China to focus on averting epidemics

China will deepen reforms of its disease control system and intensify capabilities in monitoring, detecting and handling infectious disease threat this year, said health authorities.

In a major step toward improving national response to acute epidemics, a new government body, the National Disease Control and Prevention Administration was inaugurated in May 2021. Since then, all provincial-level disease control and prevention bureaus have been established.

At the annual meeting of the administration that has been held recently, authorities said that it will complete setting up municipal-level and county-level disease control bodies and clarifying their respective function and capability development standards.

This year will also see accelerated efforts to boost core capabilities in disease surveillance, early warning and risk evaluation, emergency response, epidemiological investigation, testing and medical treatment, said authorities.

In written remarks sent to the meeting, Lei Haichao, minister of the National Health Commission that oversees the administration, said that it is important to improve the sharing of contagious disease surveillance information between medical and disease control facilities.

He also highlighted a need to upgrade incentive mechanisms for disease control workers and guarantee sufficient funds invested in public health institutions.

"Vaccines and other suitable technologies should be utilized to play a larger role in preventing major diseases. Local authorities are encouraged to include more vaccines into their regional immunization programs," he said.

To rein in the incidence of cancer, cardiovascular illnesses and other chronic diseases that lead to over 80 percent of deaths nationwide, Lei requested expanding coverage of early cancer screening and providing lifestyle guidance for children and teenagers, as well as those suffering chronic diseases, overweight and obesity.

"We will also nurture more international public health professionals and add more public health staff in medical aid missions overseas," he added.

Throughout last year, the administration said that it has issued a series of diagnosis and treatment guidelines that target HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria among others and specifies steps and goals toward building a smart, multiple-point warning mechanism for contagious diseases.

Meanwhile, the number of national-level squads specializing in dealing with sudden outbreaks has increased to 25 and all cities and counties have nurtured local teams fulfilling the task.

Precautionary methods

As this year's Spring Festival holiday running from Jan 28 to Feb 4 is approaching, the administration called for stepping up efforts to control the spread of respiratory pathogens.

In a notice released on Thursday, the administration said that the level of acute respiratory diseases during this winter and spring's peak season is less intense than the past year.

It said that the influenza flu level is and will remain at a high level, while infections of the COVID-19 disease, mycoplasma pneumoniae, human metapneumovirus and respiratory syncytial virus are at a relatively low level.

"Multiple acute respiratory pathogens are expected to circulate simultaneously for some time," it said.

Meanwhile, the norovirus linked to severe vomiting and diarrhea is spreading and causing sporadic infection clusters at schools, nursery care institutions and catering facilities.

"Increased population movement across regions or country borders and more gatherings during the holiday season will likely amplify the risk of these pathogens' domestic spread and the risk of seeing imported cases of mpox, dengue fever and malaria from overseas," it said.

Mi Feng, spokesman of the National Health Commission, said during a news conference on Friday that all respiratory diseases in circulation are caused by known pathogens and no new infectious illness has been detected.