There is no sign that the outbreak of atypical pneumonia in Hong Kong will be contained soon. However, the stepping up of contacts between health officials on both sides of the border is a practical, if belated, effort that may help avert a future outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (Sars).
Last Wednesday, the severity and potential risks of the outbreak were highlighted when Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa sought talks with Minister of Health Zhang Wenkang during a visit to Beijing.
Shortly after their talk, Mr Zhang led a team of health officials to hold talks in Hong Kong with Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food Yeoh Eng-kiong, and colleagues, at the weekend.
The flurry of meetings came as new evidence strongly suggested a link between the outbreak of the virus in Hong Kong and the recent outbreak of pneumonia in southern China.
Speaking at a media briefing on Thursday, Dr Yeoh urged people to abandon their previous thinking about the outbreak of disease. He said: 'It doesn't help to point fingers at this or that side. We have to tackle the problem from the perspective of one [shared] place.'
The health minister emphasised the need to step up the level of surveillance. 'It is simply impossible for any society to be free of infectious disease. The most important thing is for us to identify and control the disease as soon as possible,' said Dr Yeoh.