CHAPTER 357: INCREASE THE WELFARE OF 357

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"How is that patient doing?" Liu Banxia asked with concern after returning from the operating room.

"The cardiac and abdominal repairs have been completed, but a cesarean section was performed to deliver the fetus. The mother is still in the ICU; we hope she can make it through," Liang Xiaolin said.

DING! Patient consultation task completed.

Received 300 experience points, 500 proficiency points in diagnostic skills, 200 proficiency points in suturing skills, and 200 proficiency points in dressing-changing skills.

This task has been rated Flawless, granting an additional 500 experience points, 500 proficiency points in diagnostic skills, 200 proficiency points in suturing skills, and 200 proficiency points in dressing-changing skills.

Liu Banxia felt somewhat relieved; the patient’s condition wasn’t heading in the worst direction. At the very least, both the mother and child had been saved for now, though their future still depended on the recovery process.

"By the way, how are the patient’s neurological responses?" Liu Banxia asked again.

"They’re rather poor. Currently, there’s only eye movement. The intracranial hemorrhage has caused significant brain damage. We’ll have to see if she can recover," said Liang Xiaolin.

Liu Banxia grimaced. This was a situation he had anticipated. Although her life had been saved, the neurological damage was considerable. If things didn’t improve, her prognosis would be extremely poor. Unlike other parts of the body, brain injuries were often irreversible.

"Today’s two car accidents were both due to excessive speeding and icy roads," Wang Chao said.

"If even one of those factors hadn’t been present, they wouldn’t have been so severe. Plus, that pregnant woman wasn’t wearing her seatbelt in the passenger seat because of her pregnancy. She only got married recently too. Her future is going to be so tough."

"Haven’t we seen enough cases like this?" Liu Banxia said with a smile.

"Almost all the patients who make it here are in a similar state. That pedestrian today was just unlucky, wasn’t he? He was walking along perfectly fine and still got hit by a car."

"Just hang in there tonight. The day after tomorrow, I finally get a day off. You need to keep up the hard work, preparing for more demanding tasks in the future. I have faith in you."

Wang Chao rolled his eyes. Now he was truly feeling how exhausting working at the emergency center was. And this was when it wasn’t even operating at full capacity. Otherwise, getting any rest time would probably be a serious problem.

Never mind Liu Banxia; even for them, getting a full four days off a month was a luxury now. It wasn’t that they didn’t want to rest, but with so many patients to treat, some inevitably ended up in the ICU, and they couldn’t help but worry.

After grabbing a bite in the cafeteria, Liu Banxia went to the ICU ward to check on things again. He still felt somewhat helpless.

Now that the emergency center had its own ICU, there were many critically ill patients, and they had to issue numerous critical condition notices every day. Even after getting used to it, facing the patients’ families was never easy.

By the time he returned to the emergency center, Zhou Shuwen had finished his surgery.

"Director, is there anything else? If not, you should head home early," Liu Banxia said with a smile.

"So concerned about me? Is there something at the emergency center you can’t handle?" Zhou Shuwen asked.

"Hehe, not at all. I was just thinking, perhaps we could hold a short weekly meeting here at our emergency center. We could discuss not only the successful cases but also the failed ones, those due to our oversight or because we missed a step in our thinking," Liu Banxia said.

"Why are you asking me about such a minor thing? As long as everyone can spare the time and it doesn’t affect patient admissions, you can manage it yourself," Zhou Shuwen said casually.

"I just looked at the pregnant patient you admitted today. Your team handled her case very well. It was a multidisciplinary rescue, and all the departments cooperated excellently."

"Thank you for the praise, Director. It was mainly due to Dr. Chen’s solid skills; otherwise, the outcome might have been uncertain," Liu Banxia said.

"Currently, although the departments in our emergency center are independent, after all this time and effort, many aspects have become integrated."

"When we admit patients, the initial diagnosing physicians carefully assess their condition. Only when there are clear indications are doctors from other departments invited for a consultation."

"However, there are some continuity issues, particularly regarding the clarification of responsibilities. If no accidents occur, it’s fine. But if one does, assigning responsibility becomes difficult."

"I was wondering if the hospital could grant us emergency physicians our own emergency authority, perhaps by giving a clear affirmation of the scope of practice for each emergency physician in other specialties."

"Take orthopedics, for example. I can currently perform manual reductions for many mild fracture cases. The interns I’m supervising are also working towards developing this skill. This could reduce the need to call in orthopedic doctors for consultations."

Zhou Shuwen nodded. "The hospital administration is also considering this issue and has fully acknowledged the outstanding work of our emergency center during this period."

"Director Xu from Orthopedics has mentioned many times in meetings that orthopedic patients often have conditions that overlap with general surgery. He suggested that the authority for internal fixation surgery for fractures could be entirely delegated to General Surgery, which would save a lot of time."

"Especially now, with the high volume of orthopedic patients and surgeries scheduled back-to-back, their burden is quite heavy. However, this would increase the workload for the general surgeons in the emergency center. Do you think everyone could accept that?"

"Director, please don’t be offended if I speak bluntly," Liu Banxia said with a smile. "Actually, none of us really mind the pressure that much. In this line of work, when has there ever been less pressure?"

"The key is whether this extra hard work can bring more rewards. Nowadays, hardly anyone does freelance surgeries anymore. It’s exhausting, thankless, and pays less. If we could increase our income a bit within the hospital, everyone would definitely be happier."

"You’re still thinking about that? Didn’t you just go and help Xu Chengjun with two surgeries?" Zhou Shuwen asked with a smile.

"That was only because I felt too obligated to refuse; otherwise, I wouldn’t have gone," Liu Banxia said.

"But I don’t really care about that part of my income anymore. Qiaoqiao’s family is well-off. She’d rather give me money just so I can rest at home for a few more days."

"However, for the other doctors, their current income really is a bit low. I’m already working the interns at our emergency center like full-fledged doctors."

"This matter... well, it depends on how you look at it," Zhou Shuwen said after a moment of thought.

"Our profession isn’t like other companies where they can set their own bonus percentages. To earn more, you have to perform more surgeries. Assigning some orthopedic surgeries to us could be considered a supplement."

"The utilization rate of our emergency center’s operating rooms has already reached 80%, which is very high. However, the hospital administration has indeed considered this, partly due to the income reduction some doctors experienced after restrictions on freelance surgeries were imposed."

"You’re an exception in our hospital. Even though you’re just a resident physician, your technique for small-incision appendectomies and other surgeries is excellent. Even many associate chief physicians can’t compare to you."

"That’s why your small-incision appendectomies can be priced on par with laparoscopic surgeries. For other doctors, however, the compensation will be somewhat less."

"If all doctors’ procedures were priced by this standard, wouldn’t it cause chaos? If your skills were poor, it would likely lead to a lot of opposition and gossip in the future."

"The most crucial point is to improve individual professional skills. The Chief Director’s idea is to apply for more staff positions from higher authorities, but that requires presenting impressive results. Do you think they’ll just hand them over if we ask nicely without solid achievements to show?"

"Soon, there will be more attending physician contracts available in our emergency center. So, tell them all to keep working hard. The hospital sees their efforts. As long as their skills are up to par, the other benefits won’t be an issue."

"Our emergency center will eventually compete not only with our hospital’s inpatient and outpatient departments but also with other emergency centers in Binhai City. Our goal is to build a national-level trauma emergency center."

"Given the substantial investment in the emergency center, we need to pay attention to recouping that investment and to our teaching and training programs. Also, you’re off the day after tomorrow, right? If you have time, come to my house for dinner with Shi Lei. Bring Qiaoqiao along too."

"Ah... Director, I’m afraid Qiaoqiao will be shy. This feels like meeting the parents," Liu Banxia said, a bit awkwardly.

"Oh, get outta here! Qiaoqiao is much more composed than you; she’s a good girl. Go on, get busy. I’m going to pack up and head home," Zhou Shuwen said with a laugh, shooing him away.

Liu Banxia nodded with a smile and walked out.

"President Liu, what were you and the director just talking about?" Wang Chao eagerly came over.

"Two core issues," Liu Banxia said. "One is the delegation of authority for lower-level orthopedic surgeries. For example, internal fixation for fractures and tendon suturing—I estimate those can all be transferred to General Surgery."

Wang Chao nodded. "Well, you’re the one doing all the tendon suturing here now anyway, so that makes sense."

"Be serious, there’s something else important," Liu Banxia said, glaring at him.

"The other thing is that our emergency center will get more staff positions and attending physician contracts. As I understand it, most of us in this first batch should be able to get proper attending physician contracts."

"This is a kind of perk for us. Once these interns officially graduate and join the hospital, they should be able to get attending contracts in about two years. The hospital has a policy that favors the emergency center in this regard."

"But the director also emphasized that you must have sufficient professional skills. It’s not something you get just by passing the attending physician exam. That’s very important."

Wang Chao gave a thumbs-up. "The director is so magnanimous!"

"Right? Go spread the word. Consider it an early New Year’s gift for everyone," Liu Banxia said with a laugh.

Wang Chao nodded happily. This was indeed great news. Just because a doctor gets the title of attending physician doesn’t automatically mean they’ll get an attending physician’s contract.