LHASA, May 12 (Xinhua) -- A beautiful piece of embroidery adorns an office wall at Fokind Hospital in Lhasa, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region. For 37-year-old Sodron, the head nurse of the hospital's emergency department, this handicraft is more valuable than any expensive gift.

The story of this artwork can be traced back to the devastating earthquake that struck Wenchuan County in Sichuan Province on May 12, 2008.

Sodron still clearly remembers her experience during that challenging period 14 years ago.

Following the quake, Sodron, who was stationed in Tibet at the time, volunteered to join the hospital medical rescue team to Yingxiu Township in Wenchuan, where many Tibetans reside, to help with the disaster relief. There, she met Tian Qilan, the maker of the embroidery work.

On the day they met, Tian, the mother of two children, was in a terrible state. She had been reluctant to eat or drink for several days, as she had lost contact with her husband and daughter due to the earthquake.

Seeing Tian's chapped lips stuck together, Sodron wiped her mouth with a cotton swab dipped in glucose water. She attempted to chat with Tian and soothe her, but she refused to speak.

The next day, Tian finally uttered some words, saying she believes her husband and daughter would come back and that she was ready to receive treatment.

"At that moment, I knew Tian had made it through. It was worth all my efforts," Sodron said.

After Tian and her son returned home, Sodron visited them almost every day. Sodron was finally relieved when she learned that Tian's husband and daughter were both safe and sound.

In 2016, when Sodron was on maternity leave, Tian traveled all the way from Sichuan to Tibet to pay her a visit. She brought Sodron some eggs and gave her the embroidery that took more than three months to complete.

"It was Sodron who gave our family a second life," Tian told Xinhua in an interview.

Sodron was born in Sakya County in the city of Xigaze in Tibet. Inspired by her uncle, a Tibetan doctor, Sodron aspired to become a nurse at an early age.

"It was amazing to see an ailing patient recover after being put on a drip," Sodron said.

After graduating from the school of medicine at Tibet University in 2005, she joined the emergency department of Fokind Hospital as a nurse.

Sodron is always racing against time as most of the patients in her department need emergency treatment. Even while on vacation, she would rush back to work as long as she is needed in the hospital.

"Sodron is very nice to patients. We all like her," said Yangkyi Drolkar, a 71-year-old patient.

In 2016, Sodron's father passed away after collapsing at his doorstep. Sodron, who was rescuing a patient, missed her father's final phone call.

"As a nurse in the emergency department, I failed to save my own father. I feel guilty whenever I think of it," Sodron said, with tears in her eyes.

To her surprise, many of her former patients showed up at her home to offer condolences.

"So many people came to console me when I was at my lowest point. I am determined to work even harder and help more patients," said Sodron, who was awarded the title of "national model worker" in 2020.