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WHO gets access to two military hospitals in Beijing
BEIJING (AFP) World Health Organization experts
investigating SARS have been given access to two
military hospitals where reports have said a large
number of patients with the disease are being treated,
a spokesman said.
"Two military hospitals were visited yesterday," WHO
spokesman Jim Radamaekers told AFP. "We don't have any
further details at the moment."
The WHO had complained that authorities were not
allowing a visit to the hospitals "which have been the
focus of numerous rumours", saying "WHO staff in
Beijing have expressed particular concern about the
official response to rumours".
Beijing has officially reported 37 cases of Severe
Acute Respiratory Syndrome, including four deaths,
although doctors and nurses have spoken of a
substantially higher infection and death rate,
particularly in military hospitals.
A WHO team of experts is conducting a week-long probe
in Beijing in an effort to understand how health
officials are coping with the epidemic.
They are due to brief the press later Wednesday.
Chinese state media reported late Tuesday that WHO
team leader James Maguire had praised Beijing's
cooperation.
"We've seen a tremendous amount of effort by Beijing
over a very short period of time," Maguire said,
according to the Xinhua news agency.
He said his team had visited nine hospitals, the
Beijing Disease Control Center and the Beijing
Municipal Bureau of Health in recent days, the report
added.
On Wednesday the WHO said Chinese figures overall
showed one more person had died of SARS and 13 new
cases have been recorded.
The death was reported in southern China's Guangdong
province which also recorded four new cases of SARS.
There were five new cases in Shanxi province in the
north, three in Beijing and one in Inner Mongolia,
bringing the cumulative total to 1,445 cases and 65
deaths, WHO said, citing a health ministry fax dated
April 16.
The deadly flu-like virus is thought to have
originated in Guangdong and the province has recorded
by far the most number of cases in China.
Health officials say it is now effectively under
control there, although new infections are being
reported daily.
Despite a stepped up response to the outbreak by
Chinese authorities after stinging international
criticism, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao warned Sunday
the situation remains "grave".
China's top leaders have demanded prevention and
monitoring be strengthened so that the disease is
spotted, reported, isolated and treated at the
earliest possible stage.
(16/04/2003)
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