China's Ministry of Health on Monday announced that it has set up a national expert team in response to emergent public health incidents.

 

The team, comprising 105 experts in the fields including communicable diseases, poisoning treatment and early warning network, will rank emergent public health incidents, offer measures to be taken, give technical help to the management and revise emergency response plans.

 

The experts will also give advice on the ending and post-evaluation of emergency response, according to the ministry's information office on Monday.

 

At a press conference held earlier this month, Mao Qun'an, spokesman for the ministry, said emergency offices have been set up in 27 provincial and regional health departments, as well as in the national and local centers for disease control and prevention (CDC) throughout the country.

 

The State Council on January 8 issued a general plan on emergency response to guide the prevention and treatment of various incidents. Public health incidents were listed as a category on the plan apart from natural disasters, accidental calamities and social safety incidents.

 

(Xinhua News Agency January 24, 2006)