Resultsof current key infectious diseases surveillance in the whole district and a new system designed for the screening of abnormal clinical cases/events used in sentinel hospital during January to July, 2014, were compared. ResultsTwo severe and/or abnormal cases with significant public health importance were detected in the whole district through several disease and symptom surveillance systems including infectious diseases, public health emergency, influenza, imported infectious diseases, et al. One was a serologically confirmed epidemic hemorrhagic fever case; another was a suspected Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) case. However, neither of them was reported in the new system due to the limitation of sentinel hospital setting and screening criteria. ConclusionsThe new system designed for the surveillance of severe and abnormal clinical cases/events is an alternative for early warning of public health emergency, however, when it comes to the phase of practical use, the scope of sentinel hospital should be expanded and the screening criteria should be revised.