Mobile cabin hospitals in Central China’s Wuhan, the epicenter of the novel coronavirus outbreak, are not only medical facilities, but “cozy homes” for novel coronavirus infected patients.

Patients in a mobile cabin hospital in Wuhan. (Photo/Xinhua)

Wuhan made use of the city's sports stadium and convention centers and renovated them into 16 mobile cabin hospitals as of Feb. 3. More than 10,000 patients infected by the novel coronavirus have been admitted in these hospitals.

 "Mobile cabin hospitals are a realistic way to solve the core shortcoming of centralized admission and treatment at present, and it is furthermore also working in the direction of receiving and treating as many patients as possible," said Wang Chen, vice president of the Chinese Academy of Engineering as well as president of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences.

Mobile cabin hospitals are not only medical facilities, but also the "cozy homes" for patients. As more patients are admitted, the living facilities and services of the hospitals are also improving.

"This is our common home," said Ms. Xiang, a patient at a mobile cabin hospital, adding that "at first, I was a little worried when I came in, but after two days, I found I felt safe.”

“My blood pressure, temperature and oxygen saturation are measured three times a day. If the symptoms of a patient are heavier, he or she will be transferred to another hospital ward quickly, which is much better than being isolated at home," Ms. Xiang pointed out.

 "The food is getting better, too." Ms. Xiang often shows the three meals served each day in her social media posts. The patients have been enjoying stewed beef, fried meat with cauliflower, braised pork in brown sauce with carrot and shrimp and more.

As more patients are admitted, the living facilities and services of the mobile cabin hospitals are also improving.

There are designated wards equipped with wireless network systems, toilets, washrooms and boiling water rooms. Meanwhile, mobile cabin hospitals provide patients with more than 10 articles for daily use, such as water basins, toiletries, water cups, toilet paper and cotton slippers. 

 "Without mobile cabin hospitals, I may currently still be at home fighting the virus alone," Ms. Zhang said. She was one of the first patients cured and discharged from a mobile cabin hospital located at a stadium.

At the mobile cabin hospital, Ms. Zhang received careful treatment and her condition soon improved. Five days after admission, her medical tests show positive results. On the afternoon of the sixth day, she was discharged, along with 27 other patients.