(Source: China Daily)
Qiu Ting, a medical worker from the fourth Zhejiang medical team sent to support Shanghai's fangcang, or makeshift hospitals, recorded her team's experience over the past month and shared it online, according to report from Chinanews.com.
The 49-member team, led by the Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital affiliated to Zhejiang University's School of Medicine in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, arrived in Pudong New Area of Shanghai on April 3.
"Some residents were in a poor mood when they were admitted into the fangcang for the first time," wrote Qiu, a young respiratory physician. "They were afraid of the cold and experienced symptoms such as chest tightness and shortness of breath."
To that end, the team set up a psychological assessment workshop for those in need and worked to calm their worries through communication. Individualized psychological interventions and treatment plans were also formulated to help stabilize people's emotions and reduce psychological pressure.
"In my opinion, a fangcang, or makeshift hospital, is an ark that upholds life and love," said Qiu.
One time, a child in the third grade of junior high school needed print materials for online classes, but the fangcang's printer lacked connection to external network.
"Our teammates sent the study materials to colleagues working outside of the fangcang and asked them to bring the printed materials back in," wrote Qiu.
Through collective effort, the student was able to recover from the virus while keeping up with their school work.
With our help and encouragement, many people inside the fangcang no longer felt anxious and gradually mixed in with the rest of the patients there, Qiu wrote.
"People began helping each other out and their mental conditions gradually improved," said Qiu, "everyone is keeping one another's company."
Every day, Qiu and her teammates wear thick protective suits and look after hundreds of residents. Under the airtight gears, it was difficult for them to even turn around or lower their heads.
"Water vapor and puddles formed in the goggles and we had to be careful when blinking our eyes. Our hands and feet were covered in red itchy dots," said Qiu.
In the face of these challenges, Qiu and her teammates persevered.
"We always keep in mind that fighting the epidemic is the duty of a medical worker. This is our mission and we will never back down," said Qiu.
Since early April, Qiu's team has successively looked after three fangcang areas. A total of 1,424 residents were admitted into their areas and 1,144 were discharged.
"Sometimes we will divide our team into two groups, one will stay in the fangcang and the other will support nucleic acid testing missions," Qiu said.
At present, SRRSH has dispatched 343 medical workers to aid Shanghai's COVID-19 prevention effort, of which 74 percent are young.
Many of them experienced a unique China's Youth Day this year, fighting on the frontlines of the COVID-19 epidemic.
"Watching our efforts beginning to bear fruit, everyone's determination and confidence in fighting the epidemic became stronger," said Qiu.