The novel coronavirus pneumonia outbreak in Wuhan, capital of Hubei province has seriously affected all regions of the province, except the city of Qianjiang.

Compared with other cities in Hubei, Qianjiang has reported the fewest cases of infection. In an interview with China Central Television, the city's Party chief said that as early as Jan 17 more than 30 patients with symptoms of the then-unknown viral pneumonia in Qianjiang were placed under unified quarantine. Outside of Wuhan, that was the earliest case of quarantine in Hubei. Simultaneously, hospitals in Qianjiang began making preparations for any eventuality. All this makes Qianjiang an ideal case study in how to deal with the epidemic.

Crisis management is a huge challenge for decision-makers, especially public sector leaders. But early detection or awareness can help them judge which risk has the potential to evolve into a crisis. When the early signs of a crisis appear, decision-makers should bank on their instincts, acquired knowledge and experience to quickly decide how to stop the situation from worsening. In the early stages, intuition is of great help and Qianjiang's decision-makers made good use of it.

Next comes comprehensive decision-making ability, where leaders evaluate the situation and take decisions on the basis of acquired information and the opinions of experts. Once a decision is taken, then comes the critical phase of how to deal with the crisis. It is necessary to coordinate various stakeholders and respond effectively with various resources to mitigate the negative impact of the crisis and promote its resolution.

In the modern crisis management system, it is necessary to prepare for a possible crisis even in times of peace. In the fight against the new coronavirus outbreak, Qianjiang offers us important lessons on how to respond to a crisis.