On february 14, 2026, china's 27th month ra's meeting with foreign countries on valentine's day was marked by a climate of celebration and sweetness in the city's commercial streets. However, in the newborn section of the people's hospital in the district of shandong province, only the light sound of the warmer boxes and the small beeping of the monitor are available。
New life is in danger here on the occasion of the festivities of adults. Many viruses attack the fragile immune system of newborns, tearing the hearts of new mothers and fathers, and entangling health workers for a year。
"when did we learn medicine?" after an early check of the room, zhao ilming told the daily economic news reporter that the newborn was the weakest stage in life, with a high level of care, a heavy workload and a high risk of error. With technological changes and changes in the disease spectrum, teams have been thinking about priorities and innovative directions. “there is no overtime payment, but every night between spring and spring, the doctors don't say anything
More than 20 small lives are in the custody room for the rest of the year
In september 2008, zhao ilming, who has been working for 10 years, established the paediatrics and neonatals unit at the home hospital and has been the head of the unit to date. He told journalists that, excluding children in general hospitals, 24 children were expected to spend the first spring of their lives in intensive neonatal wards (nicu) this year。
These children are predominantly premature, especially children suffering from severe pneumonia or children with multiple organ failure, who need to be separated from their parents and given round-the-clock care by medical personnel。
Zhao xianming is most concerned with three premature children whose respiratory function is limited and whose lives depend on a breathing machine. One of the 28 weeks of small life had been guarded by medical personnel in hospital for almost two months. Despite the team's assessment of their ability to live at the level of discharge from hospital, the team maintained a cautious attitude and recommended that sick children be placed in institutions to avoid new health problems arising from inadequate home care。
“previous suffocation of newborns is higher, and few children are now suffocated with the rise in neonatal resuscitation technology across the country. As the level of prenatal check-ups increases, there are relatively few children suffering from congenital diseases.” according to zhao, a major change in the neonatal disease spectrum in recent years is the increase in the number of premature and intrauterine infections, which means that new clinical challenges are being faced。
In particular, the various organs of a premature child are underdeveloped, and the primary problem at birth is breathing. If the lung is underdeveloped, it faces respiratory difficulties and requires special treatment. There are also children who have given birth on a full monthly basis, but who suffer from respiratory difficulties in the short period of time following birth due to intrauterine infections and are examined almost with white lungs. Intrauterine infections are difficult to diagnose before they occur and require respiratory aids and antibiotics after delivery, with serious consequences in the event of complications such as pulmonary haemorrhage。
“the general population has a strong interest in spring festival, and in the adult section, if the condition is not serious, it usually returns home, but not in the neonatal section.” according to zhao zhi minh, there are currently more than 30 medical staff in the unit, and eight doctors are currently involved in daily shifts. During the spring festival, at least three doctors are guaranteed to be on duty in each class, each doctor in the first to the fifth half of the year spends an average of one day in rotation, while he/she, as the chief of the section, is not relaxed and sits in the town on a daily basis。
“the absence of overtime payments is entirely out of a sense of responsibility. In a team, mutual understanding and sharing among colleagues is of paramount importance.” zhao il-sun said。
Through higher hospitals and technical means, the district newborn unit explores new paths of transformation
District hospitals have always been important in the planning of primary health care institutions in china。
The programme for the implementation of health-care-based projects refers to the promotion of basic health services, the strengthening of the health workforce at the grass-roots level and the improvement of the level of mental health services in the districts。
Zhao sunming is deeply touched by this. He informed journalists that, limited to the level of medical resources and technology, there were obvious limitations to the treatment of newborns in district hospitals, which required the establishment of good communication with higher hospitals and the assistance of specialists in higher hospitals through new technical means。
For example, in the case of premature births between 25 and 26 weeks, the team does not have adequate medical care, and at the first moment after the evaluation, the family is advised to be transferred to the provincial hospital and offered to assist in contacting the higher hospital for closed communication。
In addition, neonatal surgical diseases, such as the perforation of digestive tracts caused by premature infant feeding, are also part of the blind section of the newborn unit of the basic hospital, where the team transmits video material to specialists at the higher hospital at the first time to inform the treatment with technical support from the higher hospital。
“in addition to consolidating and upgrading existing levels of operation, we would like to extend some services as the number of births decreases.” in zhao's view, district hospitals are closer to the grass-roots population than higher-level hospitals, and there is a geographical advantage in carrying out newborn health care. Over the next five years, the departments will focus on furthering this work by reducing the incidence of disease and reducing the medical stress from the source and making more efficient use of medical resources。
In recent years, zhao zhiming has spontaneously set up micro-message groups to cover nearly 2,000 parents, and he and the medical staff of the clinic have used their leisure time to answer questions about the care of parents, conduct health education and provide guidance on follow-up care after the birth. At present, this out-of-hospital extension service enhances trust between patients and patients and is an important means of improving the quality of services provided by the neonatal section。
In the country as a whole, against the backdrop of high rates of premature births, changes in the disease spectrum and a decline in the number of births, the newborn section of the district hospital is undergoing a process of transition from diagnostic capacity to the functioning of the unit. The health-care providers are committed to protecting the lives of newborns at the grass-roots level. Their exploration also provides a sample of practice from the district for the construction and development of neonatal units in the primary health care system。
“as a health worker, we must keep up with the times, and in 2026 we were on our way to our goal.” zhao sun made a point。
