BEIJING — China's unprecedented public health responses to the COVID-19 outbreak have yielded notable results in blocking human-to-human transmission of the virus, preventing or at least delaying hundreds of thousands of cases, said a joint expert team consisting of experts from China and the World Health Organization.

The assessment was given at a press conference on Feb 24 in Beijing after the 25-member team conducted a nine-day field study trip in China's Beijing, Guangdong, Sichuan and Hubei.

China has also played a critical role in protecting the international community, buying precious time for countries to adopt active prevention and control measures and providing them with worthwhile experience, the team said.

China is taking prudent, phased and orderly steps to gradually restore order in social, economic, education and healthcare sectors, it said, adding that other countries should swiftly reassess the measures taken toward China.

Noting that the novel coronavirus is a new pathogen, the team said more information is needed to better understand the transmission dynamics and the severity of the disease, adding that global prevention and control work still faces severe challenges.

The team advised countries to take active monitoring measures, strive for early detection, diagnosis, quarantine and treatment, and closely trace and quarantine close contacts.

Countries with imported cases or seeing a surge of cases are advised to immediately activate national emergency plans to ensure governments at every level take necessary intervention measures to block the spread.

Countries should be prepared and make emergency response plans and adopt stricter measures if necessary, the team said.

It also called on countries to strengthen exchange of information on the outbreak and stay united to jointly deal with the challenges brought by the COVID-19.