Joint efforts

"Because it was a new disease, nearly every discussion brought a collision of ideas, and new problems tested our experience and knowledge, and challenged our wisdom," Li says.

"Doctors of all specializations, and even nurses, joined the discussions, which helped us improve our knowledge and treatments."

Li says the doctors also read the latest papers about the virus from around the world and constantly exchanged updates.

Sun Lu, one of the two administrative staffers in the team, says Li was like a "head butler".

"When a new patient was transferred to our ward, Li would lead the team to develop a treatment plan," Sun says.

"He designed a system called 'long day shift'－each doctor was doing three consecutive day shifts so that the treatment for each patient was sequential."

Sun says Li was also in charge of deciding when a patient could be discharged, which was tricky because they needed to make sure the patient had fully recovered and ensure they didn't stay in the hospital for too long.

Li also cared about medical workers' mental health.

When the work was not that intense in late March, he arranged some small activities for medical workers and hotel staff to relax a bit, such as making dumplings together, Sun recalls.

Li has been a doctor for 40 years. To be a medical expert, one has to also be a collaborator, communicator, professional, leader, health advocate and scholar, he says.

"Now, we view the pandemic as suffering and hardship. But if we analyze and research the outbreak, our healthcare system will improve," Li says.

"Scientific literacy, the spirit of professionalism, doctor-patient relationships, and life and death in extreme situations are important components of medical education. This experience of fighting COVID-19 has led me to engage these more deeply."

Contact the writer at liyingxue@chinadaily.com.cn