Medical staff in charge of the new ICU at Leishenshan Hospital.

Medical staff from Renji Hospital sent to support Wuhan during the coronavirus epidemic openedan intensive care unit at the newly built Leishenshan Hospital in Wuhanon Monday.

The ICU, the second at the hospital, has 31 beds with 19 respiratory machines.

Preparations had taken the team four days. On Monday, it received four critical patients.

The staff working there consist of 60 doctors and 100 nurses from Renji Hospital, Shanghai General Hospital, Shanghai No. 5 People's Hospital, Shanghai No. 6 People's Hospital, Shanghai No. 7 People's Hospital and Yangpu District Central Hospital.

A wall between two adjoining wards was knocked down to make more space. Besides the respiratory machines, facilities giving negative pressure therapy and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) are provided.

The first patient was a 76-year-old man who suffers from coronary disease and serious diabetes and had received heart bypass surgery.

He is now in a stable condition after treatment.

Zhang Jidong, vice president of Renji Hospital, said the next step after opening the ICU will be improving the quality of medical services with the goal of raising the cure rate and cutting the death rate.

On Sunday, Renji Hospital staff at the Wuhanhospital received their first group of 19 patients at the section they are responsible for.

Ye Jiaqi / Ti Gong

Medical staff at the new ICU discuss a patient's treatment.

Ye Jiaqi / Ti Gong

Medical staff in charge of the ICU can monitor patients' conditions on screen.

Ye Jiaqi / Ti Gong

The new ICU atLeishenshan Hospital in Wuhan.

Ye Jiaqi / Ti Gong

The new ICU at the newly built Leishenshan Hospital in Wuhan.

Ye Jiaqi / Ti Gong

Medical staff fromRenji Hospital atLeishenshan Hospital receivetheir first group of 19 coronavirus patients at the section they are responsible for.