How infected doctor was 'snatched from Grim Reaper'

"My colleagues and I were among the third batch sent by the hospital."

Zhan said he was ready for the call-up as he had experience fighting the severe acute respiratory syndrome outbreak in 2003.

"When I arrived at the hospital we were assigned to help straight away. I saw a patient in his 60s being carried by two young people wearing protective suits. The two young volunteers then sat on the floor, looking very tired," he said.

Zhan said he endured some hardship during his stay in Wuhan, but he also experienced great kindness from people.

"Wuhan was still cold then, and my colleagues wanted to eat barbecue," he said. "But it was not possible back then with few restaurants open and the city still in lockdown."

One day, they received a surprise meal at the hospital.

"A warmhearted Wuhan resident contacted me through Douyin (a video-sharing platform), and promised to send us barbecue. I thought it was a joke, but we received it that afternoon! That was sweet," he said, laughing.

Zhan said that trust he developed with his colleagues was vital to the success of their work.

"That was a war to us, not a practice run, so trust was quite important," he said.

"It was like being on the battlefield. I trust that my colleagues can perform all the tasks assigned to them."

Working as a united front was also important, whether that meant wearing face masks or protective suits.

"I was touched that all the people wore masks as they were told to, and followed scientific methods to protect themselves," he said.

Zhan returned to Beijing in early April and Yi went to the China-Japan Friendship Hospital in early December to thank the medical workers who saved his life.