Staying vigilant in the new year

“My biggest wish is that the normal life and work of the people won’t be influenced by COVID- 19 too significantly in the coming year,” Cao Zhaolong, an expert with the department of respiratory and critical care medicine at the Peking University People’s Hospital, told the Global Times.

Cao once fought on the frontline to combat the virus in Wuhan – the city hit hard by the epidemic.

While China has returned to normalcy to a large extent, Cao cautioned that the virus won’t disappear in 2021 and advised people to be prepared to live with the virus for a long time.

“It is too early to say that vaccination can achieve mass immunity and enhance the immunity of the public to novel coronavirus,” Cao said, noting that

“rather than putting all hopes on vaccines, the public should stick to the basic guidelines we’ve outlined so far, including washing hands frequently, wearing masks, avoiding

gatherings, and maintainining a safe social distance.”

Cao went to Wuhan in February and was responsible for treating critical patients in the Sino- French New City Branch of Wuha an Tongji Hospital.

What impressed Cao the most in 2020 was the recovery of a critically ill patient from the brink of death.

The life of the male patient in his 40s was at stake when he was sent to the hospital. Given the risks to his condition, he was treated with modest oxygen doses, rather than an invasive ventilator or ECMO. The man lost his father to the

virus, and his mother

was also infected. His wife experienced mild symptoms and was treated at the Fangcang makeshift hospital and later discharged.

During the treatment, Cao coordinated with another ward and managed to help the man have a video chat with his mother in her 70s.

“I was also worried that this might be the last time the mother and son would see each other,” Cao said emotionally.

However, the man recovered slowly with strong willpower. “I must get out alive to take care of my family,” he told Cao.

The patient expressed his gratitude to Cao through a video chat when Cao returned to Beijing. Seeing all his family members sitting together on the screen, Cao burst into tears.

“This apparently normal scene is hard- won and it makes me feel all our efforts are worthwhile,” Cao said. Although everyone was tired in 2020, especially medical workers, we must not lower our guard against the epidemic, he said, adding that the New Year is no

time to relax.