"Is Doctor Song only assisting today’s surgery?"
"Doctor Song requested to be the first assistant himself. I heard he’s a recommended doctor from Shen City. Otherwise, our hospital wouldn’t be able to handle this surgery."
"Quickly, let’s hurry over as well to see the skills of the doctor from the big city!"
Both of these nurses were scheduled to help in the operating room. They quickly finished the pre-surgery disinfection and rushed into the operating room. Upon seeing the leading surgeon at the front, all they could discern from the exposed eyes was that the doctor was indeed young!
Xu Qinghuan counted all the instruments and checked the names, batches, and verified the dosages of the medications, "Did you record the drug manufacturer and batch numbers?"
"Ah, do we need to record this as well?" The second assistant beside her was a bit stunned.
"I don’t care about the hospital’s regulations, but for my surgeries, all information must be documented and signed," Xu Qinghuan’s cool voice carried an undeniable authority.
"Yes!" The second assistant responded promptly.
After checking the anesthesia effects, Xu Qinghuan began the operation. Her movements were highly skilled; the patient’s abdominal cavity was filled with fluid, yet the incision she made was very small. Her operation was swift and dazzling, leaving most unable to keep up, only Song Yanqing could manage to see what she was doing clearly, while others could only watch the commotion.
The surgery initially planned for two hours took Xu Qinghuan only one hour and five minutes.
As the surgery concluded, the patient’s vital signs began to stabilize.
"Four bleeding points in the abdominal cavity: record them. One at the spleen, one at the liver, one due to pancreatic rupture, and another at the abdominal aortic aneurysm." Xu Qinghuan asked the second assistant, "Have you recorded everything clearly?"
"Recorded!" The second assistant took a deep breath. Assisting in this operation made him even more nervous than wielding the knife himself.
Actually, he feared not keeping up with the pace.
Song Yanqing’s inner clothes were soaked with sweat. She had presided over operations before but never felt this pressured.
Momentarily distracted, a hand reached over unexpectedly; Song Yanqing paused, hearing Xu Qinghuan say, "Stitching is done, pass me the scissors."
She cut the catgut line, tied a knot with a specific technique, cleaned the blood stains from the patient, checked the instruments and materials again, and breathed a sigh of relief, saying, "The operation is over, return the patient to the ward, administer the anti-inflammatory injection as per my prescription."
Deng Aiguo, observing throughout, found it unimaginable that someone so young could possess such immense skills. Truly, big cities harbor hidden talents!
The educated youths going to the countryside indeed have advantages; otherwise, where else would you encounter such outstanding talents!
The door to the operating room opened, and a group of people surged forward, led by the eager New United Team leader asking, "How was the surgery? Is Wei Jun okay?"
Xu Qinghuan exchanged a glance with Jiang Xingye at the back, reassuring his concerns, and pulled down her mask, "The surgery was very successful, the patient’s vitals are improving; all four bleeding points were addressed. If conditions remain stable tonight, we should have passed the danger period."
"That’s wonderful, thank you so much, Comrade Xu, for your hard work! Could you spare some time to come to my office to discuss something?" Deng Aiguo asked.
Xu Qinghuan nodded, glanced over at Jiang Xingye, who now had the chance to approach, "Should I wait outside for you?"
"Alright!" Xu Qinghuan removed her hat and took off her white coat, which Jiang Xingye took in hand naturally.
In the office, Deng Aiguo handed Xu Qinghuan twenty-five yuan, "This is the compensation for the surgery, it’s not much, but please don’t dislike it."
Xu Qinghuan accepted the money without intention of charity and prepared to leave when Deng Aiguo halted her, "Comrade Xu, we have another request."
"Please go ahead!"
"It’s like this, we’ve hired you as a surgeon for our hospital. The salary level is set at grade six; the monthly salary is seventy-seven yuan and eighty-five cents. Do you think that’s acceptable?"
Previously, to formalize Xu Qinghuan performing this operation, the hospital issued an appointment letter, both for the hospital’s and Xu Qinghuan’s protection.
"I’m an educated youth volunteering in the countryside, not planning to work in the city," Xu Qinghuan declined.
Deng Aiguo wasn’t surprised at all; if she intended to stay, she wouldn’t have left Shen City to come here.
"Comrade Xu, this doesn’t hinder your role as an educated youth in Shangjiang Team. We will pay you regularly; all employee benefits are equal. You only need to perform three surgeries for us each month and allow our doctors to observe. How does that sound?"
This request wasn’t excessive, and in fact, one could say it was an exceptional favor to Xu Qinghuan.
"Comrade Xu, in this small place, our hospital’s overall level isn’t great. Particularly in recent years, it’s been difficult to recruit talents. I saw your entire surgery process; we need someone like you. Would you be willing to contribute to improving our hospital’s overall level?" Deng Aiguo spoke with extreme sincerity.
This was a public hospital.
Xu Qinghuan once again marveled at the purity of thought in this era.
"Alright!" She agreed, "I plan to stay here tonight to monitor the patient post-surgery. If you have the convenience, you can organize a group, and I can explain today’s surgery, mainly focused on how to locate bleeding points in the organs."
Deng Aiguo was thrilled; organ bleeding is a major challenge in surgery, especially now without advanced examination procedures, mainly relying on doctors’ experience for judgment.
Deng Aiguo personally arranged Xu Qinghuan’s lecture while she stepped out and saw Jiang Xingye standing under the shade at the hospital entrance.
"I’ll be staying here tonight; the patient just finished surgery and needs observation," Xu Qinghuan said.
"I’ll stay with you, and I have business here as well," Jiang Xingye said.
"Alright, you handle your business first, and tonight I’ll be on duty at the hospital. When you finish, come over here."
They hadn’t anticipated spending the night in the county town, nor had they obtained an introduction letter from the team headquarters, so they couldn’t stay in the guest hostel.
"Ok!" Jiang Xingye deeply looked at her, noticing there was no one around, held her hand, somewhat reluctant to let go, then leaned his other cheek close to Xu Qinghuan, gazing at her eagerly.
Xu Qinghuan couldn’t help but laugh, poking him with her soft, pale finger, "You should go, don’t push your luck!"
As some people exited the hospital, he had to release her hand, smiling brightly, "I’ll come find you later; let’s have dinner at the state-run restaurant."
"Alright!"
Upon hearing that the surgery would be reviewed, not many were interested.
"Doctor Xu is willing to conduct a surgery review for us, oh my, that’s great! I heard her surgical technique is very proficient, with such a small incision for a major operation and remarkable suturing skills!"
"The patient hasn’t passed the danger period yet; who knows if the surgery was successful? If complications arise, they might blame us for improper care. If we’re doing a review, can’t it wait until the patient is out of the danger period? There’s no need to rush for the limelight."
"Tomorrow morning, the patient will have passed the danger period; Doctor Xu is returning to the countryside then. It’s the hospital requesting Doctor Xu to explain, not us asking her to do so; why should we adjust to our timing?"
"How is this adjusting to our timing? Did I say such a thing?" Xie Qunfang was almost exploding with anger; wasn’t she speaking the truth?
The patient hasn’t escaped the danger period; who knows if the surgery has succeeded?