I Can Talk to the Internal Organs-Chapter 36 - 33: I’m Just Standing Outside the Rules Watching Them
Hoo～
Lu Jiu let out a long breath.
Lu Mountain, beside him, laughed, "How was it? Quite tricky, right?"
Lu Jiu nodded, "There are just too many symptoms, I can’t tell them apart at all. Even if the treatment matches the symptoms, I feel the effect won’t be great. His Du Meridian is too critically injured."
Lu Mountain laughed, "Did you ever come across such post-surgery patients in the hospital?"
Lu Jiu couldn’t help but complain, "There are just too many. Sometimes when prescribing medicine for these patients, you have to check if their surgical areas’ meridians are clear. If not careful, the prescribed medicine becomes ineffective. However, those patients are not as severe as this uncle."
After the herbal medicine enters the body, it travels along the meridians. If they are blocked, the medicine’s power can’t reach through, and naturally, there’s no effect.
For patients like Wang Li, whose Du Meridian has been blocked for over ten years post-surgery, it’s not something that can be unblocked overnight, and only after unblocking can treatment truly begin.
Lu Jiu had just used all his life’s knowledge but could only manage to make Wang Li feel a bit more comfortable and prevent his condition from worsening too quickly.
If it weren’t for this acupuncture technique and the Mountain Burning Fire ultimate skill, just relying on herbal medicine, Lu Jiu might’ve done even less.
"They don’t understand, always thinking surgery can cure everything. They come over to try their luck with us only when there’s no other way, even if it’s just to alleviate some pain. Over the years, I’ve seen too many like Wang Li." Lu Mountain said.
Lu Jiu gave a helpless smile, "We might have to continue seeing such cases in the future."
Patients like Wang Li are not isolated cases.
Moreover, it’s a dilemma whether Traditional Chinese Medicine should laugh or cry. Clearly, many wouldn’t first consider TCM when sick, but after visiting major hospitals and finding no hope elsewhere, they run to TCM hoping for a miracle.
People say TCM is unscientific, yet when pushed to an extreme challenge, they come to TCM like opening a level in a game. Whereas when it’s simple, they’d rather not acknowledge it.
They claim TCM isn’t scientific, but their belief in TCM seems not entirely scientific either.
Beep beep beep～
Just as Lu Jiu sat down, his phone in his pocket rang. Upon closer inspection, he saw it was from a university roommate.
But as he cheerfully answered, a torrent of scolding came from the other end, "Have you been poked brain-dead by needles? Why leave a perfectly good hospital just to guard a rundown clinic back home? I mean, seriously..."
Lu Jiu quickly pulled the phone away, letting the other side continue ranting.
When the yelling subsided, Lu Jiu put the phone back to his ear, "Done cursing?"
Peng Yan shouted, "Not yet!"
Lu Jiu said, "Then continue, I’m listening."
Peng Yan grit his teeth, "Are you seriously not planning to come back?"
Lu Jiu laughed, "We’ll see. Can’t speak too firmly about it, or I’ll risk getting slapped in the face."
Peng Yan said, "What the hell were you thinking, staying in a hospital like that? With your skills, in five or six years, you’d definitely become an attending doctor. Isn’t that better than staying in a small clinic?"
"Who are you treating at the hospital? What salary do you get there? Now compare that with your hometown, who are you treating, and how much can you make?"
Lu Jiu retorted, "Hey, we both joined the Party in college, watch what you say. We’re all treating the common folk, no hierarchy between us. ’Great doctors have sincere hearts,’ you know. Your ideological awareness needs some improvement."
Peng Yan sneered, "Cut the crap. I’m talking about connections. It’s the reality of society. A big city is still a big city. Its resources can’t be compared to a small city, especially Jinling Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine. The people who come here for treatment, more or less, have some status. Having these connections can save you a lot of trouble in the future."
"You’re not a fresh graduate anymore. Don’t you get this? When you get married and have kids, will you let them be stuck in a small city their whole lives, starting at a disadvantage?"
Lu Jiu laughed, "Wow, you’ve thought so far ahead. Are you about to end your long-distance romance?"
Peng Yan’s tone intensified, "I’m talking serious stuff here!!!"
Lu Jiu leaned back in his chair, eyes drifting to the street outside, "You know, I’m just not ambitious. Besides treating people, I’m no good at anything else. But a hospital isn’t just about that. There are meetings, reports, organizing materials, and handling colleague relations, hierarchies, sometimes even obliging social engagements."
"You’re right, big cities are nice. But maybe I am just a small-town person. I just feel out of place over there, so I’ll return when I deem it suitable."
Peng Yan said, "Bullshit, can’t handle it? You just don’t want to! With your diagnostic skills, a few attending doctors might not be better than you. Do you need to deal with colleague relationships or hierarchies? They’d love for you to stay. Ultimately, you just don’t like the hospital’s rules and regulations!!"
"But you have to realize, many things aren’t just about preference. Hospital regulations have been around for so long, there’s obviously reason in them. You can’t just leave because you don’t like it. Even if you do, why not come back and change it instead of running away?"
Lu Jiu laughed, "Change? Who’s joking now. Let me ask you, in treating patients, is the process more important or the outcome?"
Peng Yan said, "Nonsense, of course the outcome is important!"
Lu Jiu said, "Alright, then if during the patient’s treatment, I used medication exceeding what’s in the national pharmacopeia, what would happen?"
Peng Yan frowned, momentarily silent.
In fact, many TCM Hospital experts and professors use doses exceeding the national pharmacopeia limits because without exceeding, the prescriptions have no effect, making them pointless.
While not illegal, this behavior breaches regulations, and if reported, there will definitely be fines.
Many patients, once cured, don’t dwell on whether the dosage was exceeded, so long as they’re healed. However, some with ulterior motives might.
The key issue is that only highly skilled directors or expert professors dare to exceed the national pharmacopeia limits freely—partly from confidence, partly because they have backing.
But how many such people are there?
Seeing Peng Yan’s silence, Lu Jiu continued, "Ultimately, the process is actually more important. No one cares if the patient gets better or not, as long as your procedure isn’t problematic. Anyway, most patients have been cultivated by Western medicine into thinking long-term medication equals treatment. TCM prescribing for a month or half a year means nothing. What’s the difference compared to the phrase circulating online, ’Sorry, the surgery was successful, but the patient unfortunately died.’?"
"A bunch of TCM doctors seeing patients, prescribing thousands worth of medicine per case—are you treating or selling medicine? Yet such behavior is not penalized and becomes tacitly accepted by all. Ha, I’ve more than once heard leadership in meetings talk about strengthening DIP payment reforms, specialty construction, deepening evaluation systems, yet never heard them advocate for fewer or ideally no hospital visits." 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚
"What, afraid of fewer patients and the hospital not making money? Ridiculous. If the efficacy is good, most patients heal quickly in the hospital, why worry about making money? Must they squeeze a person dry, ruin their family, and leave them destitute!?"
Peng Yan, hearing Lu Jiu’s voice growing louder, softened his tone, "I admit, hospitals do have this issue. But can’t we just not go along with them? Let them do theirs, we’ll do ours. Over time, patients will naturally discern who genuinely treats them, and if there are more like us, patients will vote with their feet, and the hospital atmosphere will improve."
Lu Jiu shook his head, "That’s just superficial. Without addressing the real crux, these issues will persist and even encroach upon the livelihood of sincere doctors. It’s like tumors or cancer – can they be fixed by excision? Without altering the environment conducive to diseases, all measures are in vain."
"I’ve always said, if a hospital doesn’t prioritize the people’s life safety as its medical guideline and only pursues procedural correctness, it creates a scenario where, even if the ailment isn’t solved, the fees are still collected, leading to perpetual tension in doctor-patient relationships, something not fixable by one or two good doctors."
"I’ve never run away; rather, I’m standing outside the rules watching them."
