The Guangdong Health Department made a verbal notification to this Department on 11 January 2004 about a new suspect SARS case in Guangzhou. The patient is a 35-year-old self-employed man in Guangzhou. He started to feel unwell and developed fever on 31 December 2003. On 6 January 2004, he was admitted to hospital for treatment and isolation.

Besides a confirmed case in Panyu, Guangzhou reported on 5 January 2004, there have been a total of two suspect SARS cases reported from Guangzhou. The Hong Kong Government has continued implementing the enhanced SARS preventive actions. According to the Government Checklist of Measures to Combat SARS, the current response level remains at Alert Level (a).

Hong Kong has been free from SARS since early June last year. Yet, we are mindful of the large volume of population flow between Guangdong and Hong Kong. We have taken proactive additional precautionary measures to protect the health of Hong Kong people, including stringent port health measures for travellers to and from Guangdong and a new surveillance system for pneumonia patients with travel history to Guangdong.

Please be alert to new developments, maintain due vigilance in infection control measures in your health care facility and maintain good staff sickness records.

Latest press releases, advice and information for health care professionals can be found in the DH website: http://www.info.gov.hk/info/sars/e_profession.htm.

Yours faithfully,   (Dr Marina SUM)    for Director of Health