Healing Doctor

Chapter 771 Different Choices

Because this year is the National Games year, the provinces where the athletes are located are all striving for a good ranking.

The provinces have different perspectives from the General Administration, and their relationships are complex, which makes the arguments particularly intense.

Two sprinters, who were hailed as rising stars in Chinese sprinting after Su Bingtian, were injured in succession.

The person is already 29 years old, past the prime of life, or just catching the tail end of that prime.

He's only 22 years old, a true rising star.

A full twenty minutes later.

The old man raised his hand and tapped the table with the knuckle of his right index finger.

The noise wasn't loud, but everyone immediately stopped arguing and showed each other enough respect.

Actors are all seasoned veterans, professionals.

The argument wasn't just an argument; it was about gaining something.

"I went to Houston with Xiao Liu for his surgery in 2008," the old man said calmly.

His eyes were slightly closed, as if he were lost in memories.

"Before the surgery, I consulted Dr. Clanton repeatedly, and I could recite all the relevant medical knowledge. Actually, in my understanding, the surgery was very simple: a small incision in the Achilles tendon area to remove the bone spurs and calcifications. Achilles tendinitis... sigh."

"I felt relieved after hearing Dr. Clanton's explanation, but I had a few doubts when I compared it with the rehabilitation of athletes who had ruptured Achilles tendons over the years."

"If the surgery is so simple, why does an athlete's career essentially end after a ruptured Achilles tendon?"

"As you all know, Xiao Liu had an Achilles tendon problem during the Olympic Games here, which triggered a storm of online rumors and a false alarm."

"Ugh."

The old man continued talking to himself, and then let out a long sigh, as if regretting that Xiao Liu had not won the gold medal and become a national hero at the first Olympic Games held in China.

Instead of becoming a hero, he was criticized by countless netizens.

That must have been one of the earliest online storms, and the old man had personally witnessed how miserable Xiao Liu was at the center of the storm.

"I remember the surgery was in December. I waited outside the operating room for 2 hours and 15 minutes. This time was beyond my expectations. I kept reassuring myself that it would be good for Xiao Liu if the surgery was done carefully."

"If I can't participate in the Beijing Olympics, I can participate in the London Olympics in 12."

The old man recounted fragmented memories, from Houston, USA in 08 to Wellington, England in 12, from returning to his peak after the first surgery and tying the world record at the time to rupturing his Achilles tendon at the Olympics.

Every memory is heavy with meaning.

"I've been wondering why the doctors can't restore Xiao Liu's Achilles tendon to its original state?"

"But I know that's wishful thinking; I still want to turn back the clock."

The old man gave a sheepish laugh.

"I know there are many things involved here. Xiao Liu played with an injury because of pressure from the sponsors and us. What a pity, what a pity."

When it comes to interests, the situation is even more complex.

Everyone fell silent.

The old man didn't bring up anything from under the table; he only touched on the subject briefly.

"I recently learned about the experience of a female weightlifter after shoulder surgery, and I found it very interesting."

"The surgeon has little contact with us, and we've only performed surgery on athletes three times."

As he spoke, the old man opened his eyes.

"Besides her, there's Wang Dali, who's currently playing in Germany, and then there's Neymar."

"Mr. Li, I heard that Neymar's surgery was performed in Germany. He came to China to participate in that variety show. It is said that the production team offered Neymar's team a very high price that they couldn't refuse."

One of them said softly.

"A high price? Ha!" The old man shook his head. "Given Neymar's status and income in international football, how much do you think is appropriate for a variety show? Ridiculous!"

"Mr. Li, do you think that if there were doctors in China who could perform surgery on a ruptured Achilles tendon and help athletes recover almost 100% of their athletic ability...?"

Another person questioned him, and he paused for a moment as he spoke.

"There are some moves that Neymar couldn't do before, he's getting old. After the Achilles tendon rupture surgery, his level should decline rapidly."

"But I've watched Neymar's recent games, and it feels like he's rejuvenated. Neymar seems three to five years younger. He can now smoothly execute feints that he couldn't do when he was older, and his shots are very powerful."

"As you know, Xiao Liu's first surgery was not entirely necessary, and it was just a minor surgery. It was just Achilles tendonitis, and removing a few calcifications would be enough."

The problem is that after 2008, Xiao Liu modified his technique to keep up with the times, changing the hurdle-jumping motion from eight steps to seven.

"This also requires the Achilles tendon to withstand greater forces."

"When I watch Neymar run and shoot, I get the feeling that his Achilles tendon has not only returned to its pre-injury state, but seems to have been strengthened! Another point is that Neymar seems very confident in his Achilles tendon, and he doesn't seem afraid of rupturing it again when he makes moves."

"Keep it simple." The old man tapped the table.

"Hmm." The man responded, "My feeling is that it's more like Neymar and Xiao Liu's surgery. I think it's definitely not the work of a young doctor who's just participating in a variety show. It's just a publicity stunt."

After saying that, he added, "Mr. Li, you know that Xiao Liu had surgery for a torn Achilles tendon in the UK and retired less than two years after the surgery. I estimate that Europe and the United States have made breakthrough progress in the field of sports medicine, which is why Neymar was able to recover so well."

He didn't say anything more; everything was left unsaid.

"I've been following Zhao Dali. They said there wasn't much hope for him, which was a shame. But after a period of silence, he suddenly appeared in the Bundesliga. I found that strange, so I even asked his coach."

"Later I noticed that the doctor who operated on Zhao Dali seemed to be the same doctor who operated on Neymar, but the latter was just the former's assistant."

"assistant?!"

"Um."

Everyone was surprised; this gossip shocked everyone.

It's true that different professions are like different worlds. Although they are all sports professionals, it's normal that they don't understand the surgeries performed on several football players.

"If an assistant can perform surgery, then the surgeons back then must have been incredibly skilled!"

"Yes, the news that Neymar had surgery in China might be false, but Zhao Dali is probably true. I've been following that guy, and his core strength is really strong! Every time he takes a shot, every time he changes direction, I'm afraid he'll rupture his Achilles tendon."

"It's also possible that the injury wasn't serious, and the surgeon just got lucky."

Listening to the chaotic discussion, Old Li tapped the table for the third time.

"The problem we face is simple: two sprinters, who should perform the surgery?"

"Mr. Li, I suggest we go to the United States to do it," one person said firmly.

……

The meeting ended abruptly.

The old man sat on the sofa and did not leave for a long time.

Much later, his secretary whispered a reminder, "Boss, it's getting late."

"Sigh." Old Li sighed deeply.

"There's nothing I can do, so please don't worry."

"China finally produced a few top sprinters, hoping to continue Suarez's legacy. But...sigh."

The secretary remained silent.

The local authorities in Chen Heqiang's area have just expressed their intention to take him to the United States for surgery.

Even when Old Li used his own reputation as an excuse, he couldn't change their minds.

This is the safest and most feasible option.

But Mr. Li clearly didn't think so.

Chen Heqiang suffered an Achilles tendon rupture at the age of 22, and he didn't even have the chance to see his peak moment.

Even so, Chen Heqiang has run a time of 9.84 seconds, only slightly slower than Su Bingtian.

He is the true hope of sprinting in China.

The old man was also hesitant, because subconsciously he also believed that it would be safer to have the surgery in the United States.

Normally, emergency surgery within 6 hours of an injury has the best results. The reason for delaying surgery is that the level of sports medicine in China is worse than that abroad.

"That's it then." The old man sighed. "How is Li Muzhi now?"

Li Muzhi is 29 years old, past his prime. He can only be said to still be able to play, but no one has high hopes for his performance.

"He wanted to have the surgery in the United States, but he couldn't afford the high cost."

"Go and tell Li Muzhi that I'll go see the surgeon who will operate on Zhao Dali tomorrow."

"Yes, boss."

……

"Old Li is really getting old."

Chen Heqiang's coach commented with great emotion after hearing the news.

"This is such a simple scam, just like the Loongson chip scam back then. It's utter nonsense. To say that a young doctor on a TV show in China can fix a ruptured Achilles tendon is just absurd."

"Really? Neymar's surgery can be done in China? I don't believe it for a second."

"Have you watched Neymar's recent matches? I feel like Neymar's level has actually improved. A few years ago, Neymar played with a lot of hesitation, and there were some moves he could do but didn't dare to make. But now, with experience, his physical condition is almost like it was more than ten years ago."

"Neymar's recovery has shocked everyone. This year's World Cup is going to be amazing. If Neymar can replicate Messi's path and lead his team to victory, even if he can't be called the king of football, it will still satisfy the hearts of us old fans."

"Speaking of Neymar, I particularly dislike that variety show. They started by saying that Vengiam would come for surgery, then changed it to Neymar at the last minute. It was all a charade, and I don't believe a word of it."

"It's just a variety show, how could Mr. Li take it seriously? Zhao Dali is a possibility, but I think Zhao Dali is young first, and he's more talented."

"How did Liu manage with his Achilles tendon rupture? He retired less than two years after the injury. How about Beckham? He ruptured his Achilles tendon 10 years ago and lost his contract in less than 3 years."

"Yes! And there's Spinazzola from Serie A. After he ruptured his Achilles tendon, Roma seemed to be going to sell him. Over the years, whenever I see a player I like rupture their Achilles tendon, my heart skips a beat, and I know that person's sporting career is over."

"In the NBA, Durant was incredibly strong before, but after rupturing his Achilles tendon, you could clearly see his level decline. Although he's still very strong, he basically can only rely on his height, wingspan, and mid-range shot to solve problems. The Durant on the Warriors is gone."

"I hope nothing bad happens to us. I hope the surgery in the US goes smoothly this time."

The two were talking about Achilles tendon rupture.

Especially in sports involving explosive power, there were examples like Liu Xiang and Christian Taylor, both of whom quickly faded from the sports world after rupturing their Achilles tendons.

For athletes, an Achilles tendon rupture is an insurmountable obstacle.

"Xiao Chen is only 22 years old. I hope he can recover as quickly as Zhao Dali."

"After all, they're still young, there's still hope."

"It's too late to have the surgery now. I just wanted to fly to the United States as soon as possible, whether it was in Houston or somewhere else, as long as I didn't go to Portland."

This year's National Games is their top priority. Chen Heqiang is currently undergoing surgery and will need some time to recover.

Whether I can recover to my best condition by the time of the National Games... is highly unlikely, which is a pity.

"Old Li's implication that Xiao Chen should stay for surgery is utter nonsense and irresponsible!"

"I really don't know what Old Li was thinking. If he had stayed in China to have the surgery, he would have done it long ago. Why wait until now? I think Old Li is getting senile."

"Never mind him, the leader has withstood the pressure, we're going to America tomorrow."

"I hope the surgery goes smoothly, and I hope Xiao Chen can give everyone a surprise at the National Games."

……

Ji Xiang sat in his office, reading a book while tying a knot.

Without looking at the knots, he skillfully tied one knot after another using his muscle memory.

"Dr. Ji Xiang, it seems that knot tying was a very important skill decades ago. But with the advent of electrosurgical units, the importance of knot tying has disappeared. Why are you still so serious about it?" Lin Jiu asked.

Before the advent of electrocautery, a single surgery could easily take several hours, with knot tying and hemostasis taking up about 40-50% of that time.

Therefore, tying knots quickly and steadily was a fundamental guarantee for the success of the surgery, and it was also a requirement for surgeons at that time.

However, with the advent of electrocautery, the method of hemostasis has undergone a fundamental change, and the number of knots used in a single surgery has been reduced from dozens or hundreds to just a dozen or so, causing its importance to decline rapidly.

When performing surgery now, the stability of the knot is the most important thing; no one cares about how fast it is.

There are only a dozen or so knots anyway, so it doesn't matter if it's slow. The most important thing is to tie them tightly and securely.

"Just playing casually," Ji Xiang smiled. "I've got nothing else to do anyway."

"Dr. Ji Xiang, there's a question I've been struggling to understand lately."

"you say."

Ji Xiang asked casually, like an old doctor.

Lin Jiu thought for a moment and organized his thoughts. "The medical environment in China is not good. I see you guys doing a lot of useless work all the time. Although I don't understand it, Dr. Zhao Zhe told me about it, and I'm doing it too."

"Dr. Lin, this is something you may not know." Zhao Zhe stopped his work. "The root cause of medical disputes in China is not the doctor's skills or level, nor the quality of the patient or their family, but the cost."

"The cost? The cost in Massachusetts is even higher."

"It's different. Let me give you an example," Zhao Zhe began to ramble on. "A few years ago, a classmate of mine came back for the Spring Festival. After drinking too much, he told me that he worked at a large, top-tier hospital in the south. A leader's family member had aortic dissection surgery in Shanghai, and after the surgery, he had been hoarse and spoke weakly."

"Oh? Is it a cricoarytenoid joint dislocation?" Lin Jiu asked casually.

Zhao Zhe gave a thumbs up, "Awesome, Dr. Lin! It's very difficult to diagnose cricoarytenoid joint dislocation. They went to many hospitals, but none of them could make a diagnosis."

Lin Jiu smiled faintly; this was nothing to him.

"I was later diagnosed with it by my classmate and underwent cricoarytenoid joint reduction surgery. I recovered to normal two weeks after the surgery."

"If you were a patient's family member, what would you think?"

"Of course I'd be very grateful. Atlantoaxial joint dislocation is a very rare condition, and doctors without sufficient clinical experience can't diagnose it. I've seen patients misdiagnosed for over a decade... What else could I do?"

As Lin Jiu spoke, he sensed that something was amiss.

"The patient's family member was not only not grateful to my classmate, but was also very cold to him and said some inappropriate things after meeting him."

"dubious?"

"I'm just very unhappy, but since the illness has been cured, I can't say anything else."

"Why?" Lin Jiu asked in surprise.

In his mind, as long as the illness is cured, nothing else matters.

"Medical care costs money," Zhao Zhe said. "As long as there's money involved, there will be conflicts. When have medical conflicts been at their lowest in China in the last twenty or thirty years? Wasn't it during the makeshift hospitals back then? Why? Because medical care was free."

"..."

Lin Jiu remained silent.

"Whether the relationship between the two parties is good or bad is not a strength, but a weakness," Ji Xiang said while tying his knot. "Doctors have high medical ethics, but those talk about selfless dedication and fearlessness of death are just empty words."

"And for patients, it is not uncommon for them to fall into poverty due to illness and lose both their health and wealth."

"Stop talking nonsense; even if you think about it to the deepest level, it's meaningless."

Zhao Zhe looked at Ji Xiang with a smile.

"Xiao Ji, your insight into the issues is even deeper than mine, the old doctor. It's very sharp."

Ji Xiang was completely unmoved by Zhao Zhe's flattery and continued tying knots.

Whether it's the system NPC, Professor Zhou, or Director Bai, everyone knows the root of the problem.

However, to solve this problem effectively, we can only wait for the realization of true communism.

As for now, a doctor is just a doctor, and can only be a doctor.

Ji Xiang had absolutely no interest in this topic.

"Dr. Xiao Ji, come here for a moment." Deng Chaohong waved from the doorway.

"Teacher Deng." Ji Xiang stood up and walked outside the door.

"The provincial sports department called me," Deng Chaohong said as he walked toward the fire escape, his expression cautious and somewhat serious.

Sports department?

"Someone needs surgery? You can come," Ji Xiang replied casually.

"They want me to perform surgery on them," Deng Chaohong said, both amused and exasperated.

Ji Xiang smiled.

The logic here is very simple and clear; you can understand it without even thinking about it.

"Xiao Ji, the problem now is... is there any chance of a successful surgery?" Deng Chaohong asked seriously.

"Teacher Deng, have a cigarette." Ji Xiang took out a cigarette and handed it to Deng Chaohong.

Deng Chaohong was both amused and exasperated. He knew that Ji Xiang rarely smoked, but he still carried a cigarette with him at all times.

This child's maturity far exceeds his age and appearance.

"Teacher Deng, putting aside Wang Dali and Neymar, we've recently performed over a dozen Achilles tendon rupture surgeries. Do you see any problems with that?" Ji Xiang countered.

"But this time it was a call from the General Administration, so the institute is taking it very seriously."

"Nobody can guarantee 100% accuracy, right?"

Deng Chaohong looked at Ji Xiang helplessly.

He's like a long-time doctor who has no desire to climb the ranks, only thinking about getting by and refusing to take any responsibility.

He spoke in a slick and oily manner, and Deng Chaohong even felt that Ji Xiang was a bit greasy.

But Deng Chaohong knew that this was just his opinion, and that if it were him, he would probably say the same thing.

"Go ahead and do it. If you trust me, come on; if you don't, then that's it." Ji Xiang didn't care.

"Xiao Ji, I have something very important to tell you. Director Bai contacted me a few days ago, saying he wants to interview you and admit you as my graduate student."

"No need for an exam, I can take it myself."

"..."

"Exams? I'm good at them!" Ji Xiang flashed a smile, revealing his bright white teeth.

Oh shit!

Deng Chaohong cursed inwardly.

He knew perfectly well how many connections and how much effort it took to get a graduate student admitted without examination.

But Ji Xiang didn't care at all!

That's true, they weren't bragging.

Whether it's the hospital's major skills competition or achieving first place in the national medical licensing exam, both indirectly confirm Ji Xiang's statement—he excels at exams.

"Xiao Ji, it's not like that." Deng Chaohong explained in detail, "It's a combined master's and doctoral program without entrance exams. We'll find an opportunity for you to graduate next year. For example, based on how many SCI articles you've published, etc. In short, it's all to help you become a National Outstanding Young Scientist."

"The requirements for outstanding young scientists are at least a doctoral degree or a senior professional title."

Deng Chaohong added.

"Oh, thank you for your hard work, Teacher Deng," Ji Xiang said politely.

Deng Chaohong felt that Ji Xiang was not putting his heart into it at all and was being very perfunctory.

Yet all of this seems to come from Ji Xiang's true feelings.

That strange feeling tore Deng Chaohong apart.

He smoked in silence for a dozen seconds, then looked up at Ji Xiang. "There must have been some difficulties along the way. Not to mention me, even Director Bai had to put in a lot of effort. Do you know how much trouble was caused over your graduate student spot?"

"How big?" Ji Xiang was taken aback.

"Zhao Tianjiao was determined to become my graduate student. Later, Director Bai and the dean discussed it and decided to give you a spot without taking the entrance exam. Zhao Tianjiao was heartbroken, and then someone instigated her, so..."

Ji Xiang was truly stunned this time.

He still remembered Zhao Tianjiao's suicide attempt a while ago. He had encountered Professor Zhou and Shen Lang during that time when he was empathizing with Zhao Tianjiao's situation.

I never imagined that Zhao Tianjiao's suicide was related to me.

This is truly an undeserved disaster.

"To be frank, we face a lot of resistance, and others are envious," Deng Chaohong said frankly. "If we had strong support from national-level departments, everything would be much better, and there would be less gossip."

"Okay, Teacher Deng." Ji Xiang smiled without changing his expression. "I really can't guarantee 100%, but there's a high probability of success. At least I can recover to my pre-injury level."

"Is Neymar an isolated case?" Deng Chaohong asked.

"No," Ji Xiang replied. "Professor Deng, you've seen the recent surgeries, and you know how quickly the patients recovered. They're not professional athletes, just ordinary people, so their post-operative recovery wasn't exactly scientific."

Deng Chaohong nodded.

He patted Ji Xiang's shoulder forcefully and gave him a deep look.

Ji Xiang felt very uncomfortable. He never expected that Zhao Tianjiao's suicide was related to him. Damn it!

(End of this chapter)