Editor’s note:

Peking Union Medical College Hospital (PUMCH) is one of the designated hospitals for the Beijing Winter Olympic & Paralympic Games, tasked with providing medical services to some venues and the Olympic Family as well as emergency proximity-based transfers. On top of that, the hospital also attends to daily medical routines, for example, those of the outpatient, emergency department and wards. On the day of the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics, PUMCH had a tense but exciting 24 hours, which unfolds as follows:

00:00 The Department of Emergency: always up and running

Festivals and holidays always add to the already heavy workload of the Department of Emergency. Deep into the night, medical staff in the emergency room and observation room were still caught up in work and shuttled back and forth between different wards without a moment’s rest. The doctors were so engrossed in caring for patients that they did not even notice it was already 00:00; they were supposed to be at home and with their family, nevertheless they were still there as guardians of people’s health.

07:00 Outpatient services of the new year started in both the PUMCH Dongdan Campus and Xidan Campus

Having had four days off, outpatient services started to receive patients again at 7:00 a.m. on the fourth day of the Year of Tiger. Providing high-quality and compassionate care to patients is the relentless pursuit of PUMCH.

14:00 Assignment meeting for medical staff serving the Winter Olympics and Paralympics

The assignment meeting for medical staff serving the Winter Olympics and Paralympics was chaired by Vice President Du Bin and attended by heads of administrative departments and relevant staff members from 16 departments to ensure that preparations needed had been made for all tasks of medical care provision. Members of the medical service stations in the field were also working hard quietly, contributing their share to the smooth opening of the Winter Olympics.

15:00 Multi-disciplinary consultation held online for an Olympics-related patient

Led by Vice President Du Bin, the Department of Medical Affairs and the Winter Olympics Ward organized a multi-disciplinary consultation online on the patient with low back pain who came to the hospital on February 2. Eight departments participated in the consultation, conducted detailed analysis and discussion on the examination results, and determined the further diagnosis and treatment plan.

16:00 Presidents held work meeting

The hospital is committed to the overarching principle of “seeking steady and fast development”. One example is that the President’s work meeting were held on the fourth day of the new year.

20:04 Staff on duty watched the Winter Olympics opening ceremony together

At 20:04, the opening ceremony of the 24th Winter Olympic Games was held at the Bird’s Nest National Stadium in Beijing. During the opening ceremony, the on-site medical team successfully completed their task, and each medical service station ran smoothly. All the leaders of the hospital, department heads and staff members on duty watched the opening ceremony while keeping an eye on their work. When the Chinese delegation entered the venue, they responded with a warm and extended applause.

23:30 Standby completed

Audience will soon be able to feast on riveting sports events. PUMCHers will, in the PUMCH spirit of “Preciseness, ever-improving, diligence, devotion”, fulfill their mission and contribute their share to the medical services of the Winter Olympics, boosting PUMCH’s profile on the international Olympics stage.

Journalist: Chen Xiao and Chen Mingyan

Photo: Sun Liang, Li Lin, Fu Tanping, Li Jingrun, Zheng Wenting, Zhang Shimin and Cui Yuanyuan

Translator: Liu Haiyan

Editor: Wang Yao