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| WHO lifts SARS advisory against Beijing |
| CCTV.COM 2003-06-25 08:06:31 |
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Beijing is no longer on the World Health Organization's list of SARS－infected areas. The Chinese capital is also no longer the subject of a WHO travel advisory. They're developments described Tuesday in Beijing by one WHO official as "milestones" in the global fight against SARS.
This is the turning point in Beijing's four－month campaign against the mysterious virus, SARS.
"WHO is announcing that we lift travel advisory against Beijing..." announced Shigeru Omi, WHO Regional Director for the Western Pacific.
Omi says the decision to lift the advisory is based on a number of criteria including the number of existing SARS cases, surveillance measures and the effectiveness of prevention measures. He says the travel risk to Beijing is now minimal.
At the same time, the WHO has also taken Beijing off its list of areas with recent local transmission of SARS. More than 20 days have passed since the city's last case was isolated － a timeframe that's twice as long as the maximum incubation period for SARS.
The decisions are a relief to a city that's been one of the frontlines against the disease. At the peak of the epidemic, more than a hundred new cases were reported every day. The city has recorded more than two and a half thousand cases and 191 deaths. The virus began to subside in mid－May and now there's just 40 or so patients receiving medical treatment.
The lifting of travel ban and announcement that Beijing will no longer be designated as SARS affected area marks a milestone in China's, as well as the global fight against SARS. But, officials say they will keep a high level of vigilance to make sure there will be no rebound of the virus when the seasonal conditions become favorable again.
Chinese Vice Minister of Health Gao Qiang said, "We are well aware that the lifting of the advisory doesn't mean the end of the battle against SARS. We must continue to study the disease's make－up as well develop better treatment and a vaccine. We must also take precautions against a rebound in the virus."
The Vice Minister admits the crisis exposed many a shortcomings in China's health system and he promises these problems will be addressed. There will be improvements to the public health emergency response system and the way diseases are monitored, particularly in rural areas.
Beijing is already getting back to normal and businesses affected by SARS are starting to recover. But it will be much longer before we have learned all the lessons we can from the disease.
WHO criteria for removal of SARS travel advisory:
---Fewer than 60 SARS patients in hospital;
---Fewer than 5 new infected cases each day for 5 consecutive days;
---The route of transmission can be traced for all patients in the region;
---No recent outward transmission cases;
WHO criteria for removal from the list of places with recent transmission of the disease:
---No new local cases with recent transmissions for 20 consecutive days, being double the incubation period of the virus.
Specail report: Combatting SARS
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Editor: Xiao Wei CCTV.com
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