The Beijing Health Department launched an alarm system Friday, helping hospitals to prevent the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) this winter and the coming spring.

Major hospitals should each organize a special team with respiratory and epidemics experts to cope with unidentified pneumonia, said Jin Dapeng, director of the Beijing Municipal Health Bureau.

Sixty-one hospitals have been assigned to detect SARS evidences and collect saliva and blood samples of any patient suffering from unidentified pneumonia. The samples should be sent to the Beijing Disease Prevention and Control Center within 12 hours, Jin said.

All hospitals should report to the higher institution when they detect the following signs: three or more unidentified pneumonia cases in one hospital; one unidentified pneumonia case with any medical workers in respiratory departments; two unidentified pneumonia cases with medical workers, patients or visitors; one death from unidentified pneumonia in hospital; one unidentified pneumonia case with medical workers at SARS labs.

SARS, the flu-like disease, killed nearly 800 people worldwide last year.

(Xinhua News Agency January 2, 2005)