The couple were required to wear smart wristbands, 24 hours a day, so the government could monitor them and ensure they abided by the self-isolation. The wristbands send an alarm signal if the person steps out of the home door. Government officers set two smartphones in their home to work with the wristbands, as part of the monitoring system.

Elderly people living without smartphones and internet service often find high-tech gadgetry daunting and inconvenient.

On the very next day, after the monitors were set in place, Hui was alarmed by a call from the Department of Health informing her that an alert sent from the smartphone showed she had left her apartment and violated the quarantine.

"I was a bit confused and in panic," said Hui, who declared she had complied with the quarantine in full.

"It is a big thing. Anyone breaches the order faces a fine of up HK$25,000 ($3,200) and six months' imprisonment," she said.

After calming down, Hui thought she might have pressed a button on the smartphone and cut off the signal between the wristband and the phone. Neither she nor her husband had any idea of how to rectify the devices.

Hui explained the situation to the government officer on the phone and reconnected her wristband and the smartphone, step by step, according to the officer's instructions.

"After that, we tried to avoid touching the phones for fear something would go wrong again," Mui said.