BEIJING -- About one third of deaths occurring in Chinese hospitals are not reported to health authorities, a survey conducted by the Ministry of Health revealed on Wednesday.

Chinese medical institutes above county level have been required to report deaths since April 2004.

But about 20 percent of hospitals still have no direct death reporting network, according to the survey carried out last November and December in 130 above-county-level medical institutes throughout the country.

It also found that more than 70 percent of death reports were delayed getting to health authorities.

The survey revealed poor management and supervision in the current direct reporting system, said the ministry.

Most of the delayed or missing reports were deaths from unknown causes or unproved pneumonia, it noted, adding that some doctors believed that they only needed to report deaths of SARS and bird flu.

The co-existence of a direct death reporting mechanism and a general death recording system had caused difficulties for management.

The ministry urged that local medical institutes report fatalities in a more direct, timely and concise manner and instructed health authorities to improve staff training.