Pudong Hospital open after two-week shutdown
Medical workers provide a guide service at outpatient inquiries.
Shanghai Pudong Hospital returned to normal operations on Tuesday.
It was the first hospital in the city to have undergone a two-week shutdown after a nurse tested positive for COVID-19 on November 20.
About 1,800 people made outpatient reservations for Tuesday, about the same level as before, the hospital said.
Health code and temperature screening are still required before entering the buildings.
Those without reservations, such as the elderly, can get help from on-site workers and pass through a green channel. Reservation are also available through 24-hour hotline.
Shanghai Pudong Hospital had about 1,800 outpatient reservations on the first day after reopening.
People line up at green channels before entering the outpatient building.
The hospital is a key city-level medical center in the south of the Pudong New Area, serving a large base of senior patients.
Jiang, 66, a regular patient of the hospital, came to renew her prescriptions in stomatology, neurology and endocrinology. She made a reservation ahead by phone as usual.
“It’s hard for me to get these medicines from other nearby hospitals,” said Jiang.
The emergency service and surgeries have also resumed, with 33 operations due on the first day.
During the shutdown, more than 4,000 personnel including medical workers and patients were quarantined in the hospital. On December 5, when the quaratine ended, 671 patients were safely discharged.
Hospital staff have been working round the clock to ensure efficient closed-loop management, including five rounds of nucleic acid tests and the comforting of patients and their families.
A medical worker helps a patient open the health code on his phone.
Laboratory doctor Wang Jiaqi couldn’t make it to his wedding after an emergency call on the night of November 20. He had to attend it online in the hospital.
“It was too late to rearrange the wedding,” said Wang. “I will try to make it up to my wife in other ways.”
Yu Baoqing, director of orthopedics, said the two-week experience was surreal.
“The time felt like it ceased at a point as everybody was working hard tirelessly till midnight,” he said.
Yu Bo, hospital president, said the resumption is a new start for the hospital.
“We are really grateful for the help from the government and understanding of patients and their families,” said Yu. “It’s a lesson for us to stay vigilant and improve our emergency plans.”
Currently, the hospital has prepared 100 beds for new overseas arrivals for quarantine every day, the largest number in the nation. It has received a fifth of imported positive cases since March 10.
Medical workers conduct epidemiological investigations for visitors.
