"I always like to think about how I can help the patients recover as quickly as possible," she says.

In her wards, patients usually only stay three to four days after surgery before they are discharged.

"People may think nursing is a repetitive job, but I always tell my nurses to find the difference in each patient we take care of and explore how we can do better. That is the meaning of being a nurse," she says.

Wang Yuying has been a head nurse for three decades and is one year away from retirement. For her, the experience in Wuhan was also a chance to find and train those who will follow in her footsteps, the future head nurses.

Wang Xiaoyue still remembers the exacting standard Wang Yuying requires from her nurses. "Should you get hospitalized one day, if the nurse taking care of you is one you trained, you are in good hands," Wang Xiaoyue says.