Healing Doctor

Chapter 338 Caught Between Inside and Outside

Ji Xiang didn't think he had done anything particularly remarkable. During this time, he had started to invest his skill points in diagnostics, and judging the true condition of the "patient" based on clues was just normal for him.

After finishing the exam, Ji Xiang didn't go straight home.

Although the written test will be held next week, I've memorized all the books perfectly, so there's no point in reviewing them again later.

Today was Meng Qingfei's shift, so Ji Xiang went directly to the emergency department of the Second Affiliated Hospital.

Meng Qingfei was taken aback when he saw Ji Xiang. "Dr. Ji, why are you here so early?"

"I had an exam today, but I didn't have surgery," Ji Xiang replied, then emphasized, "It was a professional certification exam, a skills test."

"Oh." Meng Qingfei didn't say anything, nor did he show any concern for Ji Xiang like the others, which seemed a bit strange.

"Teacher Meng, what's wrong with you today?" Ji Xiang asked curiously.

"Dr. Ji, I have a question for you."

Ji Xiang immediately stood up straight, like a javelin, and looked intently at Meng Qingfei.

"Haha, don't take it so seriously. I just saw in the group that a classmate got a complaint, and I'm a little upset." Meng Qingfei waved his hand, then led Ji Xiang to change into a white coat and return to the clinic.

"Dr. Ji, if you encounter a cancer patient, would you tell the patient's family or the patient directly?"

"The patient's family member," Ji Xiang said without hesitation.

"I used to think so too," Meng Qingfei said. "My classmate had this incident."

Meng Qingfei's classmate, who lives in a southern province, treated a patient with stage 2 colorectal cancer one day. The patient had a relatively high chance of recovery after surgery.

Because I was worried that the patient might have a strong reaction to the disease, I secretly told the patient's family and also shared my own judgment with them—that it might be curable, but it would depend on the outcome of the surgery.

Generally speaking, patients' families will be more cooperative when they hear descriptions of a possible cure.

But this time, Meng Qingfei's classmate encountered a strange person.

After the explanation, the patient's spouse expressed gratitude and said they would think of a way to tell the patient it was a benign condition and beg the doctor to help keep it a secret.

Everything was normal up to this point, and Meng Qingfei's classmates also said that he needed surgery as soon as possible.

Three weeks passed, but the patient still hadn't come to the hospital. Meng Qingfei's classmates had long forgotten about the incident.

With so many patients, who has time to care for one who isn't even hospitalized? Besides, the patient's family might seem agreeable at first, but they could easily decide to have the surgery done in Shanghai after discussing it further.

These are all very common occurrences, so the doctor didn't pay much attention and quickly forgot about it.

Three weeks later, the patient had an emotional breakdown and came to the hospital, hitting and cursing. It didn't seem like he had colon cancer, but rather like a bipolar disorder.

After learning what had happened, everyone was stunned.

Upon hearing the word "cancer," the patient's spouse made no preparations for treatment. Instead, she used the time after returning home to transfer assets and hire a divorce lawyer to file for divorce.

This is just ridiculous.

Although it is said that husband and wife are like birds in the same forest, they will fly away separately when disaster strikes.

However, the patient's spouse went too far. Fearing that the cost of cancer treatment would be too high and that they would end up losing both their money and their loved one, they transferred assets while simultaneously filing for divorce.

The story doesn't end there. When the patient's company heard about it, the project he was in charge of was also taken away.

The company boss meant for the patients to rest well, but what was done was that the patients were "giving back to society" and graduating with honors.

Hearing this, Ji Xiang shrugged. It's really hard to say what will happen in this world. Who would have thought that so many people would kick someone when they're down, when a tumor in its early or middle stage has at least a 40-50% chance of being cured by surgery?

Yes, the idiom "to kick someone when they're down" is quite apt here.

"Teacher Meng, what did the patient say?" Ji Xiang asked.

"This violates the patient's right to know, and floating morality overrides the law. This is the most typical case of 'doing what's best for you' but the result is the opposite," Meng Qingfei said.

"But I always feel that if I tell the patient, what if they have a mental breakdown?" Ji Xiang asked rhetorically.

"Yes, that's another problem." Meng Qingfei slammed his hand on the table. "In the end, it won't be the patient themselves who comes looking for them, it will definitely be the patient's family. Xiao Ji, let me ask you, what would you do if you were in that situation?"

Ji Xiang had absolutely no idea what to do, so he shrugged and looked up at the sky.

"Teacher Meng, what do you think?" Ji Xiang asked.

"Without relevant clauses, nobody wants to take responsibility." Meng Qingfei's stubbornness flared up again as he said angrily, "What can we clinicians do? We just have to put up with it."

"Haha, Teacher Meng, don't be like that." Ji Xiang understood Meng Qingfei, and he comforted him with a smile.

Actually, there was no need for comforting; Ji Xiang knew that Meng Qingfei was just venting.

"Finally, I still need to say something to the patient's family," Meng Qingfei said. "Xiao Ji, don't let the example I just gave you mislead you."

No, it won't.

"It's rare to see family members of patients kicking someone when they're down like this; at least, this is the first time I've heard of such ruthless family members. It's a high-probability event, a high-probability event; we should focus on the high-probability event."

Meng Qingfei wanted to make amends, saying that Ji Xiang was just a resident physician, and it wouldn't make a difference for him to grumble a few words; he shouldn't drag Ji Xiang down with him.

As they were talking, a man and a woman walked to the door of the clinic. They glanced at the internal medicine clinic first and saw that there were many patients. Then the man helped the woman in.

"Doctor, where should I go for a stomachache?" the man asked politely.

"Where does it hurt?" Meng Qingfei asked casually when he saw the patient clutching his lower right abdomen, guessing it might be appendicitis, an ectopic pregnancy, or gallstones.

"Is it appendicitis in the lower right abdomen?"

"Lie down, let me take a look."

Meng Qingfei rubbed his hands together very quickly.

"Xiao Ji, before examining a patient, especially in autumn and winter, you should rub your hands together to warm them up." Meng Qingfei explained a small clinical detail to Ji Xiang. "Got it?"

"I'll remember that, Teacher Meng."

During the physical examination, Meng Qingfei found significant tenderness at McBurney's point in the right lower quadrant of the abdomen, but no rebound tenderness or muscle guarding.

Upon taking the patient's medical history, it was found that her menstrual cycle was regular and she usually used contraception, so an ectopic pregnancy was not suspected. In addition, the kidney area percussion tenderness was negative, so urinary tract stones were not considered at this time.

It's more likely appendicitis.

Although Meng Qingfei's physical examination had largely ruled out some diseases, he still ordered relevant tests to ensure that nothing was wrong.

After seeing the patient off, Meng Qingfei chatted with Ji Xiang about some issues he had explained to cancer patients.

I saw a few patients intermittently, and the female patient returned with the help of a man.

After the examination results ruled out other problems, Meng Qingfei issued a hospital admission slip and told them to go and complete the admission procedures.

But when Meng Qingfei handed over the hospital admission form, he paused for a moment.

He hesitated visibly for a moment, as if deep in thought.

(End of this chapter)