If you ask who are the top heroes when SARS was rampant in Hong Kong, nearly all Hong Kong residents would tell you: "health care workers, of course."

Although the health care workers could do little for their own mothers with the coming of Mothers' Day that falls on Sunday, their mothers would feel proud that they have sons and daughters who valued SARS patients' lives more than their own.

Catherine Lee is a doctor at Tseung Kwan Hospital. She has not returned home for two months since she joined a team of doctors and nurses for treatment of SARS patients.

Graduating from a medical sciences university three years ago, the 27-year-old doctor is the only daughter of A'liang, a worker who had spent all her savings to pay for Catherine's study at the university.

A work shift for Catherine is usually from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 a. m. next morning. Apart from normal treatment of SARS patients, she also helps nurses conduct intubation. Intubation has been one of the most possible dangers of infection to health care workers and quite a number of doctors and nurses in Hong Kong contracted SARS during the intubation process.

Apart from overtime working, Catherine has to face the fact that her colleagues fell ill one after another. Like nearly all other health care workers at her hospital, she went to psychological doctors of the hospital for consultation.

As all the other frontline health care workers in Hong Kong, she also needs support and consolation from her mother A'liang, her colleagues and others from the society while they are working in the "major battlefield."

Catherine exchanges greetings with her mother once a day and A' liang will not fall asleep every day until her daughter reports "I am fine" to her.

A'liang told Xinhua that "she is a doctor, she must fulfill her duty, there is no problem."

However, A'liang almost burst into tears while describing how her daughter works, murmuring that Catherine has a fiance and has not married.

She also has the worries of all other mothers of health care workers. If Catherine contracts SARS, her health might be damaged and her marriage and her future might be affected, she thought.

David Hui, a doctor in charge of SARS patients at Prince of Wales Hospital, has become one of the most popular doctors in Hong Kong these days.

Prince of Wales Hospital is famous in Hong Kong for receiving Hong Kong's index SARS patient and for winning the title of "2003 Asian Heroes" given by the Asian edition of Time magazine in April.

Over 70 health care workers of the hospital contracted SARS when they did not known much of the deadly disease.

Hui chose to major in medicine and therapeutics after he saw how his grandma suffered from asthma.

He said he has been working 12-15 hours a day since his hospital began to receive SARS patients in mid-March.

Experiencing all the dangerous situations and overtime work, Hui just said, "We've just managed to do our duties. The policeman and firemen would surely fight against criminal acts and fire when they are on call."

While interviewing with Hong Kong health workers, you will not hear them say big or empty words, but their remarks will often move you to tears, as they have been sacrificing their own health and even lives for treating SARS patients.

Talking to health care workers, you will not be told how dangerous their work is. However, they will often mention their mothers even in a brief interview.

Hui said that to avoid bringing virus home, he has not seen his 70-year-old mother for nearly two months. In the past, he often had tea with his parents. Being anxious about Hui's health, his old mother calls him via pager once every other day, in a way not to disturb his busy work.

He said he felt sorry that he could not take care of his old parents as other sons because he should take care of SARS patients, many of them being as old as his mother.

Hong Kong residents will remember May 7 as a special day, when hundreds of high-ranking officials, health care workers and people from various walks of life held a high-profile funeral for Lau Wing Kai, a nurse at Tuen Mun Hospital and the first health care worker killed in the fight against SARS.

Over 200 fresh-flower wreaths were placed inside and outside the funeral hall to mourn the death of the 38-year-old nurse. Chairman of the Hospital Authority Leong Che Hung said Hong Kong lost a hero who devoted his life while on duty and his selfless devotion has set a model for all health care workers in Hong Kong.

Lau contracted SARS while tending SARS patients and died on April 26. The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government held an extraordinary funeral for the hero. Chief Executive Tung Chee Hwa attended the funeral.

Lau, an ordinary nurse, often had a smile on his face even during his illness, showing his never-give-up attitude which greatly encouraged all staff in Tuen Mun Hospital.

Hong Kong residents have been moved by and felt the deepest sorrow for the death of the healthy, strong and smart young nurse, the father of a six-month-old boy.

The Hong Kong community has also praised his wife, a nurse in another hospital, who encouraged all health care workers to continue their fight against SARS while she was in great grief.

To support Lau's wife in raising the baby, Hong Kong trade unions and other charity funds have offered 200,000 HK dollars (25, US$641) for the family. "Medial staff are fighting against SARS for us, it's our turn to help their families," said quite a number of Hong Kong residents.

During the last month, participants of almost all important meetings or symposiums in Hong Kong expressed their respect in varied ways for their beloved doctors and nurses who have been sacrificing their health and even lives to cure SARS patients. So far, 1,035 SARS patients in Hong Kong have been discharged from public hospitals.

A total of 370 Hong Kong health care workers contracted SARS while on duty. The good news on Saturday is that it is the third day when no more health care workers are reported to have SARS since mid-March. That's the best news for all mothers of health care workers in Hong Kong and all Hong Kong residents.

(Xinhua News Agency and eastday.com May 11, 2003)