"Shi Lei, has the diagnosis been confirmed?" Zhou Shuwen asked as he walked in from outside with his team.
Shi Lei nodded. "Almost certain. Thanks to Liu Banxia's timely detection, the condition wasn't allowed to worsen."
His words were quite indirect, but Zhou Shuwen, Xiao He, the deputy director of gastroenterology he had brought, and Ding Wenbo, the deputy director of cardiothoracic surgery, all understood.
This young doctor might have prevented a medical malpractice incident for the hospital.
After the three senior doctors examined the patient, their expressions became somewhat grave.
"What do you two think?" Zhou Shuwen asked.
"Xiao Shi's judgment is very accurate, and the bloodletting was timely. We should perform an urgent cardiac ultrasound, then routine blood tests, blood biochemistry, and a chest and abdomen MRI. The heart auscultation just now was very poor; there's likely some iron deposition in the heart," Ding Wenbo said.
DING! Gained 20 experience points, 10 skill proficiency points in diagnostic medicine.
Liu Banxia blinked his eyes. No wonder everyone loves to associate with senior doctors. Even just listening to them can increase one's skill level; it's definitely worth sticking with the system. This must be the result of that increased comprehension ability. Excellent!
"Okay, I'll arrange it now," Wang Ying, who had arrived subsequently, responded.
"Doctor Liu, is our Old Liu in danger?" Liu Liyou's wife asked, extremely anxious.
"Don't worry, as I just said, it's not very serious. After the consultation with the three department heads, it's basically confirmed as hemochromatosis," Liu Banxia said reassuringly.
"This means there's too much iron in the body, which then deposits in the organs. Phlebotomy therapy can stabilize the condition. With regular phlebotomy, combined with iron chelating agents for symptomatic treatment, we can help the body metabolize this excess iron."
"Also, you should call your son back. Such conditions can sometimes be hereditary and sometimes acquired. If it's hereditary, then it was truly worthwhile for Uncle to come in today."
"Doctor Liu, can this iron disease of mine be cured?" Liu Liyou asked, forcing himself to sound strong.
He had been terrified earlier. Whether it was the recent blood draw or the three deputy directors coming for a consultation, he had assumed he had a terminal illness.
Liu Banxia felt a bit awkward. After all, with the three senior doctors present, it was a bit risky for the patient and his family to be seeking his opinion.
Zhou Shuwen, however, didn't mind and gave him an encouraging look.
"You can rest assured. Whatever the illness, as long as we've identified it, that's a positive step. We need to act quickly. Our head nurse will personally coordinate things for you. You're certainly receiving VIP treatment," Liu Banxia said with a smile.
Hearing his words, Liu Liyou's tension eased considerably. The emergency room nurses then wheeled him out directly on the bed. After all, ascitic fluid had just been drawn; if Liu Liyou were to walk on his own, he might have collapsed.
"Old Zhou, Xiao Shi is doing really well now," Xiao He said with a smile.
"Director Xiao, I wasn't the one who discovered the condition; Liu Banxia did. The decision to stop the paracentesis and perform timely phlebotomy therapy was his accurate judgment," Shi Lei quickly clarified.
Hearing him say this, Zhou Shuwen and the other two looked at Liu Banxia in surprise.
"I only became suspicious when I saw Liu Liyou clutching his chest," Liu Banxia said.
Zhou Shuwen nodded. "This is the second such case today. There was another patient with a sprained ankle; Liu Banxia thought more about it and diagnosed pancreatic cancer."
Hearing Zhou Shuwen's praise, Liu Banxia gave a wry smile. He felt the compliment wasn't fully deserved. Without the system, the outcome would have been completely different.
"Hey, young man, Old Zhou doesn't praise people lightly. Why do you still look so troubled?" Ding Wenbo asked curiously.
"Director Ding, to be honest with you, I'm actually scared to death," Liu Banxia said with a bitter laugh.
"I was the one who initially saw this patient, and at that time, I didn't notice these symptoms at all. Just now, I was merely putting on a brave face; I was almost scared to tears."
Hearing his words, Ding Wenbo, rather than thinking him cowardly, nodded approvingly. "That depends on how you look at it. I also checked just now; his other indicators aren't very obvious. Plus, he has liver cirrhosis and a dark complexion, so it could easily be overlooked."
"It's rare to have such a sense of awe. Some people would just feel fortunate and not reflect deeply. I dare say that even if one of our hospital's attending internists had seen him, they might not have identified the condition."
"Did you not look at his test report?" Xiao He asked.
DING! Gained 30 experience points, 5 skill proficiency points in diagnostic medicine.
Liu Banxia pondered this. Was this enhanced mental faculty attribute too overpowered? He got a reward just for listening to that sentence? He understood. This could also be considered a form of teaching, making him realize the importance of test reports, which was why he was given diagnostic skill proficiency.
Qi Wentai, standing to the side, didn't dare to look up. His feelings for Liu Banxia had shifted from his initial disdain to outright envy and resentment.
"There was a minor situation, so Liu only conducted the initial diagnosis in the emergency department," Zhou Shuwen interjected.
Xiao He frowned. He had been curious, but now, with Zhou Shuwen's remark, he understood there was an internal issue within the emergency department.
"Shi Lei, bring Liu with you for the surgery the day after tomorrow," Zhou Shuwen said with a smile.
"Ah... Thank you, Director Zhou!"
Liu Banxia was ecstatic. He shouted loudly, unsure how to express his gratitude. He never thought he would one day be able to personally observe Zhou Shuwen's surgery! With so many people in the hospital, and so many attending doctors queuing for the opportunity, how could it possibly be his turn, a resident?
The three senior doctors paid no mind to his overt excitement; it was a normal reaction. They had all experienced similar moments in their careers.
"Don't just stand there grinning like an idiot. Getting carried away again, are we?" Shi Lei said, slapping him lightly in exasperation.
"Heh heh, I'm just so happy," Liu Banxia said, then grabbed Shi Lei's arm and jumped up and down, his eyes growing moist.
"Boss, you're the best boss! Please find a surgery for me. You can't always leave me out in the cold with nothing to do!"
Feeling his gaze and hearing his words, Shi Lei felt a shiver run down his spine, goosebumps erupting all over him so intensely they felt like they were scattering to the floor.
"I'll look into it later. If there's something not too difficult, I'll see what I can do," Shi Lei said, feeling a bit flustered himself.
Liu Banxia was stunned; he hadn't expected Shi Lei to agree so easily. Then, he impulsively picked Shi Lei up and spun around joyfully.
DING! Task Issued: Perform surgery as the chief surgeon.
As a general surgeon, performing surgery as the chief surgeon is a turning point in life. This is an open-ended task; rewards will be distributed according to the difficulty and outcome of the surgery.
Spinning happily, he saw the mission prompt and almost threw Shi Lei off.
Taking advantage of Liu Banxia's daze, Shi Lei quickly broke free. He didn't know why Shoutian had become so "dangerous" today. He decided he should head to the ICU in the inpatient department to take a look.