Rebirth of a Doctor Without Regrets

Chapter 137 Stage Fainting

With the support of former director Zhu Haiming, Wang Xiao could finally relax and resume her 24-hour continuous surgical routine.

Following Wang Xiao's instructions, Zhao Zhao readjusted the surgical schedule.

In particular, routine surgeries such as valve surgery and defect repair, which Wang Xiao is skilled in, are interspersed with new surgeries that require guidance from Director Zhu.

The two operating rooms operated simultaneously, barely forming a somewhat unsmooth assembly line.

Although Zhu Haiming is experienced, he is getting old, his vision in one eye is limited, and his physical strength is not as good as before.

After performing on stage for one or two hours straight, he would become pale, short of breath, and his hands would tremble as he held the equipment. He could only manage to get through the crucial steps before someone else took his place.

This was a new surgery that Wang Xiao was unfamiliar with.

Li Wei is still the primary assistant for most surgeries. She works up to 17 hours a day, which severely deprives her of sleep. She is so exhausted that her eyes are bloodshot and she is mentally disoriented.

Wang Xiao saw all of this, but there was nothing he could do about it.

Every surgery had to be performed quickly, so Li Wei had to grit her teeth and persevere, while I tried my best to speed up the procedures and relieve her of the pressure.

Looking at Wang Xiao, who worked 22 hours a day, Li Wei didn't dare to ask for a rest, no matter how tired she was.

The night was deep, and the clock struck two in the morning, but the lights in the operating center of Chunda No. 2 Hospital were still as bright as day.

In the first operating room on the tenth floor, Wang Xiao was performing a routine mitral valve replacement surgery.

Wang Xiao precisely cut open the sternum with a sharp scalpel, exposing the patient's diseased heart.

Li Wei stood in the position of assistant to cooperate with him, and was responsible for timely suctioning of fluid to expose the field of vision.

But gradually she found it difficult to focus her eyes and to breathe.

"Prepare to insert artificial valve." Wang Xiao's voice was calm, his gaze fixed on the surgical field, completely unaware of Li Wei's unusual behavior beside him.

Li Wei subconsciously reached out to hand over the artificial valve, but suddenly felt dizzy, her vision blurred instantly, and a buzzing sound came from her ears.

All her strength seemed to be drained away in an instant. She staggered and swayed, her body falling uncontrollably to the side.

"Dr. Li!" The circulating nurse behind her reacted quickly, rushing forward to support her, her voice filled with anxiety, "Someone has fainted! Quickly, help her to the side to rest!"

Fainting is a common emergency among surgeons, especially cardiac surgeons.

Just like a US police officer shouting "I've been shot," it's commonplace and a professional expression that's been established in the industry.

Cardiac surgery involves many delicate microsurgical procedures. Prolonged high-intensity work, high mental stress, and physical exhaustion can easily trigger this kind of dizziness.

A surgeon who has never fainted in his entire life is like an American police officer who has never been shot—it's a bit of a pity.

Hearing the shout, Wang Xiao stopped what he was doing and turned around to see Li Wei looking pale, her eyes closed, leaning weakly against the nurse.

"Quickly help her to the rest room, give her oxygen, and check her blood pressure and heart rate," Wang Xiao instructed rapidly.

Two nurses helped her out of the operating room.

His gaze swept across the operating table. The cardiopulmonary bypass machine was still running, and the patient's heart was exposed. The surgery could not be stopped, otherwise it would increase the risk of postoperative complications.

Without his assistance, a standard mitral valve replacement surgery would take at least three times longer if he were to perform it alone.

This will not only delay the patient's surgery, but also disrupt the scheduling of all subsequent surgeries, making the already severe backlog of patients even worse.

"Xiao Zhang, go to the break room and call Director Zhu. Tell him I urgently need his help because Li Wei fainted and there's no one to assist her," Wang Xiao called to another circulating nurse.

He knew that Director Zhu was resting next door and that he had a surgery scheduled for six o'clock that required his help.

He should come over if I just call out.

The nurse didn't dare to delay and rushed out of the operating room to the rest area.

But not long after, she rushed back, her face full of helplessness: "Dr. Wang, it's no use. Director Zhu is sleeping too soundly in the rest room. I've nudged him several times but he hasn't woken up. I think—I think he's pretending to be asleep."

Hmm? Wang Xiao frowned sharply, then smiled helplessly.

You can't wake someone who's pretending to be asleep.

He knew all too well that Zhu Haiming was also exhausted and just wanted to get a good night's sleep, and no one should disturb him.

In the current situation, even if we try to wake him up, it probably won't work and might even upset him.

As time ticked by, the hum of the extracorporeal circulation machine grew increasingly piercing in the operating room, and Wang Xiao's heart began to race.

What to do? He must find a suitable helper as soon as possible, otherwise the consequences will be unimaginable.

His gaze quickly swept over the other people in the operating room; in the corner stood several resident doctors who had stayed up all night to observe and learn.

Although most of them were veterans who had been with the department longer than Wang Xiao, he had never worked with them and had no idea about their methods and techniques.

If we rashly let them take the stage, they will not only fail to help, but may also cause mistakes.

Just as Wang Xiao was extremely anxious, his gaze inadvertently swept over the observation area at the back of the operating room, and a familiar figure came into view.

The young man in the brand-new scrubber uniform looked at me with hope.

It's Li Renzhong!

Wang Xiao was overjoyed; thankfully, he had someone on his side, and he instantly breathed a sigh of relief.

Li Renzhong was also an old comrade-in-arms who had gone through thick and thin together in the emergency department.

Back then, Li Renzhong had personally trained him in basic techniques such as suturing. He knew that the boy was meticulous and had solid skills.

Although I'm just a resident trainee, I have absolutely no problem assisting with tasks like cutting threads and absorbing water.

Without further hesitation, Wang Xiao shouted towards the observation area, "Li Renzhong, step forward!"

Li Renzhong suddenly came to his senses and saw Wang Xiao looking at him with surprise in his eyes. He obviously did not expect Wang Xiao to actually call on him.

After all, hospitals are places that value seniority and hierarchy. How could a resident trainee like myself possibly be ranked ahead of a group of resident doctors?

Li Renzhong stepped forward timidly, his gaze sweeping over the resident doctors observing from the side.

The resident doctors all looked embarrassed and embarrassed, as if their eyes were encouraging him.

It seems they don't have any objections?

Oh right, after all, Dr. Wang Xiao is also a resident physician, and it's only natural for a resident physician to instruct trainees.

"Quickly, go scrub your hands, put on your surgical gown, and get on the operating table. Chief Physician Li Wei fainted during the operation, so you'll be my assistant. Hurry up!" Even though Wang Xiao was alone, he was completely focused on the surgery, but his tone had become quite agitated.

Li Renzhong snapped out of his daze, nodded firmly, and ran out of the operating room: "Okay! Dr. Wang, I'm coming right away!"