Beijing is making preparations to tackle possible public health
incidents during the 2008 Olympic Games, particularly in regard to
epidemic outbreaks.
Public health safety was a crucial precondition and guarantee of
a successful international sports event such as the Olympics, said
Wang Yu, director of Chinese Center for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC).
An inadequate emergency response to major public health
incidents prior to or during the event could mar the games, he
said.
China has established a nationwide electronic network for
reporting epidemics, operated by at least 207,000 CDC staff, the
largest of its kind in the world, Wang told a workshop on public
health safety and emergency response for the Beijing Olympic
Games.
By the end of last year, 100 percent of local CDCs and 93
percent of health institutes above county level had realized direct
reporting of infectious disease and public health emergencies
through the network.
"However, China is still inexperienced in providing public
health services and disease prevention and control for major
international events, which needs improving," Wang said.
The influx of visitors in 2008 would bring enormous challenges
to daily surveillance and reporting mechanisms regarding
infectious, chemical, environmental and non-communicable diseases,
said Henk Bekedam, World Health Organization Representative in
China.
"To tackle any possible public health accidents, a strong
surveillance system must be in place as soon as possible, not only
focusing on the three-week long Olympic Games, but also the months
before," Bekedam said.
Wang Yu said the goal was to provide a sensitive, high-coverage
surveillance network before and during the 2008 Olympic Games,
which is able to detect epidemic outbreaks and launch immediate
emergency measures.
Beijing health authorities pledged at the workshop that 140
ambulances would attend Games venues every day.
"During the Games, we will take every measure to ensure no
outbreak or spread of illness, to control individual and
newly-imported cases, to ensure no food or drinking water poisoning
incidents in the Olympic Village, sports facilities, hotels and
restaurants," said Liang Wannian, deputy head of the Beijing
Municipal Health Bureau.
The Organizing Committee of Beijing Olympic Games has already
selected farming and breeding bases to provide food for athletes,
officials and visitors, according to officials with the organizing
committee.
Strict tests and experiments will be carried out on livestock
and vegetables to ensure athletes and visitors are offered the
highest quality food available.
Risk assessments of major infectious diseases and public health
safety for the Games in 2008 are underway, which cover
environmental hygiene, drinking water safety and occupational
hazards.
Meanwhile, health workers will undergo training and exercises in
dealing with public health incidents, said Liang, adding public
health and hygiene campaigns would operate in the run-up to the
Olympics.
(Xinhua News Agency May 19, 2006)