Chapter 17: Medical Skeleton!
“So, do you dislike those rules now? For instance, the postgraduate entrance exam, pursuing a doctorate, and also writing academic papers,” Chen Song asked, his tone ethereal as he stared intently at Lu Cheng’s expression.
Lu Cheng replied, “I can only say I don’t like them.”
Lu Cheng sighed lightly, “Teacher Chen, I simply haven’t enjoyed or integrated into the rules, so I can’t say whether I like or dislike them.”
Do most people inherently detest social graces? Not at all. Most people cannot enjoy the benefits brought by social graces and rules, which is why they also detest them. Those who benefit from them, however, revere them as divine decrees.
Chen Song consoled him, “It seems your temperament has indeed become much smoother over the years.”
“Actually, for postgraduate studies, academic ability is crucial; it’s the most fundamental path to success. After all, in medicine, surgical procedure research and development, surgical improvements, and the exploration of new disease treatment plans are all baseless without scientific research techniques.”
“Our primary duty as doctors is to treat illnesses and save people, not just those that can be treated, but also to think about incurable diseases.”
“From ancient times to the present, this has been the accepted principle.”
“Therefore, to become a top-tier doctor, one cannot do without scientific research.”
“However, the reality is that less than one in ten thousand doctors eventually become top doctors, those who need to use scientific research technology to feed back into clinical technology. Most doctors are actually mere repeaters of other people’s research papers. Do you understand what I mean?”
Lu Cheng certainly understood and nodded, “Teacher Chen, you mean that the books we’ve read, the textbooks we’ve studied, down to every single sentence, are actually the research output of other seniors, and their research achievements have become classics, thus they were included in textbooks.”
“When we go to read them, study them, and use them, we are essentially just manifesting the seniors’ understanding of medicine onto specific patients.”
Chen Song said, “Exactly!”
“It’s us, I am like this too.”
“Medicine is so vast and profound…”
“Furthermore, the essence of medicine and the operation of medical institutions is ‘newness’.”
“For example, the world’s first case, the country’s first surgery, the province’s first surgery, the county’s first surgery.”
“Specifically for an individual, it’s their first time in life.”
“This entry level is ‘the most difficult’!”
Chen Song was not merely boasting to Lu Cheng.
Lu Cheng had worked at Long County People’s Hospital for five years, so he naturally understood Chen Song’s meaning, “Teacher Chen, regarding tendon suturing, it can actually be considered a treatment that Long County needs to ‘newly research,’ right?”
County hospitals and township hospitals should not even think about the city’s first surgery, or the province’s or country’s first surgery; that is fundamentally impossible.
Doctors in county hospitals who can keep pace with the technical progress of doctors in prefectural city hospitals are already considered “top-notch” locally.
Scientific research is not nonsense; it is about innovation. And the prerequisite for innovation is understanding the “old”—to improve upon “classics” with sufficient comprehension.
China’s current emphasis on technology transfer downwards is essentially what this means.
The main task for doctors in prefectural city hospitals is to learn some of the technologies from provincial hospitals and bring them to prefectural city hospitals. The lifelong task for doctors in county hospitals is to bring back the techniques from prefectural city and some provincial hospitals, to be transporters.
Doing this well is not easy. At least, with the current medical framework, there are few county hospitals’ specialty departments that can meet the “national policy”!
“Ultimately, medicine is a game of skills, whether at the county, provincial, national, or international level.”
“However, at the national and international levels, where skills are paramount, there is also ‘clash of ideas,’ which is not something you need to understand now. For now, you only need to focus on being a technology transporter.”
“Don’t think too far ahead. First, diligently master tendon suturing.”
“Once you have mastered tendon suturing, if you want to learn about other disease types or further refine your skills, it is all feasible; you will have a direction then,” Chen Song’s guidance remained very specific and detailed.
Lu Cheng was aware of the techniques in hand surgery, but the entry barrier for these techniques was too high.
“Teacher Chen, are you suggesting I specialize in the direction of hand surgery?” Lu Cheng sincerely asked for advice.
Chen Song shook his head, “Not necessarily. It depends on how you plan your future. Whether you want to become a specialized doctor or a dedicated emergency department doctor. If you are a dedicated emergency department doctor, then mastering tendon suturing is sufficient for emergencies.”
“If you are a specialized doctor, then you will need to learn finger replantation, or more advanced techniques in hand surgery, orthopedics, and so on.”
“Of course, at your county hospital level, mastering finger replantation requires many years of accumulation.”
“And in Xiangzhou People’s Hospital, where your Long County is located, the hand surgery department’s task is to perform ‘tendon’ and ‘vascular’ transposition surgeries. For example, Xiangya Second Hospital’s task is ‘nerve transposition,’ ‘functional reconstruction,’ and ‘surgical procedure improvement’.”
“Of course, renowned orthopedic hospitals like Huashan Hospital and Jishuitan have the task of researching and improving surgeries such as ‘functional reconstruction’ and ‘fracture correction,’ pursuing the highest achievements in hand surgery.”
Chen Song specifically explained the framework of medicine to Lu Cheng.
Lu Cheng felt a slight heat in his chest, but upon listening carefully, he felt these things were too distant…
It was nearing mid-summer in July, but not yet the hottest part of the season. After drinking three bottles of beer, Lu Cheng chose to walk home.
The familiar Chaoyang Road, the familiar Xinhua Bookstore, the familiar lanterns, the familiar turn, the familiar streetlights.
Yet, Lu Cheng felt a sense of unfamiliarity with himself.
After the conversation with Professor Chen Song, Lu Cheng’s understanding of what it means to be a good doctor had been redefined.
As a doctor, treating illnesses and saving lives, and rescuing the wounded and the dying is the fundamental duty.
However, to achieve these words, it seems insufficient at any level, and yet sufficient at every level…
When Lu Cheng pushed open the door, his father and mother were counting loose change.
One yuan, fifty cents, five yuan, ten yuan, twenty yuan… each bundled together, already sorted.
Tian Hui said happily, “After deducting expenses, we have a total of seven thousand three hundred and sixty-three yuan and fifty cents. We can deposit seven thousand again.”
Tian Hui and Lu Nan’s earnings were in small amounts, with daily income balancing daily expenses, so there was no need to keep a lot of cash at home.
“Mom, do you need money? I have over two hundred thousand here…” Lu Cheng said earnestly.
Lu Cheng had been working for nearly five years, eating and living at home, with his parents covering expenses. His savings were considerable, having earned seven thousand a month previously, and eight thousand a month after becoming an attending physician.
Lu Cheng didn’t smoke or chew betel nut, and he spent over twenty thousand a year, so he wasn’t exactly frugal.
“Keep your money to find a wife. We haven’t taken your money, but you still can’t bring a girlfriend home, right?” Tian Hui said, slapping her palm with a stack of five-yuan bills.
In her slightly good mood, she was already thinking about grandchildren.
“The leaders in my department are arranging a blind date for me this month.”
“I’m going to take a shower…” Lu Cheng slipped into his room.
Lu Nan and Tian Hui didn’t pressure Lu Cheng to explain. Finding a wife couldn’t be forced.
The night passed uneventfully.
The next day, when Lu Cheng went to start his shift, he could feel that the other senior doctors and nurses were noticeably more polite to him.
