The multi-faceted goals of the Olympic Health and Emergency System in the Olympic City - using the recent earthquake in Wenchuan as its emergency medical template - has set as its goals nothing less than protecting athletes, coaches, official and spectators from serious infectious diseases during the Olympic Games. Additionally this vast, multi-layered emergency system seeks to ensure that every patient receive timely, effective first aid and medical services.

Staffing for the enormity of the Olympic Games, Beijing municipality has in place the following medical services:

? 24 disease prevention and control institutions;

? 22 sanitary supervision institutions;

? An fully equipped emergency team of 626 disease control staff, and

? 40 emergency squads consisting of 200 sanitary supervision staff

Hospitals above third class and intestine clinics of 335 hospitals will immediately report any outbreak of any potential infectious disease through a close-knitted sanitary supervision network of three layers which cover Beijing municipality and integrated urban and rural areas.

By cooperating with the World Health Organization and seven neighboring provinces, autonomous areas and cities, Beijing municipality has established joint defense and joint control mechanism for significant infectious diseases.

Foodstuff contamination supervision networks have been established in eight Olympic related urban areas and drinking water contamination supervision networks have been formed in 18 districts and counties. There is also a global atmosphere radionuclide examination station and an inert gases station established at the Beijing Municipal Disease Control Center.

The two stations operate around the clock to supervise the occurrence of nuclear and radiation accidents or terrorism attacks for Beijing municipality, the nation and even neighboring countries.

It is essential to provide safe, standardized, fast medical services with the assistance of medical teams and hospitals designated by the Beijing Olympic Committee, and clinics in the Olympic Village; and to ensure the security of Olympic stadiums and public health by giving public health protection the first priority; to take timely actions to tackle public emergencies.

To do so, the Olympic Health and Emergency System has established:

? 421 public sanitary safeguard personnel;

? 63 sanitary supervision and safeguard vehicles and 50 sanitary epidemic prevention vehicles assigned to Olympic venues;

? 280 Olympic catering units;

? 31 competition revenues and 120 Olympic contracted hotels have established sanitary supervision and alarm systems aiming to trace food borne pathogens occurred in Olympic catering industry and guarantee the safety of public areas and drinking water, and

? Infectious disease symptoms supervision system established in core Olympic areas.

Beijing municipality has enhanced preparations for the prevention and control of significant infectious diseases by preparing the following:

? Equipped black plague supervision apparatus and equipment;

? A reagent, individual prevention and protection articles and negative pressure inspection vehicle, and

? Ameliorated network laboratories located in Beijing, which can examine 10 intense pathogen and biological toxin such as black plague and anthrax in a quick manner and provide technical support for effectively responding to biological terrorism accidents.