68 medical teams sent to Hubei to aid coronavirus control

WUHAN–Sixty-eight medical teams totaling over 8,310 members have been sent to central China's Hubei Province as of Sunday to aid novel coronavirus control, according to local authorities.

These medical teams came from 29 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions, as well as the National Health Commission, the National Administration for TCM and the China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, and the military, said Xiao Juhua, vice governor of Hubei Province, at a press conference on Sunday.

Xiao said these medical teams consisted of experienced experts, doctors and nurses from the respiratory, infection and critical care medicines. Some medical personnel have the experience of fighting against SARS and Ebola.

Among the total, 57 medical teams of 6,775 medical personnel have been sent to 27 designated hospitals in Wuhan, the center of the coronavirus epidemic, while another 11 medical teams totaling 1,535 medical personnel have been deployed to 10 other cities that are hit hard by the infectious disease.

By Sunday, Hubei had reported 11,177 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus infection, with 350 deaths and 1,701 cases in severe or critical condition. The new coronavirus that emerged in a Chinese market at the end of last year has killed more than 360 people and spread around the world.

The latest figures from China show there are over 17,000 people infected in the country. Outside mainland China, there have been more than 100 infections reported in around two dozen places. There has also been one death, in the Philippines.