While the medical staff in Wuhan, Hubei province, battle the novel coronavirus on the front line, community workers are also playing a crucial role in the prevention and control of the epidemic.

In the 1,388 communities in downtown Wuhan, community staff members are helping health centers locate residents who have a fever in a bid to prevent the spread of the virus.

In Xiqiao, all community workers have remained at their posts despite the risks to their personal safety. They move from door to door, check people's health and arrange doctors' visits for those who are infected. They also deliver daily necessities for the elderly and needy families in their community. The workers are so busy that many of them only have time for a meal of instant noodles most days. A 24-hour hotline is also available to provide advice.

Xiqiao community's 16,633 permanent residents stay at home and rarely go outside, said Dong Shouzhi, the residential committee director. "Many residents are nervous after staying at home for so long. The community hotline and the private mobiles of community workers keep ringing. We have almost become the psychological advisers for these residents," she said.

Zhou Hong is a community worker in Xiqiao. When residents with a fever want to go to the community health center for a diagnosis, she has to accompany them. She wears protective clothing and a mask at work and is grateful that some residents buy masks and send them to the community workers.

Zheng Qingxia, the residential committee director of the Tianmendun community, said: "All the community workers are very tired. At the most stressful times, some young female workers even huddled together and cried. They have parents and children, but now they have to separate themselves from their families."

On Zheng's desk, there are several boxes of instant noodles for the community staff. Her husband has also volunteered to drive medical staff and residents in the community.