Chapter 429: Chapter 210: Operating Directly, Sawing Bone

The hospital staff cafeteria starts getting particularly busy at 5 PM.

Some of the general staff and caregivers come early for a meal. A few clever caregivers might even help the doctors get their food.

Many imagine caregivers just dealing with patients’ bodily needs and feeding them in wards. In reality, the major hospitals have a complex mix of non-contract workers, and even those who look like nurses are often just outsourced caregivers for the departments.

Although no job is inherently superior or inferior, there is still a clear hierarchy in hospitals based on the caregivers’ duties, benefits, and contracts.

The most influential is the head of the nursing department, followed by the chief head nurse, head nurses, and other leaders.

Then come the regular nurses.

Senior nurses are quite respected, with decent positions, but not particularly high. They are completely different from senior physicians.

Below that are associate senior nurses and supervising nurses, both considered to have some status among nurses, often doing second-line duties or giving orders.

Below those are the regular nurses, which include senior responsible nurses, ordinary nurses, and intern nurses, among others.

All of the above, except the intern and resident nurses, are officially employed by the hospital.

Including many underappreciated guide nurses, who mostly hover on the edge of being official employees.

Caregivers are of two types: those employed by the hospital and those from outside.

Their work is often quite ordinary, like reception duties, persuading patients to undergo therapy, or getting tests done.

For instance, pelvic floor recovery in gynecology clinics or uterine prolapse; due to the frequency of therapy and magnetic treatments, which can be costly, many patients buy their own devices online for home treatment.

Nurses need to persuade them to get treated at the hospital’s outpatient clinic.

Because it’s a must to generate income.

Each therapy course for uterine prolapse costs three to four thousand yuan, and if there’s no insurance coverage, it doesn’t get reimbursed. People can buy a machine online for less than three thousand and do it at home at their own convenience; it’s obvious what the choice would be.

For severe prolapse, two to three courses of recovery might be needed, costing over ten thousand yuan.

Few patients can accept such high treatment fees.

That’s when caregivers come in to "recruit" patients.

So, caregivers need to stay on good terms with department doctors. If a doctor is unhappy with them, just a couple of minor obstacles could make them suffer.

Hospitals are not the sanctuaries people imagine, and the concept of equality is nonsense.

They are almost no different from ordinary workplaces.

If you need to flatter, you flatter.

Li Jingsheng swiped his card and entered, seeing many people already dining.

Ou Qinglan was easy to spot; among the sea of faces, from the side, back, or front, she was always easily noticeable.

At first glance, there was truly a spark.

"Qinglan!"

Li Jingsheng walked over briskly.

"I got you some braised pork and also bought a portion of loach. See which veggies you like?"

Ou Qinglan held two stainless steel trays.

On her own tray, there were just two small portions of vegetables and a bit of rice.

"You always pick the best for me?"

Li Jingsheng was never picky about food.

"You have to eat well; look how thin you’ve gotten lately! Hurry and pick some veggies, we still need to go to the operating room later!"

"How about I get some cabbage?"

After saying this, Li Jingsheng glanced at her tray.

"Why aren’t you eating some meat?"

"Afraid of gaining weight! For us girls, our figure is more important than anything."

"Shrimp won’t make you gain weight!"

"Do you see any shrimp here?"

"Chicken and fish are good too! They don’t make you gain weight," Li Jingsheng said, and added to the lady serving food, "Give her a portion of chicken, please!"

Ou Qinglan didn’t object.

When they paid for the food she ordered later, she insisted on using her card.

Li Jingsheng noticed that her card balance wasn’t much, seemingly only 173 yuan left.

After getting their food, the two found two empty seats next to each other and sat down.

"Want some loach?"

Li Jingsheng immediately picked one up for her.

"No, no, I’m most afraid of snakes and loaches," she hurriedly returned it to him.

"You’re a surgeon and afraid of snakes? I think doing surgery on patients should be scarier than snakes."

"Girls tend to be afraid of snakes. Other girls fear mice, but I’m not afraid."

She smiled shyly.

It was clear that she really enjoyed eating chicken.

Had Li Jingsheng not insisted, she surely wouldn’t have bought some.

Seated across them was a female nurse, who seemed around forty-seven or forty-eight years old. Seeing the affection between Li Jingsheng and Ou Qinglan, she couldn’t help but smile.

"Hello!"

Although a bit shy, Ou Qinglan still smiled and greeted her.

Li Jingsheng nodded politely at the nurse.

Nursing is a profession for the young; as many nurses age, they may either resign voluntarily or be forced to and change careers.

Only a very few can transition to a backstage role.

This nurse approaching fifty and still working assuredly had a decent position.

"Seeing you two reminds me of my youth. When I was dating Old Lin, it was just like you two now. Many say doctors marrying nurses, or doctors marrying doctors, can’t manage families well since both are busy with work. I think it’s no big deal," she said with a laugh.

"Exactly, exactly,"

Li Jingsheng nodded in agreement with a smile.

"Which department are you two from? You look great, both with kind eyes radiant with integrity."