*****************************
The Chief Executive, Mr Tung Chee Hwa, met the visiting Director-General of the World Health Organisation (WHO), Dr Gro Harlem Brundtland, this (June 19) evening at Government House. They exchanged views on global efforts to combat severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and control measures being implemented in Hong Kong.
Mr Tung shared with Dr Brundtland Hong Kong's successful experience in containing the disease. Hong Kong reported zero infection for the eighth consecutive day. The last confirmed hospital isolation case was on June 2.
"What we have achieved so far has not been easy. It is the result of tremendous effort by all the citizens of Hong Kong. All of us will endeavour to eradicate the disease," Mr Tung said.
"We are conducting a professional review to learn from our experience over the past three months. The SARS crisis has brought into focus the need for us to improve our public health system, the need to set up a CDC-type organisation and the need to ensure we can cope with another outbreak of epidemic in the future," he added.
Dr Brundtland said Hong Kong had been very serious in its attempts and its actions with regard to bringing down the epidemic.
After the meeting, Mr Tung hosted a dinner for Dr Brundtland. Joining them were the Executive Director for Communicable Diseases of the WHO, Dr David Heymann; the Chairman of the Hospital Authority, Dr C H Leong; the Chief Executive Officer of the Hospital Authority, Dr William Ho; the Head of the Department of Microbiology of the University of Hong Kong, Prof Yuen Kwok-yung, and the Chairman of the Department of Medicine and Therapeutics of the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Prof Joseph Sung.
Accompanying Mr Tung were the Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food, Dr Yeoh Eng-kiong; Secretary for the Environment, Transport and Works, Dr Sarah Liao; Director of Health, Dr Margaret Chan; and Director of the Chief Executive's Office, Mr W K Lam.
Dr Brundtland paid a one-day visit to the territory after attending the WHO Global Conference held in Malaysia. She toured the airport this afternoon to see quarantine and health control facilities for travellers.
End/Thursday, June 19, 2003
NNNN
