Chinese surgeon called a hero after being pictured sleeping on floor of hospital after 28-hour shift
Pictures of doctor shared online by people commending his dedication, while others pointed out dangers of extremely long shifts
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A doctor taking a well-earned rest after 28 hours of emergency surgery has been praised for his diligence by Chinese social media users.
Luo Heng, a surgeon at a hospital in Dingyuan, an area in China’s eastern Anhui province, was pictured curled up asleep on the floor.
He had worked overnight to perform two urgent operations, followed by three more the next day, according to a number of Chinese news sites including those of China Central Television and China Daily.
Pictures of Dr Luo were widely shared on Chinese social network Weibo with beating heart emojis and comments commending his dedication.
However, others pointed out the dangers of doctors working extremely long shifts.
“I admire such dedicated people, but I do not advocate this,” wrote one user on the social network. “My point of view is: rest is good to be able to work better.”
“You can see the effort put into working to give the best outcome for the patient,” wrote another, while a separate user wrote: “They are always worthy of our respect.”
Most Chinese hospitals are run by the government, but there are also private clinics in the country of 1.4 billion.
There are 2.9 million doctors licenced to practise in China, according to 2014 figures published by Statista.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments