The Enhanced Doctor-Chapter 586 Admirable People

"I... I don’t even know what to say anymore."

Xu Hui, having received the news, was stunned for a long moment, feeling deeply moved as well.

Myasthenia gravis... I hadn’t even considered that disease. I noticed the patient’s slow movements but just assumed it was due to the pneumonia.

"Once the patient’s condition improves a bit more, we can remove the tube and transfer them back to a regular ward. After all, intubation is uncomfortable, and prolonged intubation requires medication," Liu Banxia said with a smile.

Xu Hui nodded. "Fortunately, you discovered it; that saved a lot of time in reaching a diagnosis."

"Actually, the key issue is the patient’s lack of understanding of basic medical knowledge," Liu Banxia said.

"The patient can’t distinguish between muscle weakness from myasthenia and ordinary fatigue. Forget the patient; even we often find it difficult to differentiate."

"When patients come to see us, they often summarize all their symptoms with phrases like ’feeling exhausted’ or ’no strength.’ Without specific indicators, we have no way to tell the difference."

"It’s often easier to work backward from the outcome to a diagnosis than it is to go from symptoms to a diagnosis. This job... I’m finding it’s really getting harder and harder."

Xu Hui nodded. "That’s true. I’m not making excuses for myself; it really is hard to distinguish. Especially with myasthenia gravis patients, if the symptoms aren’t obvious, it’s incredibly difficult."

"Alright, don’t dwell on it. I’m heading out. Su Wenhao is staying in the ICU for his internship, and Liu Yiqing is also planning to go to pediatrics this afternoon. We’re down two little helpers now," Liu Banxia said.

"That’s good. Let them all get some solid experience. They’ll all be able to work independently in the future," Xu Hui said with a smile.

Liu Banxia chuckled and slipped out.

Having capable subordinates is a good thing; it saves a lot of worry. But now, with two fewer people, our effective strength is significantly reduced.

The interns, however, didn’t seem to think much of it; they knew a tough trial lay ahead. The days would be difficult, but they had to persevere.

"Dr. Liu, two car accident victims are being sent over. One has an abdominal puncture wound and went into hypovolemic shock in the ambulance!" a dispatch nurse called out.

"This is critical! Prepare blood bags, book an OR! Shi Lei, Brother Wei, get ready to receive them!" Liu Banxia ordered.

Patients in hypovolemic shock require immediate, heightened attention. There’s rarely enough time for extensive examinations; they usually go straight to the operating room after a preliminary check.

Shi Lei and Wei Yuan, along with the interns, readied themselves.

"Patient is a 36-year-old male, multiple chest and abdominal injuries, large scalp laceration. Unconscious, blood pressure 70/90, improved slightly after blood and fluid resuscitation," the paramedic said, wheeling the patient in.

"Resuscitation Room 1. Does the patient have any underlying conditions?" Shi Lei asked.

"We haven’t had time to ask yet," the paramedic replied.

Shi Lei nodded and ran with the patient into Resuscitation Room 1.

"Patient is a 26-year-old female, cervical spine status unconfirmed. Blunt trauma to the head and abdomen, blood pressure 50/70. Unconscious, received fluids and blood at the scene," said the paramedic from the second ambulance.

"Resuscitation Room 2," Wei Yuan directed.

Liu Banxia sighed inwardly. These two patients are in quite serious condition. The first one must be the pedestrian who was hit. A large piece of his scalp is gone—it looks horrifying. He also has a large abrasion on his cheek; he might have been dragged along the road. This female patient, even though she was the driver, isn’t much better off. Her blood pressure is even lower. It’s either due to shock or more severe bleeding.

Wei Yuan rushed out less than two minutes after going in. "Extensive intra-abdominal bleeding, likely from impact with the steering wheel! Cervical spine seems okay for now. No time to check her head; she needs to go to surgery immediately!"

Liu Banxia nodded. "Go. Protect the cervical spine as much as possible."

A little over three minutes later, Shi Lei also came out. "The male patient needs a head CT first. He has a skull fracture; there might be intracranial bleeding. The abdominal ultrasound looks normal for now."

Liu Banxia nodded. "Go ahead. I’ll contact neurosurgery."

Both these patients are indeed very challenging to handle.

"Officer, what happened with these two?" Liu Banxia asked the traffic policeman nearby.

"Someone jaywalked—darted out into the road. When the driver noticed, they swerved sharply. The driver managed to avoid that person but ended up hitting someone else. They probably panicked and didn’t manage to hit the brakes in time," the traffic policeman explained.

"What about the person who caused the accident?" Liu Banxia asked.

"We haven’t found them yet; they fled the scene. We’ll check the surveillance footage later. How are the two injured parties? We’re trying our best to contact their families now," the traffic policeman asked.

"One went straight to the OR; the other is getting a CT scan. The man has a skull fracture. If there’s bleeding, we’ll have to see how bad it is, but it doesn’t look good," Liu Banxia said.

"Not following traffic rules... it’s just not acceptable," the traffic policeman said.

"Even though we advocate for yielding to pedestrians, people can’t just treat the road like it’s their private driveway. Witnesses said the light had already changed, but the jaywalker was still strolling across the crosswalk. They sure ran fast after the accident happened, though."

Liu Banxia winced; he hadn’t expected this to be the cause.

However, what the traffic officer described was a common phenomenon. In the past, people usually tried to avoid cars. Nowadays? Many people simply don’t care.

In their minds, they think, ’You drivers wouldn’t dare hit me, a pedestrian. If you dare hit me, I’ll make you pay.’

While it would be an exaggeration to say the emergency center received such patients daily, admitting one or two such patients every few days was quite common.

After a short wait, the male patient’s results came back.

Subdural hematoma, extensive, with high intracranial pressure causing brain deformation. For now, all they could do was manage with medication and machine assistance. Whether to proceed with surgery depended on obtaining authorization from the patient’s family.

Such cases were the most difficult. There were surgical indications, but the prognosis was grim. Even small subdural hematomas carried a very poor prognosis for patients, let alone one this large.

Zhang Xiao had suggested conservative treatment while awaiting family authorization, a course of action Liu Banxia also supported. For this patient, brain death is only a matter of time. Any further intervention would just burden the family with huge medical bills.

"Officer, we still need your help contacting the family. Let’s try calling them again," Liu Banxia said.

The traffic policeman nodded. He frequently handled accidents and visited hospitals, so he understood the current situation.

"Ah, Sister Fang, what brings you here?" Liu Banxia asked, noticing Coordinator Liu Fang approaching.

"I just received a notification. The male car accident patient you admitted is a registered organ donor. Has his family arrived? I’d like to see if I can obtain their consent for organ donation," Liu Fang said.

Liu Banxia grimaced. "We haven’t been able to contact the family yet. Let’s wait and see. We really need to hurry; the patient doesn’t have much time. The hematoma is very severe."

Organ donors are worthy of admiration because they save lives. However, obtaining family consent is never easy. This is something that needs to be discussed carefully with the family once they arrive.

After waiting a while longer, Wei Yuan returned from the operating room.

"I sutured a lacerated spleen and resected a torn segment of intestine. He’s been sent for head and neck CT scans. If there are no other issues, he’ll be transferred to the ICU. What about the other one?" Wei Yuan asked as he came back.

"Extensive subdural hematoma," Liu Banxia replied.

"My God," Wei Yuan exclaimed.

"It’s just so tragic for that young man. He was properly waiting for the red light by the roadside and suffered this ungrounded disaster," Shi Lei added with a sigh.

Everyone felt a wave of sorrow; it was indeed a senseless tragedy.

The person who broke the rules got away unscathed, while the one following them ended up brain dead.

Just then, a group of people rushed in. After a quick inquiry, it was confirmed they were the male patient’s family. Zhang Xiao quickly went over to explain the patient’s current condition.

For the family, the news was like a bolt from the blue.

"Sister Fang, will you need me to accompany you later?" Liu Banxia asked Liu Fang.

Liu Fang shook her head. "In my experience, the fewer people present, the better. Too many people can make the patient’s family feel resentful."

"Sigh... Your job is much harder than ours. Let’s wait for a bit and see what the family decides," Liu Banxia said.

After a good twenty minutes, Zhang Xiao returned. "The family has decided. No surgery."

"Sigh... Even though I know it’s the right decision, it’s still hard to hear," Liu Banxia lamented.

Although they were doctors, supposedly accustomed to life and death, each such experience was never easy.

Especially when the patient was this unfortunate, a victim of such an unexpected catastrophe.

Their part was now mostly done, but Liu Fang’s task was just beginning. Whether she could obtain the family’s consent in a short time was now crucial.

However, Liu Banxia knew better than to get involved in such matters; the potential repercussions were serious, and he understood that.

"My patient’s head and neck CTs look clear for now. He’s being sent to the ICU," Wei Yuan announced, having just received the update.

Liu Banxia nodded. "It’s about lunchtime. You guys go eat. I’ll keep an eye on things here."

"Are you okay? You seem a bit down," Wei Yuan asked.

"I just feel terrible for that patient. He was just so unlucky," Liu Banxia said.

"No one could have predicted it. Well, we’ll go eat then," Wei Yuan said, shaking his head.

In truth, Liu Banxia was not just sighing over the situation; he was also waiting for Liu Fang’s results. After waiting for a full half-hour, Liu Fang returned and nodded at him.

The family’s consent didn’t bring Liu Banxia any relief; instead, his heart grew heavier. This decision is undoubtedly another painful blow to the family, and they are all people worthy of admiration.