62: Chapter 62 The emergency department should also have its own operating room.
Lu Chen withdrew his gaze and walked towards the Emergency Department.
Halfway there, a thought suddenly popped into his head.
The process of yesterday's surgery reminded him of something.
The Emergency Department is the front line of the Hospital.
All the most critical and urgent patients come through the Emergency Department.
Those with massive hemorrhages, multiple traumas, or cardiac arrest.
These patients are racing against death every single minute and second.
But the Emergency Department does not have an Operating Room.
If a patient needs surgery, they must be transferred to another department.
From the Emergency Department to the General Surgery Department's Operating Room, it takes at least five or six minutes, even if you walk fast.
If it's at night, coordinating the opening of the Operating Room and waiting for the anesthesiologist to arrive might take even longer.
Five or six minutes.
To an ordinary person, that doesn't seem like much.
But for a patient with a massive hemorrhage, five or six minutes could mean a life.
That night during the rainstorm, when the victims of the pile-up on the South City Expressway flooded in, if any of those victims had needed emergency laparotomy for hemostasis, the Emergency Department wouldn't have been able to do it at all; they could only be sent to the General Surgery Department's Operating Room.
What if an accident happened on the way?
What if the elevator broke down?
What if their heart stopped on the way?
These are all very real risks.
What if the Emergency Department had its own Operating Room?
Even if it were just one room, and even if the equipment wasn't as comprehensive as a specialized Operating Room, at least it could perform some basic emergency surgeries in the most critical moments.
Exploratory laparotomy, hemostasis, Debridement, and even simple laparoscopic procedures.
This thought spun around in Lu Chen's head a few times.
Then he shook his head.
The idea is good, but this isn't something a Resident Physician like him can push forward.
Building an Operating Room requires space, equipment, funding, and approval.
He cannot solve any of these issues.
Moreover, building an Operating Room in the Emergency Department would inevitably involve a conflict of interests with other departments.
The resources of the General Surgery Department's Operating Room are fixed; if the Emergency Department had its own Operating Room, wouldn't that mean some surgeries wouldn't need to be sent to General Surgery anymore?
The General Surgery Department would certainly not be happy about that.
This matter is too complicated.
Lu Chen temporarily pushed this thought to the back of his mind.
He would talk about it later if there was a chance.
Right now, the most important thing is to improve his skills and accumulate experience.
He would think about these things again once he had enough influence.
...
When he returned to the Emergency Department, the Red Zone was already getting busy.
Today wasn't Lu Chen's shift, but as a Resident Physician, being on call at any time is the norm.
He first went to the Nurse Station to sign in, then went to the Red Zone to check the situation.
Meng Yan was arranging the Nurse shift handover.
"Dr. Lu, just stay on standby this morning. We'll call you if anything comes up."
"Alright, Sister Meng."
Lu Chen sat down at his workstation in the Red Zone.
The Red Zone was relatively calm in the morning, with no particularly critical patients.
Wu Fan was treating an elderly patient with a pulmonary infection, and Sun Ji was following up on a case of gastrointestinal bleeding.
Lu Chen helped with some basic physical examinations and record-keeping, and took the opportunity to scan a few patients with the system, accumulating some experience points in Internal Medicine Diagnostics.
Around ten o'clock, Shen Xiaoning ran over from the Yellow Zone to deliver some medical records.
When she saw Lu Chen, her eyes immediately lit up.
"Dr. Lu!"
"Hmm."
"How was the meeting this morning?"
"Just a normal meeting."
"I heard from Sister Meng that Vice President Zeng praised you again?"
"Just routine."
Shen Xiaoning looked at him and tilted her head.
"Why do you always act so indifferent every time you get praised?"
"Because praise can't be eaten as food, nor can it be paid out as a salary."
Shen Xiaoning was choked up for a moment, then burst into laughter.
"You are so pragmatic, Dr. Lu."
"How else am I supposed to survive if I'm not pragmatic?"
Shen Xiaoning put down the medical records but stayed standing there.
Lu Chen glanced at her.
"Anything else?"
"No, I just wanted to talk to you for a bit."
"Aren't you busy right now?"
"It's okay. Sister Meng told me to go back right after delivering the medical records."
"Then you should hurry back."
"Oh."
Shen Xiaoning walked away, looking a bit disappointed.
When she reached the door, she looked back.
Lu Chen was already looking down, writing medical records, and hadn't noticed her looking back at all.
Shen Xiaoning muttered under her breath.
"Geez."
Then she trotted back to the Yellow Zone.
Meng Yan watched from the side, the corner of her mouth twitching slightly, but she didn't say anything.
The morning passed just like that.
...
Twelve o'clock noon.
Lu Chen went to the Cafeteria for lunch and ran into Director Li Sen on his way back.
"Director."
"Have you eaten?"
"Yes, I have."
Director Li Sen looked around, walked a few steps forward, and reached a relatively quiet corner.
Lu Chen followed him.
"How did you feel about today's meeting?"
"Vice President Zeng was using me to make a point."
Director Li Sen looked at him.
"You noticed?"
"I noticed. Sister Zhao reminded me as well."
"That girl Zhao Yaqin is quite sharp."
Director Li Sen was silent for a moment.
"The people on Vice President Peng Zhao's side might have some issues with you."
"I know."
"It's good that you know. But you don't need to worry too much. As long as you don't make any fundamental mistakes, no one can touch you."
"Director, I just want to quietly treat patients and perform surgeries."
"That's a nice thought, but you are no longer an obscure little Resident Physician. Too many people in the Hospital already know your name."
Director Li Sen sighed.
"There are some things I can help you block, but there are some things I can't. Just take care of yourself."
"Thank you, Director."
"Stop with the constant thank-yous. Perfecting your skills is more useful than anything else."
Director Li Sen finished speaking and turned to leave.
Lu Chen stood there for a few seconds, thinking.
Skills.
Everyone was giving him the same answer.
Skills are the foundation.
Fine.
Then he would continue practicing.
...
One o'clock in the afternoon.
The number of patients in the Red Zone started to increase.
First came a trauma from a car accident: an open fracture of the right lower leg.
Lu Chen scanned him with the system, confirmed there were no other associated injuries, and notified the Orthopedics Department for a consultation.
Then came an elderly woman with sudden loss of consciousness and blood pressure skyrocketing to 220/130.
Zhao Yaqin brought Lu Chen along to handle it.
Lowering blood pressure, getting a CT scan to rule out cerebral hemorrhage, and writing medical orders.
After going through the whole process, Lu Chen's experience points for Internal Medicine Diagnostics increased a little bit more.
Around two o'clock in the afternoon, three more patients arrived: one with acute abdominal pain, one with chest tightness and shortness of breath, and one with alcohol poisoning.
Lu Chen handled them one by one.
He scanned the acute abdominal pain patient with the Eye of Truth; it was acute pancreatitis, so he transferred the patient to the Department of Gastroenterology.
The one with chest tightness and shortness of breath had an acute exacerbation of chronic bronchitis and was put on a non-invasive ventilator.
The alcohol poisoning case was simpler: induced vomiting and rehydration for observation.
That's the rhythm of the Red Zone: wave after wave, with almost no time to catch one's breath in between.
Quarter past three in the afternoon.
Lu Chen had just finished Suturing a trauma wound and was writing records at the Nurse Station.
A sudden commotion came from the Triage Desk in the Emergency Department.
"Hurry, hurry, hurry! This way, push them in!"
Lu Chen looked up.
Two people rushed in, pushing a wheelchair.
A man in his fifties was sitting in the wheelchair.
The man's face was purple, and his lips were deep blue.
He was breathing rapidly, and wheezing sounds were clearly audible.
His chest was heaving violently, and the muscles in his neck were visibly contracting with every breath.