The Chinese Health Ministry recently issued a notice to require
health departments of all levels to enhance supervision of
non-state-owned clinics to prevent the recurrence of SARS.
The ministry said in a circular issued on Friday that a
supervision team from the State Council had discovered that many
medical staff of local private clinics were not well-trained, which
posed a danger to the prevention of SARS (severe acute respiratory
syndrome).
The ministry asked local health departments to check out all
non-state-owned clinics in their precinct, help train medical staff
and close illegal ones.
All the private clinics should record fever patients, transfer
those who couldn't be excluded as SARS patients to hospitals with
fever clinics and report to the local disease prevention and
control center immediately, said the ministry.
Those who fail to transfer patients and thus cause the outbreak
and spread of SARS or cause severe health damage to the public
would be punished according to the law, the circular said.
The ministry also required hospitals to strictly implement
relevant SARS technical guides to secure the protection of medical
staff working in fever clinics.
(Xinhua News Agency December 6, 2003)