30 Pics That Show The Realities Of Medical Staff Working In Wuhan

The city of Wuhan in central China is under apocalyptic conditions since a new coronavirus that causes respiratory illness emerged there and began spreading out of control. For a week, the city has been under a quarantine that residents say is causing shortages of food and supplies. The thousands of cases in the city are also putting a strain on its medical system, with two makeshift hospitals being built and medical professionals arriving from all over the country in an effort to keep up with the outbreak.

These photos of nurses getting ready for their first shift in the coronavirus ward upon being deployed to Wuhan show the extent of the preparation they have to undergo, cutting and even shaving the sides of their hair so their medical caps can fit snugly against their heads. Additional photos show all the layers that go on after that to prevent them from contracting the disease from their patients.

Medical staff have had to rush to Wuhan from all over China to assist in the city’s overburdened hospitals, where patients and staff alike were seen sleeping on the floor, and staff have reportedly been wearing adult diapers to save time and avoid having to strip out of their tightly taped-up biohazard suits.

A Wuhan resident who lives with his father told Al Jazeera that when his father became ill with typical coronavirus symptoms, he planned to rest at home, but four days into the illness, a fever of 40°C (104°F) forced him to seek medical help. By that time, most of the hospitals in the city had queues stretching out the door with people left waiting outside, potentially for hours. The man says that it took two more days for his father to be admitted to a hospital, where he was treated for three days and is now recovering. This congestion making it difficult for new patients to be admitted is exacerbated by what Chinese people describe as widespread medical inequality. The disproportionate distribution of resources and qualified medical professionals to the highest-grade hospitals in wealthier areas leads to a distrust of local clinics, meaning that people go straight to these hospitals for outpatient concerns or tests.