A doctor who travels through two eras

In the courtyard of the backyard of Andong County Hospital.

The 208 newly elected barefoot doctors from across the county sat together, looking up at the group of leaders on the steps.

The conference table was made up of several makeshift tables, and there was no microphone on it. Only Lin Sanqi and a group of county leaders were sitting there.

Further back, there was a standard portrait of a great man.

Most notably, the table next to it was piled high with all sorts of medicines, all of which were newly produced Western medicines from Bao'an County Pharmaceutical Factory.

Lin Sanqi cleared his throat and spoke at the top of his lungs to the young barefoot doctors below:

"Comrades, good afternoon. I am Lin Sanqi, the Vice Minister of Health. First of all, I would like to congratulate you on becoming the first batch of barefoot doctors in the country."

There's a second reason I'm holding this meeting today: I want to tell everyone that although barefoot doctors are part-time medical practitioners and part-time farmers, they are not formally employed in the health system.

But whether they are doctors in big hospitals or barefoot doctors in villages, once they put on this white coat, they must firmly remember their sacred duty as doctors, which is to serve the people wholeheartedly.

Today, with the statue of this great man here, I hope everyone will pledge to XXX that they will not do anything unethical, but rather do good deeds and contribute to society. I believe that in the future, you too will be remembered in the village's history.

A round of applause erupted from below. The barefoot doctors' eyes were clear yet naive, and they looked quite innocent.

Lin Sanqi continued:
"Being a doctor is actually a matter of conscience. Medical skills may vary, but our sense of responsibility cannot be compromised."

Some comrades might say that what I, as a high-ranking leader, am saying is just empty talk and grandstanding, but everyone has really misunderstood me.

I am very worried that some comrades will become corrupt and degenerate in the future, and that a few will even become pawns, using their medical skills to make money and kill people.

So don't think that being selected as a barefoot doctor means you can rest easy. Let me tell you, this is just the first step in a long journey.

Next, we will conduct comprehensive medical training, culminating in an exam. If you fail the exam the first time, you will be given a chance to retake it. If you fail the second time, I'm sorry, we will have to replace you.

In addition, if a barefoot doctor lacks a sense of responsibility and has a poor attitude while practicing medicine in the village, causing dissatisfaction among the villagers, and if we receive too many such complaints and verify them, the doctor will also be dismissed.

Finally, do not do anything illegal or disorderly. As doctors, we must remain neutral at all times and in all places. Do not participate in village struggles, and even less so in any movements.

Of course, everyone can rest assured that as long as you pass the exam and the people's assessment, and become a formal barefoot doctor, your income will be guaranteed, and your material life will surpass that of the vast majority of villagers.

So keep going, comrades!

If you're talking about moral education, everyone's getting a little sleepy.

But once you start talking about money, everyone's awake.

In fact, the subsidy of 10 yuan per month given by Lin Sanqi is definitely too much, not too little.

His subsidy standard is based on the city, because an apprentice or temporary worker earns about 15 to 18 yuan a month, which is enough to maintain a basic living.

But in the countryside, the vegetables are grown by the farmers themselves, and the grain is exchanged for work points. Farmers rarely spend money; 10 yuan is more than enough to support a whole family.

Moreover, there are registration fees, differences in drug prices, and so on. Barefoot doctors with high medical skills and many patients will earn far more than urban doctors in the future.

Don't underestimate farmers. They're very clever and understand economics better than anyone else. That's why people are willing to fight each other to grab a spot.

Lin Sanqi continued:
"We are short on time for this barefoot doctor training program, so we will get straight to the point and begin immediately."

Let me ask you something first. I distributed this copy of "The Barefoot Doctor's Manual" to everyone five days ago, the day after the election. Who here has read the entire booklet? Please raise your hand.

Half of the hands were raised at the scene.

Everyone looked at each other, and then hesitantly raised their hands.

Lin Sanqi chuckled to himself, thinking that the people who raised their hands at the back must not have finished reading, but he could understand.

Reading medical books can be just as tedious as reading math or English books; without a certain amount of perseverance, most people simply can't resist.

But half of the people raised their hands without hesitation, which shows that these barefoot doctors were already studying very seriously. If you asked a college student from later generations to try, they would be lucky to even turn the cover page.

"Alright, whether you've finished reading the whole book or not, we won't be testing you today."

Barefoot doctor training is a clinical and practical discipline; we don't teach the complex theoretical knowledge, which you can learn on your own.

To put it simply, why do we get sick? What are the causes? What is the pathophysiology? That's not your concern; what you should be concerned with is how to treat it.

For example, in the simplest case, a patient has a fever and comes to your clinic for treatment.

There are actually dozens, even hundreds, of diseases that can cause a fever, but we don’t need you to worry about why a fever is caused right now.

Similarly, in a standard medical procedure, if you have a fever, you need to find out the cause, such as by doing a blood test, taking an X-ray, or even, in more serious cases, by doing a bacterial culture or a virus test.

But barefoot doctors don't need to know any of that. What you need to know is how to treat patients, or to put it simply, how to bring down a fever.

After Lin Sanqi finished speaking, he held up a box of medicine in his hand and said:

"This medicine is called ibuprofen. Its main function is to reduce fever. You can take one pill for any fever, no matter what the cause. It is definitely effective and much more effective than Bupleurum Decoction or Ephedra Decoction."

So all you need to remember is that if you have a fever, take ibuprofen and remember the dosage and usage instructions. That's all you need to do. Isn't that simple?
If it's a traditional Chinese medicine fever reducer, then it becomes complicated. First, you have to distinguish whether it's a cold caused by wind-cold or wind-heat, whether it's caused by summer heat and dampness, or by excessive internal heat. I believe that at this point, most doctors would be stumped.

Secondly, you probably know what caused it, so prescribing a medicine is a problem, right? Even if you can prescribe a medicine, choosing and identifying the herbs is another problem.

I once served as the vice president of the Capital Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine. My father and brothers were all doctors of traditional Chinese medicine. I know that to learn traditional Chinese medicine well, one must start with a nine-year apprenticeship.

My older brother is 35 years old this year and only started practicing medicine independently last year. So it's too difficult to become a qualified traditional Chinese medicine doctor. Moreover, it depends on talent, and not everyone can learn it.

But becoming a qualified barefoot doctor is that simple; one pill is all it takes. Think about it, do you have confidence?

The young barefoot doctors below shouted in unison, "Yes!"

Lin Sanqi, holding the medicine box, continued:

"Moreover, this ibuprofen isn't just for reducing fever. If you have a headache, take one pill. You can also take it for toothaches. In addition, it can be used for muscle pain, joint pain, neuralgia, and even menstrual cramps in women."

At this point, some of you might be underestimating the problem, thinking that ibuprofen is a cure-all. But you'd be wrong. This is where the value of a doctor becomes apparent.

For example, if you have a stomachache, you can't take ibuprofen. Just remember that ibuprofen is very irritating to the stomach and intestines. Not only will it not cure the disease, but it may also cause stomach perforation, which would constitute a medical accident.

Furthermore, ibuprofen should not be taken for unexplained stomach aches, as its strong pain-relieving properties can mask the underlying condition, potentially delaying treatment and leading to serious consequences.

At this moment, a barefoot doctor raised his hand and said:

"Minister Lin, what should we do if we have a stomachache? How can we find out what's causing the stomachache? And how should we treat it?"

Lin Sanqi scratched his head, thinking that this question was very simple to answer, but in this impoverished county in the 1960s, it seemed to be an unsolvable problem.

For example, if the abdominal pain is caused by appendicitis, an ultrasound can tell you the cause, but the problem is that there isn't one in Andu County.

Even if a doctor diagnoses appendicitis based on their experience, in Andu County, which lacks surgeons and operating rooms, it seems that one can only wait to die.

Rather than let the patient suffer in agony until they die, it would be better to give them some painkillers so they can pass away with less pain. Thinking of this, Lin Sanqi said helplessly:
"It seems I was wrong. I've become a theorist again, even though we agreed that we were all clinical practitioners."

In this way, if you encounter a patient with severe abdominal pain, you can still use painkillers, but you must make it clear to the family beforehand that these medications can only relieve symptoms and cannot cure the disease; life and death are left to fate.

Fortunately, there were no medical problems in the 1960s. If a doctor was cured, they would give him a banner; if not, the body would be taken home and buried. There were no terrible incidents where doctors had to pay with their lives.

This is why Lin Sanqi dared to violate the regulations for medical treatment and directly allowed the barefoot doctor to use ibuprofen to treat his stomachache.

Then, Lin Sanqi picked up a box of cephalosporins and said:
"This is a box of cephalosporins, which I guess most of you haven't heard of, but if I give you an example, you'll immediately understand what this drug does. You've all heard of penicillin, right?"

More than two hundred barefoot doctors nodded repeatedly.

"Know!"

"I've heard of it; it's a life-saving drug."

If you were an ordinary old farmer from the mountains, you would most likely not know about penicillin, because you would never need it in your lifetime.

But most of these young people have attended middle school, or at least primary school, and have left the mountains, so they naturally know about the famous penicillin.

"Everyone knows penicillin, which is an injection, while the cephalosporin I have here is a tablet. Its efficacy is more than 10 times that of penicillin, and it can treat almost all infectious lesions."

If a minor case of pneumonia used to be fatal, now with this cephalosporin, pneumonia is almost always curable and is no longer a life-threatening disease.

Furthermore, injuries from falls and blows are common among people in the mountains. These wounds often become inflamed and suppurate, eventually leading to the patient being burned alive or dying from the pain. With this cephalosporin now available, one tablet twice a day will eliminate the infection problem.

Let me put it this way: with this cephalosporin, almost 80% of diseases can be treated now. You barefoot doctors can not only become miracle doctors with this medicine, but also make a fortune.

For example, this box of cephalosporin is priced at 1 yuan. You can add 30% to the price, which means you can make 3 mao (0.3 yuan) profit. If you sell 10 boxes a day, that's 3 yuan. Do the math, how much can you earn in a month just from this one medicine?

Of course, let's make it clear first that a 30% markup on drugs is the highest percentage allowed by the state. You can add only 10% or 20%, which is very flexible, but it is absolutely not allowed to add 31% or 40% or similar markups.

We will set up a complaint mailbox. If anyone is selling medicines at inflated prices, we will not only revoke their barefoot doctor's license, but also arrest and sentence them for embezzlement. So please don't make a mistake."

Boom! The scene exploded!
Lin Sanqi's words just now contained a great deal of information.

One is the discovery of a miraculous antibacterial drug, even more effective than penicillin, which is something no one could have imagined.

Another thing is that, as promised, the government allowed barefoot doctors to earn money, so their livelihoods would be completely secure from then on.

At this moment, Director Shan of the county hospital clapped his hands and said:

"Today's barefoot doctor training skipped the theory classes and started the internship directly this afternoon. Medicine, in the final analysis, is empirical medicine; just reading books is useless."

Starting in the afternoon, the 208 trainees were divided into 5 classes, with a team from Bao'an County Hospital providing teaching demonstrations. During the upcoming internship, trainees can ask questions immediately if they have any questions.

Because our Andu County is a national demonstration site, time is tight and the task is heavy, so the training work will be compressed into less than a month.

Once our barefoot doctor program in Andu County is successfully implemented, it will be promoted throughout the province and the country. Comrades, this is an honor for our Andu County, and we must not miss this opportunity.

See that? There's a camera filming the whole time. It will be made into a movie and sent all over the country. Everyone can appear in it and see themselves on the big screen!

Wow~~~
Another murmur arose from the crowd as everyone peered out and spotted a strange little machine on the tripod.

Huang Xiaoji, who was operating the machine, waved to everyone, revealing a mouthful of bright white teeth.

After the meeting, Lin Sanqi followed Shen Qiushui, the director of Bao'an County Hospital and also his god-sister, toward the guesthouse canteen.

Shen Qiushui and her team took the "Zisu" special plane directly to Hechi Airport, and then transferred to a car to reach Andu County.

In addition to bringing a large number of clinical drugs, they also brought a team of 45 doctors.

Andu County has a total of 35 communes. Even if each commune only has one supervising doctor, it would still require 35 people.

Lin Sanqi's teaching model was that during the day, barefoot doctors would intern at the county hospital in classes, because there was no shortage of patients there.

In the evenings, self-study sessions were held in communes, with each commune assigned a doctor as a mentor to teach these young people with no prior knowledge.

After returning to their respective communes a month later, the supervising teachers lived and worked in the communes for another month to provide assistance.

New drivers are bound to be flustered and confused when they first start driving. A car can make a mistake and it can be corrected, but if a doctor makes a mistake, the patient could die. Having a senior doctor on hand in critical moments can reduce the chances of a novice doctor making a mistake.

"Sister, is the training program at Bao'an County Hospital ready?"

Lin Sanqi plans to stay in Andu County for a month to obtain firsthand information before starting nationwide training.

One doctor from the county hospital was assigned to each county, and two doctors from the city hospital were assigned to each region to come to Bao'an County for training on the "Barefoot Doctor's Manual".

These doctors were mostly college or vocational school graduates, so the "Barefoot Doctor's Handbook" was child's play for them.

After this group of doctors finishes their training, they will go back to train barefoot doctors in the county.

While admiring the scenery, Shen Qiushui confidently replied:
"Don't worry, we have experience from the last infectious disease doctor training. The training location is in the new pharmaceutical factory. The factory buildings can be used as classrooms, and there is no shortage of staff dormitories and canteens, which is very convenient."

Lin Sanqi then asked, "Was there any difficulty in spreading out the beach all at once?"

Shen Qiushui smiled and said:
"No problem. You have prepared all the 'Barefoot Doctor's Manuals,' you have no shortage of training venues and funds, and the teachers are in place. There is no reason for you to fail."

I've read this "Barefoot Doctor's Manual" several times already. All I can say is, young man, you're amazing, truly amazing. Even an ordinary person could become a qualified barefoot doctor after reading this manual a few times.

Lin Sanqi also laughed and said:

"Of course, this 'Barefoot Doctor's Handbook' is the result of the hard work of many people. It's no exaggeration to say that it was created with the efforts of the entire nation. It's practically a treasure trove of 'general medical and pharmaceutical' knowledge."

From common coughs and vomiting to complex cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases and cancer; from disease prevention knowledge such as mosquito and fly control to protection against nuclear and biological weapons; from acupuncture and herbal medicine to commonly used Western medicines, it covers everything.

If every village in the country had a barefoot doctor, and with the medicines provided by Bao'an County and major pharmaceutical companies across the country, then basic medical services in our country would be universally available. That would be one of my greatest contributions.

Shen Qiushui burst out laughing:
"If you really want to make a name for yourself in history, then you should vigorously develop urban hospitals. For example, just look at Peking Union Medical College Hospital and Guangci Hospital in Shanghai. Oh, it's now called Ruijin Hospital."

Look at the gardens of these hospitals; they all have statues of the wealthy donors who built them. That's something to be proud of. If you build these village clinics, who will remember you?

Lin Sanqi pouted and said:
"How many more years do you think those statues will stand? Don't worry, they will all eventually disappear into the river of history, and no one will easily mention the history of these city hospitals, because that is the history of capitalists, which is not in line with the national conditions."

Besides, my work on the barefoot doctor's manual is actually a great thing that benefits the present and future generations, solving the medical problems of hundreds of millions of people. Don't you think I've accumulated a lot of good karma?"

What Lin Sanqi didn't say was that the city hospital might not be able to survive in a few years, and all his efforts would be in vain.

The village clinic will definitely be preserved, since everyone in the village needs medical care. Anyone who dares to vandalize it will have their head smashed by the villagers.

The two chatted as they discussed the follow-up work on the barefoot doctor training program.

At that moment, the guesthouse manager was calling out from afar:
"Minister Lin, the whole roasted lamb is ready."

Lin Sanqi waved his hand and said, "Come on, sis, the taste of this lamb is definitely no worse than Ningxia Tan lamb. It's fatty but not greasy. It's my treat today." (End of this chapter)