Experts from the World Health Organization (WHO) have praised local cooperation during their tour to China's north province of Shanxi, inspecting severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) prevention and treatment work.
The joint task force formed of Chinese and WHO experts arrived in Shanxi on June 17, four days after the WHO lifted the travel advisory to the province.
C.K.Lee, one of the WHO experts, told the reporters that he appreciated the information shared by his Chinese colleagues.
Lee said local Chinese medical experts had acquired lots of first-hand knowledge on SARS, which would be pivotal for the study of the contagious disease.
"I have learned so much important information, and so many thanks to your commitment to free sharing of information," Lee told his local Chinese colleagues.
Shawn Mcmahon and Nobuyuki Mishima, also WHO experts and members of the joint task force, have visited hospitals in Shanxi's capital city Taiyuan and established personal contact with doctors and nurses infected with SARS or who worked with SARS patients but were not infected.
The WHO experts had access to the information they required andplaces they wanted to visit, said Xu Ke, head of the joint task force, stressing that local authorities contributed much valuable information.
Shanxi has reported 448 probable cases of SARS so far and is one of the hardest-hit regions in China.
(Xinhua News Agency June 23, 2003)
