Son, 70, bows to doctors to thank them for their effort after they gave repeated emergency treatment to his father, 94, but still failed to save him
- Man expressed heartfelt thanks to doctors for trying their best to save his father
- Despite their efforts, his father died of complications of a pulmonary infection
- Video of the man's simple act of appreciation was widely shared online in China
- Moving incident sparked conversations about how doctors are treated in China
A man in China was filmed bowing to medical staff to thank them for treating his father - even though were unable to save him in the end.
Liu Lianqun, 70, expressed his heartfelt appreciation to doctors and nurses at the Wuhan No. 1 Hospital in Hubei province on January 24, after his 94-year-old father died of complications of a pulmonary infection.
'I just wanted to thank all medical staff for taking care of my father. I am not good with words, I only know how to express my appreciation this way... thank you all so much,' a teary-eyed Liu was heard saying, before taking off his hat and bowing deeply.
Liu Lianqun, 70, takes a deep bow to express his heartfelt appreciation to doctors at the Wuhan No 1 Hospital in Hubei, after his father, 94, died of complications of a pulmonary infection
Share this article
'Oh dear, you don't have to thank us,' astonished doctors and nurses said as they rushed to lift the elderly man.
The moving 15-second clip was filmed by ICU nurse Lu Hui and uploaded to short video app Douyin, where it drew more than six million views.
'A 94-year-old father has completed his final journey at the ICU. A simple "thank you" is all us medical staff need,' Lu wrote in her viral post.
The man told Changjiang Daily that he just wanted to thank doctors and nurses for trying their best to save his father's life.
'There was not a trace of odour on my father's body and he didn't suffer from any bedsores or bruises on his back,' the man said. 'This shows that the nurses took great care to constantly massage his muscles, clean and re-position his body.'
'I just wanted to thank all medical staff for taking care of my father. I am not good with words, I only know how to express my appreciation this way... thank you all so much,' a teary-eyed Liu is heard saying, before taking off his hat and bowing deeply
The incident has sparked many conversations about how medical professionals are treated in China, where doctors and nurses are often overworked and under-appreciated.
The Chinese Medical Doctor Association reported in 2015 that 13 per cent of 12,600 doctors surveyed had been physically assaulted the previous year.
According to the World Health Organization, China has just one general practitioner per 6,666 people, far below the international standard of one for every 1,500 to 2,000 people.
'Despite the man's grief, he did not forget to thank the medical staff. Such a gentleman. May his father rest in peace,' one comment read on Chinese microblogging site Weibo.
'Thank you doctors, for respecting your patients and being such professionals,' one user said.
'Let's all better appreciate our doctors and nurses for saving our lives,' another said.
'As a fellow medical worker, we should also thank you. Thank you for understanding our work and I hope that doctor-patient relationships would improve in the future,' another user commented.
