The Enhanced Doctor
Chapter 42 - 042 A word awakens the dreamer

Chapter 42: 042 A word awakens the dreamer

Following this incident, the nurses in the emergency department became aware of Liu Banxia’s outstanding accomplishments, jokingly referring to him as "Four Joys." Those who were already on good terms with him showered him with praise.

Yet, the praise fell unpleasantly on Qin Hai and Qi Wentao’s ears. Nonetheless, facts speak louder than words.

In truth, Liu Banxia quite enjoyed being praised. He had been at the Second Hospital for almost three years, yet the praises he received today exceeded all those from previous years combined.

He had a good appetite at noon and took an extra dish in the canteen.

"Dr. Zhang, I’m free this afternoon. Can I assist you in the emergency department?" After finishing his meal, Liu Banxia approached Dr. Zhang Yun, the attending physician on duty in the emergency department that day.

Zhang Yun was also an attending physician, with two more years of seniority than Shi Lei. However, Liu Banxia hadn’t been very familiar with him in the past.

"As long as you’ve cleared it with Shi Lei, it’s fine with me. Are you really planning to stay in the emergency department permanently?" Zhang Yun asked curiously.

"Heh, I’m just hoping for an appendectomy," Liu Banxia said, somewhat sheepishly.

"Haha, Liu Banxia, has that become your obsession now?" Sun Fengjiao, a third-year resident under Zhang Yun, teased with a laugh.

"Absolutely. That’s why I must work harder," Liu Banxia said earnestly.

"You have no idea, we’re all so envious of you. You got to assist Director Zhou with such a perfect surgery. How did it feel?" Sun Fengjiao asked.

"How did it feel? Utterly clueless, from start to finish," Liu Banxia said with a sigh.

"Let’s put it this way: before the surgery, I had prepared myself, thinking I would definitely learn a thing or two from Director Zhou. Then, I watched the entire process, but in reality, I learned nothing."

"For those at our skill level, the gap is just too vast. It’s probably like they say in martial artist novels: an exchange between masters might look unremarkable on the surface, but it’s actually profoundly intricate."

"You’re spot on there. It wasn’t just you; I felt the same way back in the day. Watching Director Zhou handle things, it always seemed like the most appropriate way, but if I had to do it myself, I wouldn’t manage," Zhang Yun said with a laugh.

"Director Zhou’s fundamental skills are incredibly solid. You all should keep that in mind and not neglect these basics. For us surgeons, surgery is paramount. No matter the type of surgery, you can’t skimp on fundamental training."

"Shi Lei also has a very solid foundation. Among the postgraduate students Director Zhou mentors, he’s the only one who gets the chance to make the initial incision for Director Zhou in major surgeries like this; no one else is up to it."

"Dr. Zhang, is my senior really that skilled? He never mentioned it," Liu Banxia asked, somewhat surprised.

"He’s not the type to show off. You, kid, you’d do well to learn diligently from him," Zhang Yun chuckled.

Liu Banxia nodded. Zhang Yun’s words were a real wake-up call. For the past two days, he had felt something was lacking, and now he knew: it was the fundamentals.

Why couldn’t I even continue practicing the Whipple procedure in the Dream Space back then? It was because my fundamentals were insufficient. Although I wasn’t exactly slacking off in the past, I wasn’t particularly outstanding either. My hands were a bit clumsy, and fundamentally, I was severely lacking. In any surgical procedure, the most basic parts are exposure, dissection, hemostasis, ligation, incision, and suturing. Of these six, even my best skill, suturing, wasn’t up to par. And suturing here doesn’t just mean closing skin wounds; it involves organs, blood vessels, and nerves—those are the real skills needed in an operation. Take that patient impaled by a steel rod last time. Even if I looked down on Qin Hai, his skills were sufficient to repair the blood vessels and spleen. No matter how awesome I thought I was, I would have definitely killed the patient. Why was my training for the anal fistula ligation and seton placement in the Dream Space so effective? One reason was the support from Shi Lei’s notes and insights; another was that the surgery truly wasn’t very difficult. And then my ego inflated, and I wanted to tackle a Whipple procedure. That was the arrogance of ignorance, wasn’t it? The greatest value of the Dream Space isn’t actually for practicing entire surgeries, but for honing these seemingly simple fundamental techniques. When I get home today, I need to start intensive training on these basic elements. I have to master all of them.

"Liu Banxia, what are you thinking about?" Sun Fengjiao asked curiously, noticing his peculiar expression.

"Nothing... I just realized how far I still have to go. I really need to work harder," Liu Banxia reflected.

"Ah... I suggest you don’t overthink it. Even if we want to practice more, do we really get that many opportunities? I think most skills are actually honed after completing residency," Sun Fengjiao said.

"Oh, Dr. Zhang, I wasn’t implying that you don’t give me opportunities to practice! You’ve been guiding me for two years now, and you’ve always taken good care of me."

Zhang Yun waved his hand. "You’re absolutely right. That’s how I see it too. During residency training, it’s better to focus on diligently learning and understanding as much as possible. Even I am still learning every day and dare not slack off."

"Sometimes, it’s not really that we don’t give you opportunities, but rather that every opportunity we give you is a responsibility for us. Our work isn’t like manufacturing ordinary goods; every single action we take can potentially threaten a patient’s life."

"There have been cases where pre-operative preparations were thorough, but once the resident was at the operating table and had opened the abdomen, they wouldn’t know how to proceed, and someone else would have to take over."

"Let’s put it this way: many resident doctors make mistakes, both big and small, the first time they act as chief surgeon. Those who make no mistakes at all are very rare."

"So, you must strengthen your foundational training. Then, even if your mind goes blank when you’re in the situation, your body will be able to react instinctively and accurately."

"And that’s the situation in our country; there aren’t many cadavers available for you to practice dissection on. So, you must cherish every opportunity you get in the operating room. Don’t just watch it unfold; use your minds to commit the feeling of it to memory. Alright, a patient has arrived. You two go attend to them."

"Thank you, Dr. Zhang."

Liu Banxia and Sun Fengjiao both expressed their gratitude.

What Zhang Yun said today was pure gold. Other attending physicians either didn’t think of these things or couldn’t be bothered to say them. Attending physicians are incredibly busy; managing so many patients takes up a lot of their energy.

Liu Banxia was now brimming with fighting spirit because he had finally identified his shortcomings. Having weaknesses isn’t frightening; what’s frightening is not knowing about them or not caring. I have the System to help me; I can definitely patch up all these weaknesses. Sun Fengjiao said there aren’t many cadavers for dissection practice. Do I need to worry about that? Not at all! In the Dream Space, everything is prepared. I can study any part I want.

Although Zhang Yun had merely spoken his mind, his words were a huge help to Liu Banxia. Otherwise, he would have continued to drift along, just waiting for the System to spoon-feed him.