The Head of Taiwan's delegation to the World Health Organization's (WHO) Global Conference on SARS in Kuala Lumpur made a plea to the organization yesterday to dispatch permanent officials to Taiwan.
Su Ih-jen (蘇益仁), director-general of the Center for Disease Control (CDC), presented the appeal to participants in one of the conference's morning breakout groups which focused on surveillance and response coordination.
Yesterday was the last day of the two-day SARS conference. The morning breakout groups were open only to invited participants. All 13 sessions ran concurrently from 9am to noon.
Su was one of the panelists in his session, which was chaired by Dr. Ray Arthur, associate director for global health at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (USCDC).
Su reported on Taiwan's experience in establishing surveillance systems in the course of the country's SARS outbreak. His appeal to the WHO to send permanent officials to Taiwan came in his closing remarks.
Although there were WHO officials present during the session, they said it would not be proper for them to comment on Su's appeal.
Su made the appeal to the WHO for the first time and said he would soon write a formal letter to present his plea to the organization.
In a press conference held after yesterday's closing ceremony, WHO Director-General Dr. Gro Harlem Brundtland and Executive Director for Communicable Diseases Dr. David Heymann said they had not seen Su's request.
"WHO and its collaborating centers have been supporting the authorities, governments and public health communities to deal with the disease in Taiwan as well as everywhere else," Brundtland said.
When asked whether the presence of WHO officials in Taiwan had made a substantial difference to Taiwan's capacity to monitor and control the SARS epidemic, Brundtland said she thought that it had.
Nevertheless, Brundtland did not elaborate about how exactly the WHO had contributed to Taiwan's fight against of SARS.
"I am not going to pass judgment," she said.
"We have been in many places in Taiwan and other places to help and improve the surveillance system," Brundtland said.
"I think that wherever we go, we probably make a difference. Otherwise we couldn't be spending our limited resources to do so," she said.
Brundtland, who arrived at Kuala Lumpur's Sunway Lagoon Resort Hotel, venue for the SARS conference, on Tuesday afternoon, encountered Su upon her arrival at the hotel.
Su and Brundtland shook hands. Brundtland looked closely at the badge Su wore and warmly welcomed Su. Taiwan's delegation will be returning to Taiwan tonight.
Meanwhile, Director of the National Center for Infectious Diseases of the USCDC Dr. James Hughes said the institution is considering sending more help to Taiwan for controlling SARS.
"We are talking with Taiwanese officials about additional ways in which we may be helpful," Hughes said.
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