The Enhanced Doctor

After leaving the operating room, Liu Banxia felt a wave of exhaustion. It wasn't physical fatigue, but mental. He had led the entire surgery he just performed, from start to finish. It was entirely different from the usual feeling of having Shi Lei by his side. In the past, whenever he heard people talk about immense pressure, he'd thought it was nonsense. Only when you truly feel this pressure do you realize it's heavier than a mountain. Take the decision he just made, for example; it had required careful consideration. If the patient had shown other symptoms, he would have needed to spend Glory Points to practice in the Dream Space. Otherwise, the standard procedure would have been to call the senior attending physicians from General Surgery, as they were more experienced. There had been discussions recently about high-risk occupations. Being a doctor was truly one of them, as the decisions you made could mean life or death for a patient.

"The bleeding has stopped, and the perforation has been repaired. When you're back in the ward, keep an eye on the drainage output. The nurses will show you what to do," Liu Banxia said to the patient's wife outside the operating room.

"Doctor, is everything alright now?" the patient's wife asked.

"Under normal circumstances, there shouldn't be any further issues, but we'll need to continue monitoring him. All surgeries carry risks. If he develops a high fever or if anything seems unusual that you don't understand, call a nurse immediately," Liu Banxia advised. "Don't worry too much; his vital signs are very stable. And no other problems occurred during the surgery. Just be sure to pay close attention."

Hearing Liu Banxia's words, the patient's wife calmed down a little.

Although he walked back with Qi Wentai, there was no interaction between them on the way. Liu Banxia admired his persistence in wanting to stay in the Emergency Department.

"Banxia, I heard you just finished a surgery. Is everything settled?" Wei Yuan asked when they returned to the Emergency Department.

Liu Banxia nodded. "It's settled. How did Liang do?"

"Doctor Liang did very well, but Wang Lei said he insists on arranging something when you're on your break," Wei Yuan said with a smile.

"What a vampire. If it weren't for his shift today, I could have joined them for some good food," Liu Banxia complained.

"Haha, Wang Lei was right; you definitely would complain. You still need to organize the case notes, right? Go on, get to it," Wei Yuan said.

"It's fine. Secretary Liang, could you organize the case files?" Liu Banxia said casually.

Liang Xiaolin, who wasn't in a particularly good mood to begin with, glared at him but still obediently went to organize the files. This was pretty much an unspoken rule; this kind of work always fell to the resident doctors. Even Qi Wentai, who relied on Qin Hai's influence, had to organize the patient's case files upon his return.

"Brother Wei, how many attending physicians do you think our Emergency Department will eventually have?" Liu Banxia asked curiously.

"Each shift should have at least seven, I'd say," Wei Yuan said after a moment's thought. "Two from General Surgery, one from Orthopedics, one from Thoracic Surgery, one from Neurosurgery, one from Obstetrics and Gynecology, plus you. That's seven. We might even get an extra one for Thoracic or Neurosurgery."

"Brother Wei, you're flattering me. I'm still a long way from being an attending physician," Liu Banxia said modestly.

"Don't be modest. Your skills now are far better than mine were back in the day. Let me put it this way: many attending physicians in this hospital might not actually be as technically skilled as you," Wei Yuan said.

"That's right, Dr. Liu is so skilled," Xu Dan, who had just finished tidying up, said cheerfully.

"Flattery won't help you. Didn't you miss the vein on your first try when starting that IV today? Don't panic when things get hectic. Once the Emergency Department is fully operational, we'll definitely have even more patients," Liu Banxia said.

Xu Dan stuck out her tongue. She didn't expect Liu Banxia to have noticed it during such a busy time.

"Banxia, do you want to have a word with them?" Wang Ying asked as she approached.

"Sister Wang, please don't tease me. All the women in our Emergency Department are top-notch; every single one of them is excellent," Liu Banxia quickly said.

"Sigh, I'm just worried that they'll panic when we have more patients in the future," Wang Ying sighed.

"Won't we recruit more nurses if patient numbers increase in the future?" Liu Banxia said.

Wang Ying shook her head. "How much would that add to our expenses? We can only train them up from the new graduates. After all, our work is quite different from yours as doctors."

Liu Banxia was at a loss for words. This was an issue he had never considered. He'd assumed that since the Emergency Department was being properly established, there would naturally be a large-scale staff expansion. But what Wang Ying said was true; cost-effectiveness was a factor in everything. It just meant that the actual work might be more challenging. He had seen firsthand the challenges posed by new trainee nurses.

"Dandan, you need to work hard. You'll have to be able to stand on your own two feet in the future," Liu Banxia encouraged.

Xu Dan nodded vigorously. "Dr. Liu, don't worry! I promise I'll get the needle in on the first try next time!"

This made Wang Ying laugh. This young lady has resources and connections, but she just doesn't like to study. Otherwise, with her uncle-in-law's network, becoming a doctor would have been a breeze for her.

"Sister Wang, speaking of which, it sounds like there are still many issues to sort out in our Emergency Department. For instance, the operating room: should we renovate the existing small one, or convert space upstairs?" Liu Banxia continued to ask.

"Those are decisions for the hospital leadership to consider; I wouldn't know," Wang Ying said, shaking her head. "But at least you all will have it a bit easier for the next two months. Once the department is truly up and running, you'll understand what real exhaustion is. The Second Affiliated Hospital used to have a formal Emergency Department too. Back then, doctors and nurses were scarce, and working over thirty hours straight was perfectly normal."

Hearing this made Liu Banxia a little apprehensive, but after a moment's thought, he decided not to dwell on it. He was supposed to be here twenty-four hours a day anyway, so a few more or fewer hours wouldn't make much difference to him.

Just then, Liu Banxia saw a patient walk in who looked somewhat familiar. When he got a clearer look and recognized the patient from Xu Hui's consultation earlier that day, his heart skipped a beat. He remembered this patient distinctly. Now, however, the man was clutching his chest as he entered—definitely not a good sign.

"Hello, are you feeling unwell again? Did the medicine not help?" Liu Banxia asked as he approached.

The patient nodded. "I felt a bit better this afternoon, but it got worse again in the evening. I'm still feverish, almost 39 degrees Celsius. I also feel very tired, and my chest is really tight."

Liu Banxia quickly helped the patient onto a gurney. "Try not to worry. I'll call a cardiologist for you right away. We need to run some tests: a complete blood count, an electrocardiogram, myocardial enzymes, and a troponin assay."

The cause of the patient's initial fever hadn't been determined, and now, with the added chest pain, Liu Banxia was genuinely concerned about a myocardial infarction. Furthermore, the fact that the patient had come in at this late hour suggested he was truly in severe discomfort.