The baby's mother reportedly went into labour at around noon on Huancheng Bei Lu in Guilin in southern China.
Dr Yang Jin'e, who works at the nearby clinic, told Pear Video that she saw a woman squatting down near a number of litter bins.
Dr Yang said she only saw the woman's back, not her face.
"I thought she was relieving herself at first, but then I saw her throwing something into the bin," the doctor said.
Dr Yang and her colleagues went to check the litter bin and found a baby whose body had turned "purple". Dr Yang said the baby was not crying.
They immediately brought the newborn into their clinic using a cardboard box. Then they took her to a hospital.
In another interview with the local Guangxi Internet Broadcast Station, Dr Yang described the mother to be around 30 years old.
The broadcast station said the temperature in Guilin was around 2C that day.
Dr Wei Yi, from the Bo'ai Hospital, said the girl had been born prematurely. Dr Wei said the girl was healthy after initial examination.
The baby is being treated in the Bo'ai Hospital. Police are investigating the case.
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