The wards where patients are accommodated have a range of equipment to monitor their condition. If a patient's symptoms worsen, he or she is transferred to a designated hospital for further treatment.

But with so many people living under one roof, psychological counseling has become necessary, along with the need to explain the hospital facilities.

At Xu's suggestion, a handbook titled Walking into Fang Cang was produced overnight－fang cang is the Chinese name for makeshift hospitals. A digital version of the handbook was released in the morning on Feb 7 and 1,000 printed copies were delivered to the makeshift hospital in the afternoon. A new handbook titled Walking out of Fang Cang was produced on Sunday.

Wang Yang, head of the Xiangya team working at the Wuchang Fang Cang makeshift hospital, said: "This handbook helps patients remain calm and gives them strength to fight the disease. It also gives medical workers scientific means to better identify patients' psychological issues and address them accordingly."