Women Medical Experts' Strength in Fight Against COVID-19

China's women medical workers stood out on the front line of the fight against the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) since the onset of the battle against the epidemic in late January.  

Women Medical Workers' Power

On March 8, Mi Feng, spokesman of the National Health Commission (NHC) and Deputy Director-General of the Department of Publicity of the NHC, said that on the front line of the fight against the COVID-19, there are a large number of women medical workers who are particularly dedicated to curing patients. They are respected "angels in white" and "roses in battlefield" in the anti-epidemic fight.

According to Guo Yanhong, a supervisor of a medical administration bureau of the NHC, so far 42,600 medical workers have been dispatched to Hubei Province, among whom 28,000 were women, accounting for two-thirds of the entire medical group.

In Leishenshan Hospital, one of the makeshift hospitals for COVID-19 patients in Wuhan, there were 12 medical teams consisting of 2,500 medical workers from 263 hospitals nationwide. More than 1,700 of them were women who saved the lives of over 1,000 people.

Women Experts in Battle

On March 8, the All-China Women's Federation (ACWF) and the China Medical Women's Association (CMWA) jointly called on women medical staff working on the front line to follow General Secretary Xi Jinping's instruction to have firm convictions in winning the battle against COVID-19, keep high morale, protect themselves in a scientific way, and make their own contributions to the victory of the people's war against the epidemic.

Chen Xiaofeng, member of the executive committee of the ACWF and Vice-President of the CMWA, said that many outstanding medical experts of the CMWA had participated in treating critical patients in Hubei Province since the outbreak of COVID-19.

"The medical experts who assisted the anti-virus fight in Hubei included Qiao Jie, academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and President of the CMWA, Zhang Shuyang and Sun Tieying, executive members of the CMWA, Lu Qun, vice-director of the CMWA's hospital infection management committee, Shen Ning, a standing member of the CMWA's respiratory committee, and other members of the CMWA," Chen said.

Special Care for Pregnant, Lying-in Women

The prevention and control of maternal infections and potential risks of vertical mother-to-child transmission are of great concern to society.

Qiao Jie, together with Zhang Yuanzhen, President of Hubei Medical Women's Association, inspected maternal and child safety, treatment of maternal infections, and the vertical mother-to-child transmission in areas of Hubei Province amid the fight against the epidemic.

They organized medical staff of some designated hospitals in Wuhan to carry out research based on clinical observations in a bid to confirm the possible infectious sources and routes of transmission, and instructed local hospitals how to take special protective measures for pregnant and lying-in women. They also gave guidance to the hospitals in the publicity and education work targeting pregnant and lying-in women.

The CMWA's experts on maternal and child issues tried their best to ensure the safety of mothers and infants. On February 1 and March 8, Zhao Yangyu, director of the CMWA's maternal-fetal medicine committee, participated in the news conferences held by the joint prevention and control mechanism of the State Council, introducing relevant information regarding maternal protection and health care amid the epidemic.

Pregnant and lying-in women infected with COVID-19 also got attention both at home and abroad. On February 12, Zhang, as a co-author, released a research paper in The Lancet reviewing nine cases of gestational infections. It shows there is no evidence that woman in late pregnancy infected with COVID-19 will have intrauterine infections caused by vertical transmission. Qiao commented in the same issue that pregnant and lying-in women and newborns should be considered as priority populations for COVID-19 prevention and control.

"In the fight against the epidemic, love and hope do not separate us. No matter how tough it is, our women medical staff will always show love and concern to patients in pain, bringing health and happiness to the public," Qiao said.

(Source: China Women's News/Translated and edited by Women of China)