"Receiving IV Fluids While Doing Homework" Chinese Hospital Transformed into Classroom Amid Respiratory Disease Spread

Recently, respiratory diseases have been spreading in China, leading to situations where patients line up overnight to receive hospital treatment. In some hospitals, a remarkable scene unfolded where students infected with these diseases were doing their school homework while receiving IV fluids.

Young students are studying in the hospital corridor while receiving IV fluids. [Image source=Beijing Daily·Yonhap News]

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According to local media including the People's Daily on the 29th, respiratory diseases such as Mycoplasma pneumonia are spreading mainly among children, resulting in a continuous occurrence of infected students across China. Consequently, some classes with many infected students have opted for temporary closures. In many classes that continued lessons, a significant number of students were absent, making normal classes difficult to conduct.

The Taizhou City Center for Disease Control and Prevention in Jiangsu Province announced on the 24th that "many students are on sick leave, making it difficult to conduct normal classes," and issued a five-day closure order for classes with many infected students. A teacher at an elementary school in Jinan, Shandong Province, said, "Among about 50 students in one class, half are unable to attend school," and a teacher at an elementary school in Shenyang, Liaoning Province, said, "Only 6 out of 30 students in our class are attending lessons." Some parents reportedly are not sending their children to school out of concern for infection.

As the number of children with respiratory diseases reaches saturation, authorities are struggling. In fact, the pediatric department of Fudan University Affiliated Hospital in Shanghai received 190 emergency fever patient rescue requests in the morning of the 28th alone, with about 300 appointment registrations. Most pediatric hospitals in Shanghai are reportedly experiencing patient surges, with waiting times for treatment reaching up to 4 hours.

Young patients are studying at a hospital in China. [Image source=Weibo]

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In some hospitals, controversy arose as elementary students were seen doing school homework while receiving IV fluids. Parents expressed dissatisfaction, saying, "The school assigns too much homework, so the child has to study even in the hospital."

In response, Beijing education authorities issued a notice to frontline schools on the 25th, instructing, "To ensure students' health and safety, infected teachers and students should not attend school until fully recovered and should rest at home." They also urged, "Do not assign homework to sick students so they can focus on treatment." The Shandong Provincial Department of Education also instructed, "Prioritize preventing the spread of respiratory infectious diseases and ensure that students who are not fully recovered do not experience stress from homework."

Meanwhile, Chinese authorities appear to be mobilizing experts to calm public anxiety. Zhang Wanhong, head of the Infectious Diseases Department at Huashan Hospital affiliated with Fudan University in Shanghai, appeared on China Central Television (CCTV) the day before and said, "China has sufficient expertise and health resources to cope with the surge in respiratory diseases," adding, "There is no need to worry excessively."

Tong Chaohui, director of the Beijing Respiratory Disease Research Institute, also emphasized, "Just because multiple types of viruses are detected in tests does not mean they all cause disease," and advised, "If you have symptoms like fever or cough, it is best to take fever reducers or cold medicine and rest."

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