A doctor who travels through two eras

However, some people disagree:

"That won't work either. These are all physical goods. Where would barefoot doctors get the money to buy medicine?"

"There's too much food; even a barefoot doctor can't eat it all. Fish, for example, will die, and once they're dead, they're worthless."

"Isn't bartering a sign of social regression? Does it violate national policy?"

Hearing the different opinions of the crowd, Lin Sanqi stood up and explained:
"Using supplies to offset medical expenses is actually a reluctant compromise."

As this comrade just mentioned, there is a problem here: what if barefoot doctors don't receive money, but instead receive a lot of grain, wild game, or medicinal herbs?
After all, barefoot doctors had to pay for medicine, and they also needed to survive and support their families. So, how to convert the supplies they received into cash and various vouchers was a difficult problem.

There is no problem in Andu County because the area is inhabited by ethnic minorities. They are allowed to sell their grain or wild game in the streets. This is the country's care for ethnic minorities, and barefoot doctors can turn their supplies into cash.

But how barefoot doctors in other regions can monetize their supplies requires the government to make a small exception. As long as it can be proven that the supplies were purchased with money deducted from medical bills from ordinary people, barefoot doctors should be allowed to sell them on the market.

Vice Minister Zhang, who was standing nearby, smiled and reminded him:
"Comrade Sanqi, don't worry about this. Don't forget, there are purchasing stations or supply and marketing cooperatives in the city. These places can buy goods from farmers, although the prices are a bit low."

In addition, if it's just farmers selling some local specialties they produce themselves, such as a bunch of vegetables or two eggs, then the regulations aren't strictly enforced.

The main targets now are small-time speculators and vendors, not professional traders. Ordinary farmers are not included, and they are usually released after being arrested.

Lin Sanqi was relieved upon hearing this, thinking that there was always a way out, at least a small opening had been left.

Actually, there is another way to monetize it, just like in many fan fictions, large and medium-sized enterprises now have their own purchasing departments.

In companies like Yi Zhonghai and Sha Zhu's Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill, there was a "purchasing office" because planned materials were in short supply, allowing the factory to go to the countryside to purchase materials on its own.

The purchase price from these factories and mines is higher than that from supply and marketing cooperatives, and farmers are also given certain coupons such as grain coupons, cloth coupons, and match coupons.

This is actually one way for barefoot doctors to monetize their skills; one side wants to sell, and the other wants to buy.

Minister Li, however, thought further ahead and said thoughtfully:

"When I return to the capital, I will ask the leaders for a policy that, when the barefoot doctor program is being fully promoted, it should be clearly stated in the documents that barefoot doctors can charge farmers for various local specialties as medicine fees."

At the same time, barefoot doctors were allowed to sell the supplies they received at a fair price, either to supply and marketing cooperatives or to private individuals. The key was to restrict barefoot doctors from selling at inflated prices and from engaging in speculation.

Just as everyone was discussing it, a second patient went up to see the doctor.

The patient was carried up by two strong young men. His right thigh was wrapped in a dirty piece of clothing, and blood was dripping from it as he walked.

It was clearly an external injury, and quite serious; the patient's face was pale.

"Dr. Dong, quick! My brother fell down while chopping wood on the mountain and cut his thigh."

Upon hearing this, Wang Xidong quickly took off his white coat, fearing it would be contaminated, and then began to unbutton the patient's clothes with his bare hands, regardless of whether they were contaminated or not.

"Lie down quickly, let me check the wound first."

Normally, doctors in this environment should wear rubber gloves, but barefoot doctors don't have that option.

The doctors who were watching were fine, having seen all sorts of bloody scenes, but the onlookers were excited, craning their necks to watch.

The dirty clothes were untied, and blood gushed out, flowing all over the ground. Everyone saw a large, bloody gash about 15 centimeters long in front of them.

The experienced villagers, upon seeing this, all sighed with regret:
An old man sighed, "Oh dear, this wound is too big; it won't heal."

Someone nearby said nonchalantly, "So what if it can't heal? At worst, it'll leave a scar. What's a guy to be afraid of looking bad?"

The old man rolled his eyes.
“Look at this wound, it’s big and dirty, full of mud and broken leaves. A mouth like this is bound to get infected, and if it gets infected, it’s a death sentence.”

Boom! Everyone around who heard this got excited:

"Yes, my dad died from an infected wound after a month."

"Hurry up and wash them with clean water, these people have no brains."

"You're the one who's brainless. Washing a wound with water will only make it more infected. We've heard that the water here is full of bacteria and parasites."

The common people were discussing it animatedly, each acting as a Monday morning quarterback.

When Wang Xidong saw the wound, he felt relieved because after a preliminary examination, he found that only the skin and flesh had been cut open, but the muscles inside were not damaged.

He was confident he could handle the superficial wound.

However, in order to be responsible for the patients, Wang Xidong still looked at Dr. Yu, the mentor sent by Bao'an County, who was standing next to him.

"Teacher Yu, could you please give me your opinion?"

Dr. Yu squatted down, examined the inside with forceps, and then nodded, saying:
"Xiao Wang, your judgment is correct. As long as it's stitched up, it'll be fine. Even if the internal muscles are torn, it can usually be stitched up. There's at least a 50% chance of success, so don't worry."

Wang Xidong nodded emphatically after listening, and then began preparing the tools.

He took out a bottle of saline solution and began rinsing the patient's wound. The patient screamed in agony, but the wound quickly became clean, though fresh blood was still gushing out.

Wang Xidong muttered a curse:
"Huang Hao, bear with it. This is just saline solution; the iodine solution that follows will hurt even more. If you want to live, don't move."

Huang Hao's two older brothers quickly held their younger brother down, comforting him as they did so.

"Little brother, you're lucky. All the famous doctors in the country have come to the scene. Even if Adong can't handle it, he won't let you die. You must hold on."

Lin Sanqi thought to himself, "These rural people are smart. They know that someone is guaranteeing their treatment, so they're not afraid of not being cured."

But today is a public exam for barefoot doctors, and no one else will interfere; otherwise, how could this "bamboo cultivation method" be promoted nationwide?

Wang Xidong then took out iodine solution, unscrewed the cap, and rinsed it directly onto the surface.

A hospital director standing nearby asked curiously, "Minister Lin, what is this disinfectant? It doesn't smell like iodine to me."

Lin Sanqi explained:

"This is called povidone-iodine, which is more advanced and more effective at killing microorganisms. Unlike iodine tincture, which contains alcohol and requires deiodination and cannot be used on broken skin. Rest assured, we will promote it nationwide in the future."

Another dean joked:
“Our large hospitals haven’t even started using it yet, but barefoot doctors have. Minister Lin has really gone to great lengths for this rural doctor program.”

Lin Sanqi glanced back at the dean and thought to himself, "What are you being sarcastic about? Your good days are numbered."

Amid the murmurs of the crowd, Wang Xidong took out a round needle and a thread, and began to thread the needle.

At this point, everyone knows that the barefoot doctor is preparing to stitch up the wound.

What is commonplace outside the mountains is like a fairy tale to the local people living in the mountains, leaving them wide-eyed with astonishment.

Can a wound be stitched up like clothing?
Huang Hao's older brother, who was also somewhat knowledgeable, saw that Wang Xidong was about to have his wound stitched up, so he asked:

"Ah Dong, I've been to the provincial capital. I heard that you need anesthesia to stitch up a wound?"

Wang Xidong said without looking up:

"I have 10 vials of anesthetic, but each vial costs 5 yuan. Are you sure you want it? I'll use it right away."

hiss~~~
Huang Hao, disregarding his pain, quickly shouted:
"No need for anesthesia, it's too expensive. Just sew it up directly, Brother Dong, I can bear it."

Wang Xidong looked around and found a small stick nearby, so he picked it up and put it directly into Huang Hao's mouth.

This scene made everyone chuckle.

Then Wang Xidong lowered his head and began stitching up the wound, one stitch at a time, causing the patient so much pain that he almost felt like he was being bitten to pieces by the stick.

In fact, Wang Xidong's suturing did not conform to the aseptic operation standards at all. The doctor did not disinfect his hands beforehand, nor did he wear sterile gloves.

The wound was not thoroughly cleaned, no sterile drape was applied, and the needle forceps, hemostats, and tweezers were not sterilized.

The doctor, Wang Xile, even directly pinched the round needle and thread with his bare hands. If the head of the quality control department in later generations had seen this, he would have gone mad.

But so what? These were the conditions in this era. To hold barefoot doctors to the standards of a regular hospital would be to be pedantic.

As I said before, we should first solve the problem of "having" before solving the problem of "having well".

Amidst the agonizing screams of the patient, Huang Hao, the wound was finally stitched up. Although the stitches were crooked and unsightly, at least the bleeding had stopped.

The debridement and suturing procedure was successful.

Dr. Yu, the supervising teacher, stepped forward to examine the patient, nodded, and gave instructions:

"After the surgery, disinfect with iodine solution once or twice, then you can wrap it with gauze."

Minister Li's eyes lit up as he watched from the side.

"Good, good, good. One month of training and you'll be able to suture. Dr. Wang is highly skilled, but Dr. Yu, who trained him, is even more skilled. Comrade Sanqi, did you provide all these surgical instruments, gauze, and disinfectant?"

Lin Sanqi understood what the old lady meant. Even at Peking Union Medical College Hospital, one of the best hospitals in the country, surgical instruments were in extremely short supply.

Given the level of metallurgy and manufacturing technology in China in the 1960s, it was simply impossible to produce things like needle holders and scalpels.

Even gauze is in severe shortage.

Having just experienced three years of natural disasters, everyone was terrified of hunger, so a large amount of farmland was planted with crops, and cotton production decreased sharply.

No one is growing cotton anymore, so where will we get gauze and cotton cloth? It's a vicious cycle.

Lin Sanqi's plan to promote barefoot doctors nationwide required not only a massive amount of medicine but also an enormous quantity of surgical instruments, which was difficult to meet.

"Minister Li, don't worry, I will provide all the surgical instruments and gauze. However, I can only provide one batch. It will be difficult to replace them later. Our domestic pharmaceutical and textile factories will need to find a solution."

Decades later, medical gauze will all be disposable.

Change the dressing and gauze every time.

However, in the 1960s, gauze was to be reused repeatedly. Specifically, it was to be washed clean, boiled at high temperature, dried, and then reused.

Minister Li was deeply moved upon hearing this:

"Comrade Sanqi, if you do this, won't Bao'an County be losing money?"

Lin Sanqi smiled and said, "Then, you'll give me the money?"

Minister Li dodged away as if he'd seen a ghost: "Where would I get the money? My funding was provided by your Bao'an County."

After finishing the surgery, Wang Xidong carefully put away the precious surgical instruments, preparing to clean them up properly later.

Then he said:

"Huang Hao, I'll give you six more cephalosporin antibiotics later. Don't get it wet, and come back every other day to change the dressing. I think your life is saved."

Upon hearing this, Huang Hao and his two older brothers all wanted to kneel down and kowtow to Wang Xidong.

"Ah Dong, look, how much does this cost?"

Wang Xidong didn't make an exorbitant demand, saying:

"The registration fee is 5 cents, 6 cephalosporins are 60 cents, and the suture is a bit more expensive, it will cost 2 yuan. Please give me 2 yuan and 65 cents."

The Huang brothers emptied their wallets and found that the three families combined only had 1 yuan. They were really poor.

At this moment, Huang's parents also arrived, carrying a pheasant in their hands:
"Ah Dong, we don't have enough money. Didn't you say we could use something to pay for it? We just caught these two pheasants. Can we use them to offset the cost of the medicine?"

Wang Xidong was a little confused:

“Uncle, two pheasants can sell for 3 yuan in the city. You’re losing out. How about this, I’ll take one pheasant.”

Lin Sanqi was already drinking water at this time. He was very kind-hearted and especially liked to eat small animals, especially wild game.

Upon hearing this, Huang Hao's parents threw down two pheasants without hesitation:

“Ah Dong, this pheasant isn’t domesticated. It just took a little effort. You saved Ah Hao’s life, so we should be thanking you. Here, take the pheasant; consider it payment for the dressing changes and stitch removal later.”

Wang Xidong agreed, and happily accepted the two pheasants, handing them to his wife behind him.
"Then, Uncle, I won't stand on ceremony, hehe."

Lin Sanqi whispered to Li Yujie beside him:

"Go buy these two pheasants, give Wang Xidong 5 yuan, and have his wife cook them for me right away. We'll have chicken soup for lunch, with some mushrooms in it. It'll be so delicious!"

Upon hearing this, County Chief Jin, who was standing nearby, waved his hands repeatedly:

"Minister Lin, with so many high-ranking leaders coming to our Andu County, we will definitely treat you well. Don't worry, we have prepared wild boar, rabbit, and pheasant. Everyone, eat as much as you like."

Lin Sanqi thought to himself, "You, the county magistrate, know how to entertain guests."

Sure enough, at lunchtime, the entire village of Dizhu was filled with the aroma of meat, and all the women in the village were busy cooking.

The men were busy slaughtering pigs and cattle, and the ground was littered with the carcasses of various wild animals.

The small animals in Andu County also suffered greatly. All the hunters in the county went up the mountain and dug deep into the ground.

Those hospital directors and bureau chiefs from big cities were all eating with greasy mouths and bulging bellies.

After everyone finished eating, Lin Sanqi stood on a table and shouted loudly:
Did everyone enjoy lunch?

“It’s cool~~~”

"If you're happy, please hand over your grain and meat coupons. Andu County is a national-level poverty-stricken county. We're here to learn from their experience, so we can't let them go bankrupt, can we?"

Everyone was stunned. They had assumed that wild game was something they would eat for free.

You only had to pay for your own food rations when eating at the canteens of various units in the city.

To put it bluntly, they still look down on rural areas. When they get to the county, they all act like officials. Lin Sanqi won't let them have their way.

Upon hearing this, Minister Li was the first to stand up:
"Comrade Sanqi, I'll personally contribute 5 jin of national grain coupons. In addition, the meat coupons are local and cannot be used in Andu County. I'll add an extra 5 yuan as compensation. Do you think that's enough?"

Lin Sanqi gave a thumbs up:

“Minister Li, you’re so generous. Alright, then I’ll keep it for Andu County. Old Jin, you’ll be the accountant.”

When the other cadres saw this, they realized that since the minister had paid out of his own pocket, they had no reason not to contribute a penny. So they lined up one by one to pay for their meals.

Officials these days really do care about their reputation.

If this were a cadre decades from now, what money would they give you? They'd just write you an IOU and say we'd talk about it later.

At noon, after everyone had rested enough, they sat around the threshing ground in Dizhu Village to summarize their experiences from the morning.

Minister Li and Lin Sanqi sat in the center, each with a stool, while Wang Xidong, as the main character, also received a stool.

Everyone else stood around to make sure everyone could hear.

The scene was like a live interview with Lu Yu.

Lin Sanqi asked, "Comrade Wang Xidong, how many patients did you see this morning?"

Wang Xidong: "I saw a total of 5 patients."

Lin Sanqi: "Do you think there are any difficulties in seeing a doctor? Or are there patients who are unsure of themselves?"

At this moment, Wang Xidong revealed a simple and honest smile and said:
"To be honest, no one is confident. Just a month ago, I was the village clerk, and a month later I became a doctor. This change has made me feel very uneasy. To be honest, I didn't sleep well last night."

Hehehe~~~ Everyone chuckled softly.

"But I remember Minister Lin telling us during the training that barefoot doctors don't need to have great skills; what's important is a sense of responsibility and the ability to provide basic medical and health services."

So I grew bolder and bolder. I thought to myself, if these villagers don't get treatment today, they might die tomorrow. So if I use all my knowledge to treat them, they have at least a 50% chance of surviving, and that's enough."

Lin Sanqi thought to himself, "The cure rate is actually more than 50%."

Like that trauma patient before, if there were no sutures or medication, the likelihood of infection would be extremely high, and the probability of death would also be extremely high.

However, after suturing, the mortality rate drops by half.

If the patient is also given the highly effective anti-infective drug cefuroxime, the mortality rate will drop by another 80%, meaning the patient will almost certainly survive.

However, in order not to make the barefoot doctor arrogant and complacent, Lin Sanqi dared not make any overly confident statements.

Lin Sanqi asked again:

"Comrade Wang Xidong, how much money did you make this morning?"

Wang Xidong gets excited when money is mentioned:
"I've calculated it. I earned a total of 2 yuan, plus two pheasants and a handful of dried medicinal herbs. All of that adds up to at least 5 yuan."

If I keep earning money at this rate, even if I average it out and add the 10 yuan government subsidy, my monthly income will definitely exceed 40 yuan.

Lin Sanqi then asked County Magistrate Jin:

"County Chief Jin, how much do the doctors at your county hospital earn in a month?"

County Chief Jin said apologetically, "It's about 20 yuan. Our distribution standard doesn't meet the urban standard."

The crowd was in an uproar. By this calculation, a barefoot doctor who had only undergone short-term training could earn far more than a doctor in a county hospital.

An income of 40 yuan is already the income of a mid-level doctor in a big city; this is truly an absurd situation. (End of Chapter)