Surgery Godfather

Director Zeng was now pouring tea for Yang Ping, ceasing to view him as a greenhand.

On his first day at work, he helped resolve a difficult problem. Although the matter hasn’t been resolved yet, watching the way young Director Yang handled it with maturity made him sincerely admire him.

Yang Ping’s decision to suggest another surgery for the patient was not impulsive, but was based on a thorough analysis of the medical condition.

Not going into a battle without certainty; this was Yang Ping’s motto.

The medical industry is different from others; lives are at stake, making this motto even more apt.

“It’s your first day at work and you had to deal with all this mess. I’m sorry,” said Director Zeng with a guilty look.

“Director Zeng, these words are unnecessary. We are colleagues; it’s not unheard of for even renowned professors to make a mistake, let alone this incident which is filled with misunderstanding. The surgery was completely flawless; it was just the concurrent pear-shaped muscle syndrome that was overlooked. Anyone looking at the X-rays at that time would assume it to be just a case of intervertebral disc protrusion; I too, am just a hindsight prophet,” Yang Ping said modestly.

“You handled the situation admirably; his tone became more tempered, at least he didn’t quarrel with you and agreed to consider it,” said Director Zeng, who was stressed because of the incident.

“It’s not so much my skill as it is his deep misunderstanding of you. In such a case, communication effortlessly flows when someone else steps in.” Yang Ping said while sipping his tea.

The candidacy for surgery in this particular case was strong, the results should be good.

The key to a successful surgery is to choose the right candidates correctly. If the candidacy isn’t chosen correctly, even if the surgery is executed flawlessly, the results won’t be good. It’s like using the right medicine for an ailment—misdirected medication, even if it’s the best in the world, won’t work.

Yang Ping began to plan- if the patient agreed to the surgery, how would they perform it, what the risks were, what they needed to be mindful of, and if there was any other differential diagnosis to consider.

He mulled over it repeatedly until he couldn’t find any flaws.

One of his good habits was to meticulously plan and repeatedly study even minor surgeries and run the process in his mind beforehand to ensure nothing was overlooked.

“If the patient agrees to the surgery and there are no contraindications, plan it for tomorrow. Don’t delay; postponing can complicate things,” Yang Ping instructed Director Zeng.

“Understood,” Director Zeng agreed.

After finishing his talk with Teacher Yan, the two walked around the department.

The morning was not very busy. The ER admitted a case of dorsal forearm tendon rupture that Zhang Lin took to surgery. A case of lumbar vertebral compression fracture was being treated conservatively by Little Five and her team, while a child with a humeral shaft fracture had their injury realigned and immobilized by Song Zimo.

Once done, Director Zeng took Yang Ping to get familiar with the ER and the operating room.

Yang Ping and Director Zeng had lunch together in the cafeteria and chatted for a long time.

In the afternoon, just before the shift was about to end, a nurse from the director’s office informed them that Teacher Yan’s family had arrived.

Director Zeng quickly invited them to his office. They were Teacher Yan’s son and daughter-in-law, both teachers themselves.

Director Zeng offered them tea, but with a glum look on their faces, they refused.

“What’s the current situation? The old man said he might need another surgery, so we wanted to come and understand the situation,” the son addressed Director Zeng.

Director Zeng replied, “Please sit down first, let us explain in detail.”

The couple sat down, but they didn’t even glance at the tea Director Zeng had poured for them.

The teacher’s son asked, “What did the hospital director from the provincial capital say? That another surgery will resolve the pain?”

It was clear that he didn’t recognize Yang Ping as that director.

“What do the people consider us? One incision on the left, one on the right. Are we still not satisfied?” the daughter-in-law said, her tone sharp.

The old man’s son immediately stopped his wife: “What’s the point of saying all this? First, let’s understand the situation.”

Director Zeng introduced, “This is Director Yang, who has come from the provincial capital to our hospital to provide medical support. We have studied your father’s medical condition this morning and even conducted a CT scan and electromyography.”

The old man’s son scrutinized Yang Ping; he was so young, doubt clouding his mind. He had initially thought the provincial capital professor would be coming, but it turned out to be a young doctor.

“Hello, I’m Doctor Yang. I was dispatched to Nanqiao by the Provincial Health Department to provide medical support,” Yang Ping greeted politely, shaking hands.

The old man’s son shook his hand; being a teacher, he certainly had some decorum. He didn’t speak as rudely as his wife did.

“Here’s the situation. This morning, while doing rounds, I assessed your father’s health. He has been in pain for over ten years, with the past two or three years being particularly severe. He underwent surgery last year, but his symptoms did not alleviate at all. We’ve been wondering why the pain didn’t subside after the surgery. We carefully studied his case, conducted a CT scan and electromyography, and figured out the problem. His right sciatic nerve has been pinched in two places: the lumbar spine and the buttocks. Last year’s surgery only dealt with the lumbar spine section, while the pinch in the buttocks was left neglected, as a result, the pain did not subside. It’s like having a broken switch and a damaged wire at home; fixing only one of the problems won’t make your bulb work; only when both are fixed, will the bulb light up,” explained Yang Ping.

“We invited a professor from the provincial capital for the previous surgery, and all we got was mere theory,” the daughter-in-law retorted sharply.

The old man’s son interrupted her: “The case has nothing to do with him.”

The daughter-in-law swallowed the rest of her words.

Yang Ping said, “It’s okay, I understand how you are feeling. I’m only going to be here for two weeks and this matter has nothing to do with me. I could have ignored it entirely. Why trouble myself? Because I’ve encountered such special cases before and I have experience. I can’t bear to see an old man suffer like this. A toothache can cause one to toss and turn in pain, let alone this kind of sciatica. The old man is enduring the pain so as not to burden you. It’s hard to imagine how he’s been able to endure all these years.”

The old man’s son initially didn’t believe in this young director. But after these words, he began to waver. Why else, he wondered, would he bother with this if it weren’t his issue? Maybe this man truly does have a solution – he did say he’s encountered a case like this.

This matter, after all the argument and commotion, had worn down the family. The couple had to work, the child needed attention, and the old man was suffering so much. After a year of fuss, the problem remained unsolved. Now this young doctor claims to have a solution, why not listen?

Who wouldn’t want to resolve this issue and live a happy life? This whole situation has reduced the quality of life for the entire family.

“Why didn’t Professor Zeng notice the nerves being pinched at two places the last time?” the old man’s son asked.

Yang Ping replied, “This situation is very rare, difficult for the first time operating surgeons to consider. The previous cases we encountered were the same, the pain didn’t subside after spinal surgery, and only after further examination was it discovered.”

The daughter-in-law asked, “So did the first surgery, which cost so much, turn out to be a waste?”

Her tone was softer this time.

Yang Ping explained, “Not at all. It’s like when a light bulb in your house doesn’t light up. There’s nothing wrong with the bulb, but the switch and the wiring are broken. The first surgery fixed the switch, and now we need to repair the wiring. Repairing one without the other won’t solve the issue. If we only performed the hip surgery and left out the spinal surgery, the pain wouldn’t have subsided after the operation. Only by performing both surgeries can we achieve a positive outcome.”

“What if the next surgery doesn’t work out? Can you guarantee 100%?” the daughter-in-law turned her face to one side.

“I can’t give a 100% guarantee, but the chance of success is more than ninety percent,” Yang Ping replied calmly.

“I understand, you doctors always leave some leeway.” The old man’s son accepted the estimate, realizing that no doctor would dare to claim a hundred percent certainty.

Seeing them fall silent, Yang Ping said, “Let’s collectively solve the old man’s pain. If the pain isn’t resolved, no matter how you deal with this, it will remain a problem. The old man suffers, and you suffer too, don’t you?”

The old man’s son noticed that although Yang Ping was young, his speech was mature and calm, far from the disposition of a typical young doctor.

Perhaps he truly does have a solution, or else why would he voluntarily take up this hot potato?

“I need to discuss this with the old man. Can you wait a bit?” the old man’s son picked up his tea, taking a sip…

“No problem, take your time to discuss. We’ll wait for you.” Yang Ping maintained a calm and steady tone.

“Let me reiterate, if I didn’t want to alleviate the old man’s pain, I could completely ignore this matter,” added Yang Ping.

After the couple stepped out, about ten minutes passed before the old man’s son returned.

“We agree to the surgery, but we request that Director Yang performs it.”

“Of course, I’ll be the chief surgeon,” Yang Ping replied.

“And about the expenses for this time–” the old man’s son stumbled out, clearly troubled.

“Let’s first solve the problem at hand and then we can talk about the rest, how does that sound?” Yang Ping suggested.

The old man’s son didn’t say anything more.

“Our attitude before was poor, please forgive us. This matter has been causing a lot of stress in our family,” the old man’s son said.

Yang Ping waved his hand, “It’s okay.”

Once the preliminary work with the patient’s family was done, immediate arrangements were made for preoperative examination. Except for the thickened lung texture, there were no other abnormalities. Blood pressure and blood sugar levels were normal, and his overall health was alright.

The surgery was scheduled for the following morning. Yang Ping instructed that two doses of methyprednisolone be prepared before surgery and be brought to the operating room.

Subsequently, he sent a message to Su Yixuan via WeChat, asking her to help prepare the instruments. He was going to assist with a surgery the following day, and currently, Su Yixuan was acting as the head nurse in the operating room.

Upon returning to the dormitory, Yang Ping wanted to report the day’s work situation to Director Tian.

Director Tian did not reply as he had gone to dinner with Dean Pan and the leaders of the Health Department.

“Fatty, do you have those soft Zhonghuas?” Zhang Lin asked Liang Fatty.

Fatty was somewhat discontent, “Don’t call me ‘Fatty’. Call me ‘Director Liang’. I’m acting as the director of the anesthesia department.”

“Aren’t you getting too much into the role?” Little Five asked.

“What do you guys know? This is called professionalism. Two weeks as a director is still being a director.”

“Director Liang, Director Liang, could you spare one soft Zhonghua?”

Zhang Lin extended his hand.

Fatty pulled out a box of cigarettes.