As the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) claims more victims in China, healthcare staff on the frontline are making more sacrifices to ensure that helping patient recover is their biggest priority.
Female nurses shave their hair to prevent cross contamination
On Feb. 10, 2020, a Twitter post by Chinese news agency, Xinhua, showed nurses in Xi'an shaving their heads.
The video explained that the nurses voluntarily shaved their heads before heading to the city of Wuhan, the epicentre of the outbreak, amidst rising infections in healthcare staff and a shortage of manpower in hospitals.
Coronavirus-fighting nurses cut hair short before heading to Wuhan to aid the battle against the epidemic. #FightVirus pic.twitter.com/lcjk8G6PDw
— China Xinhua News (@XHNews) February 10, 2020
This is not the first instance of female nurses in China shaving their head to put their patients first.
Other female nurses in Shaanxi have done the same, as seen in another Twitter video posted on Feb. 7, 2020.
The video explained that having no hair allows nurses to wear and remove their protective hazmat suits quickly.
Respect! A team of nurses in NW China's Shaanxi shaved their hair before coming in for duty amid coronavirus outbreak to avoid cross-infection. pic.twitter.com/XpseMgSsg9
— People's Daily, China (@PDChina) February 6, 2020
It seems that the first report of a nurse who might have inspired this action would be nurse Shan Xia, from the Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University.
People's Daily in China posted a Facebook post featuring her selfless act on Jan. 27, 2020.
Wearing adult diapers to reduce number of toilet breaks
As far as sacrifices go, some nurses have sacrificed their toilet breaks to save their patients by wearing adult diapers, reported Business Insider.
Due to the sacrifices being made by medical staff and physical and mental exhaustion, medical staff are at a higher risk of infection by the coronavirus.
According to reports, hospitals in Wuhan are understaffed as some medical staff have become infected by the virus when working on the front line.
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Top photos by Xinhua/Twitter
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