Geneva  - The World Health Organization said Tuesday that developed nations should not be lax in taking steps to make sure their hospitals are safe in times of emergencies, particularly in light of the earthquake in Italy.

United Nations agencies noted that a hospital in the medieval town of L'Aquila had to be evacuated owing to severe structural damage caused by the quake.

"If we are prepared, we certainly can save an untold number of lives," said Fadela Chiab, WHO spokeswoman in Geneva.

Being prepared, she noted, meant making the buildings safe and stable, securing the equipment and training personnel for disasters.

These recommendations for national policy plans applied to all UN members, including those in the developed world, Chiab stressed.

The evacuated hospital was relatively new, having been built about 15 years ago.

Tuesday is World Health Day, marked each year on April 7. The theme this year was centered on making hospitals safer in times of emergencies, such as natural disasters, wars, outbreaks of diseases and large scale attacks.

The death toll from the quake early Monday in central Italy, which registered between 5.8 and 6.2 on the Richter scale, has risen to 179. An additional 34 people were still missing.(dpa)