The Chinese Ministry of Health on Tuesday issued a revised technical guideline for the prevention and control of SARS infection within hospitals.

The guideline, which was revised by hospital management experts,has been recommended to local health authorities to help guide hospitals across China, said the ministry in a press release.

Early this year when the epidemic broke out, many Chinese health workers and medical staff were struck down by the disease while on duty due to the lack of efficient preventative measures. Renmin hospital, one of Beijing's biggest hospitals, was sealed off for 20 days due to serious hospital infection.

The ministry has issued three guidelines on prevention and control of SARS infection within hospitals during the first half of this year, based on the anti-SARS experiences of hospitals in Guangdong Province and Beijing.

The current guideline, which was revised by experts organized by the Chinese Hospital Management Society based on the previous guidelines and international experiences, consists of six chapters,detailing techniques for hospital disinfection and quarantine, medical staff protection, medical garbage management, infection control to SARS intensive care unit (ICU) and fever clinic, the ministry said.

(People's Daily   November 19, 2003)