16 Dec 2008
Health authorities of the Mainland, Hong Kong and Macao conducted a joint exercise today (December 16) to test their cooperation and coordination in the event of a cross-boundary incident of avian flu involving human cases.
Code-named "Exercise Great Wall 2008", the exercise is jointly organised by the Ministry of Health, the Health Bureau of Zhejiang Province, the Health Bureau of Macao as well as the Food and Health Bureau, the Department of Health and the Hospital Authority of Hong Kong. Over 60 public health officials and medical personnel took part in the exercise.
The Secretary for Food and Health, Dr York Chow, said the exercise provided a valuable opportunity to test the communication channels, modes of joint operation and collaboration among health authorities in the three places during public health emergency.
"Participants can review their joint response actions via video-conference in respective command and control centres.
"Timely notification of human avian influenza cases and collaboration for disease prevention and control among the three places are of utmost importance. The exercise will further strengthen collaboration and communication of the three places in emergency preparedness and response for public health crisis," Dr Chow said.
The Director of Health, Dr P Y Lam, said the Department of Health would continue to work closely with the health authorities in the Mainland and Macao in the prevention and control of avian influenza and other infectious diseases.
This is the third joint exercise organised under the Co-operation Agreement on Response Mechanism for Public Health Emergencies signed by the three places in 2005.
The scenario of today's exercise unfolded when a 48-year-old man and his 13-year-old daughter living in Hong Kong were confirmed to have been infected with avian influenza virus after visiting the man's wife in the Mainland. The man's wife also confirmed to have been infected by the disease later on.
Investigation revealed that the man and his daughter had visited a poultry farm during their stay in the Mainland. The wife and her parents subsequently joined a tour to Hong Kong and Macao.
During her stay in Hong Kong, the woman and her husband purchased a chicken from a live poultry retail market for meal.
In the exercise, the Hong Kong Government activated the "Serious Response Level" and notified their counterparts in the Mainland and Macao of the cases. In order to control and prevent the spread of the disease, health authorities of the three places immediately initiated a series of public health measures including investigation and control of the outbreak, management of patients and exchange of information in the three places.
During the exercise, emergency responses including notification of counterparts in the three places, epidemiological investigation of the affected patients, contact tracing and medical surveillance for probable cases, were tested through tele-communication facilities.
The exercise ended when experts from the three places exchanged information on their respective actions and the situation was brought under control with no new cases detected in the three places.