Medical staff work at the department of infectious diseases in Wuhan Union Hospital, to combat the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) pneumonia, in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, Jan. 28, 2020. (Xinhua/Xiao Yijiu)

The fight against the novel coronavirus-related pneumonia has reached a critical stage. At present, the most important thing is to stop the further spread of the virus and reach a point where the numbers of both new cases and deaths decrease.

A sudden change has taken place in Chinese people's lives in the past 10 days. The Spring Festival holidays have been disturbed and Central China's Hubei Province is nearly entirely closed. Many people have reduced their frequency of going out, national transportation has decreased, economic activity has shrunk and tourism has almost stopped. This did not happen even during the outbreak of SARS in 2003.

This happened all of a sudden. Many people feel it is unbelievable in light of the concealment of major epidemic areas until recently. Setting aside the incalculable nature of the virus, the epidemic also exposes the loopholes in our work. 

Some resent this, and such an emotion should be taken seriously. In the face of a turbulent epidemic, this is an important part of forming real solidarity. 

We have paid for our local and national negligence of the initial outbreak. But currently, the most important thing is not to calculate responsibilities. The fight continues and the battlefield expands. The situation may become more severe. 

We should treat every fight seriously and win every battle, and this will determine the overall situation of the fight against the novel coronavirus epidemic. This is related to the vital interests of everyone. 

At this time, we must form a strong national battle line. If we take effective and precise measures, the situation will witness a turning point after a short period of high-intensity measures.

When a public health crisis occurs, there is bound to be some social panic. But this doesn't mean the public has lost confidence. The majority of the Chinese people believe China can withstand this crisis and that the government can undertake various measures to ensure public safety. Anxieties did not lead to collective fear and Chinese society remains orderly.

Despite quite a number of complaints and dissatisfaction in public opinion, the most urgent task right now is to win the battle against the novel coronavirus. This is the collective will of the country and the people.

In the internet era, everything seems diverse and complicated. We might have been slow in responding to the novel coronavirus at the very beginning, but a nationwide line of defense was soon set up. This testifies to our ability to safeguard our own interests.

Let's be strong-minded and believe in science. While we are cautious about preventing the spread of the virus, we don't have to be overly anxious. The government should also have confidence in the solidarity of the people. The lockdown of Wuhan and the national activation of the top-level public health emergency response mechanisms have been carried out smoothly. It is normal for some people to vent their sentiments and reveal problems during the process, which also aids future prevention work.

A major public health crisis is bound to touch on the nerves of Chinese society from various aspects. We sincerely hope China grows more comprehensively as it defeats the novel coronavirus epidemic.