Pneumonia Outbreak: Health Ministry Issues Advisory to States and Union Territories To Review Hospital Preparedness Amid Rise in Cases of Respiratory Illness in China

New Delhi, November 26: The Union Health Ministry on Sunday issued an advisory to States and Union Territories urging them to immediately review public health and hospital preparedness measures in view of the emerging public health situation in China. Health Ministry said that currently, the situation is not that alarming, adding that it is closely monitoring the situation.

"In view of the recent reports indicating a surge in respiratory illness in children in northern China in recent weeks, the Union Health Ministry has proactively decided to review the preparedness measures against respiratory illnesses, as a matter of abundant caution. This is noted to be important in view of the ongoing influenza and winter season that results in an increase in respiratory illness cases. The government of India is closely monitoring the situation and indicated that there is no need for any alarm," the ministry said. Pneumonia Outbreak: India Monitoring Respiratory Illness Cases in China, Health Ministry Says Situation Not Alarming.

Union Health Secretary has also written a letter to States and UTs advising them to immediately review public health and hospital preparedness measures. "All States and Union Territories have been advised to implement 'Operational Guidelines for Revised Surveillance Strategy in the context of COVID-19', shared earlier this year, which provides for integrated surveillance of respiratory pathogens presenting as cases of influenza-like illness (ILI) and severe acute respiratory illness (SARI)," Ministry said.

"They have also been asked to ensure that the trends of ILI/SARI should be closely monitored by the district and state surveillance units of the Integrated Disease Surveillance Project (IDSP), particularly of children and adolescents," it added. Ministry said that information shared by WHO has indicated an increase in respiratory illness in northern parts of China. Mysterious Pneumonia Outbreak in China: Hospitals Overwhelmed as Cases of Respiratory Illness Among Children Surge, WHO Asks People To Follow Precautionary Measures.

"This is predominantly attributed to usual causes like Influenza, Mycoplasma pneumonia, SARS-CoV-2 etc. As per WHO, the release of COVID-19 restrictions coinciding with the onset of the winter season in addition to the cyclical trend of respiratory illnesses such as Mycoplasma pneumonia have led to this surge. While WHO has sought additional information from Chinese authorities, it is assessed that there is no cause for any alarm at the moment," the Health Ministry said.

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