Chapter 457
Various forms of resignation began to surface. Hospital treatment efficiency plummeted steeply. This reform was to force those who coast through their workdays to have nowhere to hide. This would no doubt affect the interests of some people. Therefore, the hospital management was very cautious about this experimental reform, starting only with General Surgery as a pilot. If successful, it would then be promoted across all departments. It was like boiling frogs in warm water, picking off the clinicians who were just biding their time. If they targeted all the slackers from the start, they might unite in protest, making it difficult to continue the reform. The hospital isn’t owned by any one person; it’s a relatively democratic institution. “Meeting adjourned!” Xia Huai’an announced the competitive rules and was the first to leave the conference room. The other doctors, however, were not in a hurry to leave, and started discussing the situation in groups, looking for teams to join or alliances to form. “Director Liu, our team only has a few people; perhaps we should join a stronger team?” Song Ze asked with concern. Everyone knew that winning the competition could potentially lead to becoming the head of a sub-department. The other doctors in the group could rise along with them. Director Jia was already 59 years old and on the verge of retirement. He had been striving for a Full Professor title for years but the prospects were dim, which inevitably made the doctors following him worry about their future. “At my age, even if I turned over a new leaf, I couldn’t become the main wife. It’s not worth it to stoop to others, having to read people’s faces. You are all still young, if you don’t have confidence in our group, you may try to join others.” Director Jia had two attending physicians and three resident doctors under him. Including himself, that was only six people. If you counted interns and standardized training students, then the numbers were somewhat larger. “I’m used to following Director Jia, and with this opportunity I want to give it my all. It may help boost my chances for a promotion to Deputy Director. Even if our group does rank very low in the competition, the hospital is not likely to fire us.” Hee Hansheng’s stance was firm. He was ready to stick with Deputy Director Liu to the end. When Song Ze suggested joining another group at this time, it was actually because he feared losing the initiative. Joining early would make him a contributor if that team won. If he waited to join after the sub-departments were established, he would be at a disadvantage. “Anyway, I was brought up by Dr. Hee and Director Liu, and I’m not going anywhere.” A resident doctor followed suit with their stance. Song Ze and two other resident doctors remained silent. When faced with major interest decisions, human nature could become extremely pragmatic. “I’ll say it again, as long as there are suitable groups willing to take you, you can join other groups at any time. I would have no objections.” After saying that, Deputy Director Liu left immediately. Song Ze’s eyes roamed about, clearly prepared to seek another path. Zhou Can was just a standardized training student, indifferent to the reforms in General Surgery. His plan was to return to the Emergency Department for development after his training ended. Whatever turmoil there was here, it was none of his business. Back in the doctor’s office, he continued reviewing the incomplete case files, then went on rounds with attending physician Hee Hansheng. At 9 a.m., Deputy Director Liu would start the first surgery. Zhou Can, along with an intern, took the patient scheduled for the cardioplasty into the operating room. The patient suffered from severe dysphagia and food regurgitation. After diagnosis, they were confirmed to have esophageal cardia achalasia. After ineffective treatment in the Internal Medicine Department, on the doctors’ advice, he opted for surgical treatment in General Surgery. However, he was unwilling to undergo esophageal dilation, so Deputy Director Liu planned a cardioplasty for him to treat his condition. This surgery was rarely performed now. Because most treatments have shifted to esophageal muscular layer incision methods. Cardioplasty is generally used for patients with esophageal cardia achalasia who have poor response to internal medicine treatment, significant esophageal dilation, and curvature, or are accompanied by other pathological changes such as hiatal hernia, suspected cancer, etc. This was Zhou Can’s first time participating in this kind of surgery, and he was quite looking forward to it. Learning it would surely be useful in the future.