The Enhanced Doctor-Chapter 699: Pediatrics still needs a "firefighting" solution
(Thanks to book friends 20170517180308746, book friends 20190506233558443, the supreme sun, book friends 20190515114421010 for the monthly ticket encouragement)
"Director Fang, how have the recent interviews gone?" Liu Banxia asked after taking a few more bites of food.
"We’ve gathered a lot of valuable information, which is why I came to the cafeteria. Your suggestion was excellent; we should definitely capture these small, everyday details of life in the hospital and show them to everyone," Director Fang said. "This allows people to truly understand how the whole hospital operates. If people knew more about what goes on behind the scenes, they might be more understanding and tolerant."
"Director Fang, I really appreciate it. More often than not, media outlets are most interested in controversial issues, as if there’s nothing else to report on besides hospital disruptions and medical lawsuits," Liu Banxia said, his tone tinged with emotion. "They always want to report on those eye-catching incidents to attract viewership and clicks. Some unscrupulous media outlets even distort facts to achieve these ends."
"Many conflicts arise from their one-sided reporting. Otherwise, why are ’reversals’ so popular on the internet? It’s because of irresponsible, out-of-context reporting by the media, which creates certain preconceived notions."
"I think news reporting is sometimes quite similar to how we treat patients; both demand timeliness. When we admit emergency patients, we still have to ask about their family medical history. If surgery is needed, we must conduct preoperative examinations."
"Even when we’re short on time, we can’t stop, because if we do, the patient will die. If there’s bleeding, we must transfuse blood, administer fluids, and quickly stop the hemorrhage."
"However, many media outlets are different. They’re skilled at ’transporting’ information. Regardless of whether it’s true or false, they copy it, change the headline, add some subjective interpretation, and call it news."
"No one wants to take responsibility for what they report, nor does anyone care how much harm their stories might cause others."
"So, I often find the media quite repulsive. Even though I do interviews and appear on TV shows, I still feel a certain aversion to it all."
Director Fang nodded. "Actually, we also detest this situation. As a mainstream media outlet, we need to maintain a certain degree of rigor."
"But with today’s proliferation of information, many new media professionals lack proper oversight, which leads to this situation. Dr. Liu, how do you eat so fast?"
As they chatted, Liu Banxia’s plate, once piled high with rice and dishes, was now empty, which genuinely startled Director Fang. He had eaten with Liu Banxia before, but Liu Banxia had never eaten like this.
"Haha, I usually eat like this. I don’t have time to savor the food; it’s just about filling my stomach and getting it done," Liu Banxia said.
"You can continue filming here. I have to go over to the pediatrics department. There are many patients in pediatrics today, and they’re swamped. I need to go help out."
"Su Wenhao, stay here with Director Fang for half an hour. If Director Fang has any questions, please help answer them. You can return to the emergency center after that."
"Okay, Teacher Liu," Su Wenhao replied.
"Dr. Su, that’s fine. We can continue filming here," Director Fang quickly said.
"It’s fine. Consider it a small break for him, though it’s only for half an hour at most. Otherwise, the emergency center will get very busy, and he can help with a lot of work there," Liu Banxia said, patting Su Wenhao on the shoulder.
This was indeed a small perk. Since it was already past mealtime, it couldn’t be counted as proper rest time. After eating, one had to hurry back to work in the emergency center. If there was a surgery scheduled for the afternoon, one could use that as an excuse to rest a bit longer.
Back at the emergency center, Liu Banxia checked with Shi Lei about the current situation. Seeing that there were no issues, he went straight to pediatrics.
"You’re finally back! We have so many young patients today, probably due to the temperature fluctuations these past couple of days," Chen Hongyang said.
"What can I help with? If it’s consultations, I might be a bit out of my depth," Liu Banxia said.
"Haha, still helping with IVs for the children," Chen Hongyang said with a laugh. "The children’s crying also affects the other kids, making them uncooperative during examinations. If you can just handle this well, our consultation volume today can increase significantly, and we won’t have to work too late."
Liu Banxia grinned, put on a mask, and donned disposable gloves.
So, he was back to his old trade. It seemed that every time he came to pediatrics, this was his job.
But don’t assume this is an easy job. Children don’t care who you are. The moment they see your white coat, they’re annoyed with you from the bottom of their hearts. If you try to touch them, they’ll pucker their little lips and start wailing.
Doctor-patient conflicts often ignite here. Parents are anxious about their children, and nurses find it difficult to forcibly hold a child’s arm still for an injection.
For IVs, it’s really just that initial prick of the needle that hurts. If a nurse’s skill is a bit subpar, they might have to adjust the needle’s position after insertion to find the vein. Even adults find it hard to endure sometimes, let alone today’s children. So, many nurses opt to pull the needle out and try again. Each additional attempt pushes the parents’ limits. When it accumulates, conflict erupts.
Once Liu Banxia took over, the effect was immediate. He succeeded on the first try every time, and his technique was truly steady, accurate, and swift.
"President Liu, you’re really amazing," Fu Hong, a pediatric nurse, said.
"It’s nothing, really. My hand is just steadier. You all can practice more too. When you can anticipate the movement of a child’s arm and insert the needle with the flow, that’s when you’ve got it," Liu Banxia said.
"President Liu, that’s just you saying that. If anyone else said it like that, I’d risk my job to argue with them properly," Fu Hong responded. "I’ve been in this profession for five years now; I can be considered a veteran nurse. But even now, every time I have to give a child an IV, I still get nervous."
"Anyway, among all the doctors and nurses I’ve encountered, only you possess such skill. If only you could come to our pediatrics department every day! I’d be willing even if they paid me a smaller bonus."
"I wish I could, but there are so many surgeries waiting for me. How many patients have been seen today?" Liu Banxia asked after setting up an IV for another child.
"Let me think... It’s already over 120, and there are still fewer than 80 waiting. And that’s just for now; more might come later," Fu Hong replied.
Liu Banxia sighed inwardly. The patient volume in pediatrics is truly immense. This isn’t even a specialized pediatric hospital, just the pediatrics section of the Second Hospital’s emergency center, not even its inpatient pediatrics department.
There were quite a few young patients today, but even on a regular day, each doctor would see no fewer than fifty. Working overtime in pediatrics was all too common.
"President Liu, will more attending physicians be assigned to the pediatrics department? Dr. Chen and Doctor Wang are very tired every day," Fu Hong asked.
"We’re trying to reallocate. You see how the doctors from internal medicine said they’d come, but they still haven’t shown up? For now, we’ve only managed to transfer a doctor from orthopedics, and that was because Director Xu did us a favor," Liu Banxia said. "The inpatient pediatrics department over there is also a disaster zone; their current patient volume is significant. I passed by this morning on my way to the proctology department and glanced in."
"Alright, there aren’t many children left. You all take a break. I’ll handle the rest. Chatting with the parents for a bit can also help ease their anxiety."
Fu Hong smiled and nodded; she had been waiting for Liu Banxia to say just that. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎
Whenever Liu Banxia came over, it was undoubtedly the greatest blessing for the nurses. Liu Banxia was incredibly fast, dealing with one child after another in rapid succession. If it weren’t for having to verify names and medications, even more time could have been saved.
The current added benefit was that the pediatrics department was much quieter than it had been during the earlier chaos. The children who had received their IVs were now sitting quietly. Once the IV was in, it didn’t hurt anymore, so there was nothing to fuss about. The parents also felt relieved, and their voices naturally lowered.
After another half hour of work, all the remaining children had their IVs started.
Liu Banxia rolled his neck; he was indeed tired. Even though it was just the simple task of inserting needles, he had to concentrate intensely to avoid any mistakes.
He glanced into the two consultation rooms in pediatrics; they were still busy seeing patients. He looked over at the waiting area; thankfully, not many new children had arrived.
"Director, why are you here?"
Just as he was about to stretch, he saw Zhou Shuwen approaching and quickly went to greet him.
"I heard there were quite a few patients in pediatrics today, so I came over to take a look," Zhou Shuwen said.
"Director, pediatrics, ICU, and anesthesiology—these three departments are a real headache," Liu Banxia said.
"Just hang in there for now. All hospitals are short-staffed in these three areas. When you have time, try to focus more of your efforts here. Orthopedics is adequately staffed now, so you don’t need to go put out fires there anymore," Zhou Shuwen said.
"Director, to be honest, dealing with these young patients is also a bit of a headache for me," Liu Banxia said helplessly.
"What else can be done? You’re the only one who can step up. You just have to bear this burden," Zhou Shuwen said bluntly.
"Alright, then I’ll focus more of my efforts here," Liu Banxia said.
Zhou Shuwen nodded in satisfaction. "When you’re done here and if there’s nothing else, come find me in my office. We need to chat."
"Okay, it’ll probably be at least another two hours here. I’ll find you then," Liu Banxia said.
No wonder Zhou Shuwen came looking for me personally. He must want to discuss something with me. I shouldn’t overthink it now; the children in pediatrics are the priority.
