I Can Talk to the Internal Organs-Chapter 115 - 93: Top Doctor, Traditional Doctor, Inferior Doctor
6:30, Lu Jiu finished work.
Although there were still people unwilling to leave, Lu Jiu was too exhausted to see any more patients. He could only advise them to come back tomorrow afternoon.
Because in the morning, he had to accompany Lu Shuang to the Flower Festival.
Worried that someone might not know, Lu Jiu even printed a notice and posted it outside the clinic.
"Dr. Lu, are you free to grab a meal together?" Tang Yi had been shadowing him for most of the day and wanted to chat with Lu Jiu.
"Sure, since you spent a big amount to see me today, I’ll treat you to a meal as a compensation for your loss," Lu Jiu laughed.
"No, no, no, I’ll treat, it’s me seeking your advice, how could I let you spend money," Tang Yi said quickly.
"It’s all the same." Lu Jiu smiled and didn’t dwell on the issue.
They’re not particular about food, randomly picked a roadside restaurant, ordered two or three small dishes, and started discussing Chinese medicine.
"Dr. Lu, is it a family tradition?" Tang Yi asked.
"Yes, I’ve been learning since I was young, it’s been over twenty years." Lu Jiu said.
"But why do I feel that you have a bit of an academic style?" Tang Yi said.
"Haha, I attended Jinling University of Chinese Medicine, graduated a year or two ago." Lu Jiu laughed.
"No wonder, I thought you must have attended a Chinese medicine university. Hey? Dr. Lu, since you’ve studied it, what do you think is the difference between students from a family tradition and those from an academy?" Tang Yi asked.
"Family tradition emphasizes fundamentals more. Whether it’s the basics of syndrome differentiation or the basics of Chinese herbs, they are more solid than academy-trained students. The academy focuses more on techniques, but their grasp on the fundamentals isn’t as strong."
"But there’s no solution for this, even studying Western medicine for five years is just entry-level, let alone Chinese medicine. I’ve studied for over twenty years and still feel I know too little," Lu Jiu said.
In medical universities, if you only get a bachelor’s degree, hospitals in first or second-tier cities won’t consider you. In this field, to enter a good hospital, a master’s degree is usually the minimum requirement.
Meaning seven years of integrated bachelor’s and master’s studies, followed by three years of residency, essentially ten years pass by before you can independently see patients.
This is why good doctors are usually in their forties or fifties, after all, you’re nearly thirty without clinical experience.
"True, I don’t even have a practicing certificate now, only sitting consultations with the elderly doctors who were rehired to the hospital," Tang Yi was specially recruited but that was only because he attended a good school, whether he could practice depends on having a certificate, and his skill level will be something for the future, "Dr. Lu, I see you can prescribe and do acupuncture, your proficiency should be based on a family tradition background."
Lu Jiu nodded, "I suppose so."
Tang Yi asked, "Then is there a trick to studying Chinese medicine?"
Upon asking this, Tang Yi’s eyes lit up.
Lu Jiu laughed, "The trick is to thoroughly study the classics, Inner Canon of the Yellow Emperor, Shennong’s Materia Medica, Great Success in Acupuncture, Treatise on Cold Pathogenic and Warm Pathogenic Diseases, Essential Prescriptions of the Golden Cabinet, these five books are essential to learn and memorize."
"Once you master these five, other medical books are unnecessary, especially the university textbooks. During those five years I only did enough to pass exams, never really read them, they’re useless."
What Lu Jiu said was an overstatement but also true; compared to the thousands-of-years-old classics, school textbooks are not only complicated and obscure, their content lacks value and some textbook authors have never seen a patient.
What can you learn from this?
The difference between Chinese and Western medicine in this regard is that Western medicine is continually developing, requiring constant scientific experimentation to disprove previous errors.
Chinese medicine isn’t, it achieved a complete medical system during the Late Eastern Han Dynasty, the era of Zhang Zhongjing. It doesn’t need any innovation; our ancestors have already explained everything that can be explained.
So, to study Chinese medicine, one must read ancient books.
Tang Yi scratched his head, "After graduation, I’ve only been reading Treatise on Cold Pathogenic and Warm Pathogenic Diseases, I haven’t really read other books, always felt they don’t have much impact."
Lu Jiu shook his head, "That’s where you’ve got it wrong. Without reading Inner Canon of the Yellow Emperor, how do you know the state of a normal person? Where illness originates from? Yes, Treatise on Cold Pathogenic and Warm Pathogenic Diseases helps you use the six-channel syndrome differentiation to assess patients, its practicality is indeed stronger, but it doesn’t fully explain why someone gets a disease."
"It’s like learning Chinese herbology by reading Shennong’s Materia Medica but never seeing what those herbs look like. If you don’t recognize, smell, or taste the herbs personally, merely relying on book descriptions makes it hard to grasp their effects, and you might not distinguish genuine from fake herbs."
"For instance, Poria is found in many prescriptions, but its counterfeit rate is in the top three in the herbal market. If the person procuring the herbs at some hospitals knows little about them, it’s easy to buy counterfeits, which won’t harm patients but won’t offer any efficacy either."
"What I’m telling you is that studying Chinese medicine isn’t just rote learning; you need to know the reasons behind things. That way, you’ll have confidence when diagnosing."
Tang Yi nodded, "Dr. Lu, you should be quite familiar with these five books."
Lu Jiu laughed, "Just getting started, when I master the Five Elements and Six Qi, I’ll be considered somewhat accomplished."
This is just getting started?
Tang Yi watched the whole process today and concluded that if Lu Jiu were in a hospital, his level wouldn’t be lower than that of senior-level physicians, and many might not be as good as him.
If this is just getting started, what does that make him?
An apprentice yet to enter the door?
"Dr. Lu, do you have to learn the Five Elements and Six Qi to be considered a true practitioner of Chinese medicine?" Tang Yi asked.
He knew about the Five Elements and Six Qi, but only within a certain knowledge scope.
Lu Jiu shook his head, "It’s not just about the Five Elements and Six Qi. You have to learn about national studies, especially the three schools of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism. You don’t have to delve too deeply, but you must know a little."
Tang Yi was a bit puzzled, "Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism? How is that related to Chinese medicine?"
Lu Jiu smiled and said, "Of course, they are related. Confucianism speaks of self-improvement, Buddhism of self-verification, and Daoism of nature."
"Self-improvement relates to the relationship between individuals and society, self-verification to the relationship within one’s mind, and nature to the relationship between people and the world. People get sick due to issues related to themselves, society, and nature."
"Understanding Confucianism helps you treat ailments suffered by society and family, Buddhism helps with psychological and emotional issues, and Daoism helps with diseases caused by the Qi of heaven and earth."
"If you only understand medical theory, you can be a lower-tier doctor, treating diseases as they come. But understanding these can make you a middle-tier practitioner of Chinese medicine, able to view the patient’s problems comprehensively, treating both symptoms and root causes. True mastery, however, is a level that neither you nor I can easily reach."
Confucianism is self-improvement, Buddhism is self-verification, Daoism is nature.
Tang Yi felt enlightened, as if a weight was lifted from his eyes.
Yes, indeed, Chinese medicine is just a vessel of Huaxia culture. Without understanding the roots of this culture, how can one truly grasp the essence of Chinese medicine?
Previously, he had a narrow view of Chinese medicine.
"Dr. Lu, which level are you at?" Tang Yi asked.
"Lower-tier doctor," Lu Jiu replied.
"But I see you clearly adjusting patients’ emotions; shouldn’t you be at the middle-tier level?" Tang Yi remarked.
"Not yet quite proficient, and my understanding of medical theory isn’t deep enough. I wouldn’t call it middle-tier," Lu Jiu replied.
This wasn’t just humility; Lu Jiu genuinely felt he had a considerable way to go before reaching the realm of true practice.
However, in Tang Yi’s eyes, this wasn’t the case. He felt Lu Jiu’s understanding of Chinese medicine was stronger than some teachers he encountered in school, at least he had never heard anyone explain the connection between Confucianism, Buddhism, Daoism, and Chinese medicine like this.
"This trip was worthwhile today, hahaha," Tang Yi said with a laugh.
"Next time, if you want to talk about Chinese medicine with me, there’s no need to go to so much trouble. If you want to see how I diagnose, that’s fine too. The clinic has plenty of people, one more makes no difference," Lu Jiu said with a smile.
"Dr. Lu, don’t you think I was a little abrupt today? We didn’t know each other before, and just because I mentioned wanting to exchange a bit on Chinese medicine, you came over and even allowed me to visit often, this..." Tang Yi felt a bit embarrassed.
"Hahaha, I have this quirk; I like to teach, always eager to share something related to Chinese medicine. Since I’ve met someone who understands it, sharing becomes a learning opportunity for me too, don’t you think?" Lu Jiu laughed.
Tang Yi was taken aback, then his expression turned solemn, "I’ve learned a lot."
Lu Jiu waved his hand, "We’re all peers, no need to be so serious. Also, since we know each other now, there’s no need for formal titles—just call me by my name."
Tang Yi refused, "No, let me just call you Brother Lu then."
Lu Jiu didn’t insist, "Alright, it’s all the same."
Tang Yi said with a smile, "Brother Lu, did you hear about the news of our Jianghan Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine setting up a department for Chinese medicine?"
Lu Jiu replied, "I’ve heard of it."
Tang Yi said, "It’s said that Dean Qi is genuinely supporting Chinese medicine, offering us exceptional benefits, and plans to make the Chinese medicine department the strongest in the hospital within a year."
Tang Yi grew excited as he spoke.
Lu Jiu said, "Just take it as a saying, don’t believe it."
Tang Yi asked, "Brother Lu, you don’t believe it? This time it’s a directive from the central authority to reverse the trend of westernizing Chinese medicine, with official backing. Why worry it wouldn’t happen?"
Lu Jiu answered, "Policies from above lead to countermeasures from below. Currently, Chinese medicine can’t take the leading role, not even in a Chinese medicine hospital. However, your efforts are valuable, but not now, and not a year later, so don’t hold too high expectations."
Tang Yi asked, "Brother Lu, do you think Chinese medicine can’t compete with Western medicine?"
Lu Jiu chuckled, "That depends on how you view Chinese and Western medicine. There’s no such thing as one outdoing the other. Both aim to relieve patients from suffering; they just have different approaches. But I believe both types of medicine will eventually come together again, because modern Western medicine continues to verify Chinese medicine’s correctness and scientific bases on the microscopic level. Of course, this verification process causes many to suffer unnecessarily, even fatally, like with appendicitis."
"If I were given five hundred appendicitis patients now, I could ensure that in an hour, all would be free from surgery, and after treatment, there would be no side effects. But unfortunately, patients won’t seek you out, and you have no right to challenge the authority. Appendectomy is a state-protected, legal medical procedure."
"I don’t know if you’ve seen the news, roughly from the side of Emperor Ying, where a team of scientists discovered the appendix has a secondary immune function. Besides catalyzing immune cell reactions, it also stabilizes intestinal flora. Once the appendix is removed, human intestinal function is severely affected."
"Even if I accomplished this, I still couldn’t accuse those who throw patients’ appendices into the trash as practicing illegal medicine, even though state laws clearly define harming life and organs as illegal."
"Buddy, this is reality. Before something is proven scientific, it won’t gain acceptance from the mainstream medical community. Yet our efforts aren’t meaningless. At least during this verification process, saving one is saving one. How many we can save depends on the level of those of us studying Chinese medicine."
"Keep learning Chinese medicine, stay optimistic, but also remain clear-headed. Maybe the future will rely on our meager efforts after all!"
