When I'm on the night shift, all the department heads can't sleep.

"Who are the other two?"

The radiology doctor on duty retrieved the examination numbers: "Gao Limin, 62 years old; Shao Dequan, 69 years old." The doctor checked the numbers again. "We've had all three images reviewed by Han Zheng, who's currently in the second line of care. He's reviewing them."

Upon hearing these two names, Lin Ye turned towards the workstation. Gao Limin and Shao Dequan were both in the fever clinic, while Xu Wenliang was still in Jinhua Garden; the three of them were currently in different locations.

"How long will it take to get the official opinion?" Qin Hai asked.

"Dr. Han will get back to you after he finishes reviewing it. The official reports will be signed separately."

Qin Hai ended the call and turned to ask Nurse Zhu to contact the fever clinic.

When the call connected, someone on the other end was rechecking body temperature and blood oxygen levels, and the sound of coughing could be heard intermittently through the receiver.

The on-duty nurse turned to the latest page and reported the changes that had just come out.

"Gao Limin's temperature is 38.9 degrees Celsius, and his resting blood oxygen is 93 percent; Shao Dequan's temperature is still high, and his blood oxygen is around 94 percent; Gao Yuan's blood oxygen is 96 percent." After reporting the data for the three people, she added that Chen Xiulan currently has no fever.

Gao Limin and Shao Dequan have been assigned to different examination rooms, Gao Yuan has been reserved for observation, and Chen Xiulan has been registered as a person who accompanied the examination.

After receiving a verbal report from the radiology department, the doctor on duty at the fever clinic immediately contacted the infection control and infectious disease department. Screening for common respiratory pathogens has been ordered, and nurses are collecting samples. Additional tests are pending evaluation by the infectious disease department.

Nurse Zhu handed the stethoscope to Qin Hai. After confirming that everyone was in the fever clinic, Qin Hai asked the outer triage point to be temporarily reserved, and then asked the on-call supervisor to add the names and examination numbers of the three patients with abnormal imaging results to the contact record.

On the list in front of Lin Ye, Gao Limin and Shao Dequan's destinations were listed, but Xu Wenliang's contact number was still on the cell phone in the taxi.

Above the list, a light blue notification briefly lit up.

[Risk Area: Increased risk of abnormal clustering of similar respiratory tract infections]

[Key gaps: etiological results, shared exposure history, real-time oxygenation of discharged patients, and co-residents]

The information desk sent a two-year-old inpatient homepage to the workstation, and finally another name appeared in the contact list.

Xu Jing is related to her daughter.

He dialed the number, but no one answered the first time.

The second time, just as the fourth note rang out, a woman's voice came through: "Who is it?"

"This is the emergency room of the First Municipal Hospital. I'm looking for Xu Wenliang's daughter, Xu Jing."

"Yes, that's me. How did you find me?" Her voice tightened. "My dad just came back from your hospital. He lay down on the sofa as soon as he walked in, and I was just about to find him some fever reducer."

"We left our phone in the taxi, and the driver received our call. Are you still at Jinhua Garden?"

"At home, on the sixth floor of Unit 2, Building 9," Xu Jing said quickly. "He didn't want me to go with him when he went out, saying he could check the report on his phone after the X-ray. Later, he called me from the car and asked me to wait for him at the north gate. When he got out of the car, his legs were weak, and he kept urging me to help him home. He didn't mention that he left his phone in the car at all. He also complained that there were too many people at the hospital and said he could check the report on his phone later and that he should go home and lie down for a while first."

She took a breath and continued, "He started coughing the night before last, and his fever broke this afternoon. He barely ate any dinner. The elevator in our building has been out of service for two days. He can usually climb six floors in one go, but today he had to hold onto the handrail and had to stop twice. When he got home, he lay down on the sofa. My mom poured him some water, but he picked it up and put it down again, saying his chest felt tight. He could still walk by himself when he went out this afternoon, but he got weaker and weaker on the way back."

Lin Ye waited for her to finish before speaking, "Is he still able to talk to you normally? Can he say a sentence in one breath?"

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone, followed by Xu Jing calling for her father.

Xu Wenliang mumbled a reply, "I'll just lie down for a bit," before being interrupted by a series of coughs.

"He can talk to me, but he can't even finish a sentence, and he's breathing faster than usual." Xu Jing put the phone back to her ear. "His temperature is 39.2 degrees Celsius now, and we don't have anything to measure his blood oxygen at home. My mother is 61 years old and has been staying at home. She's been taking care of him since he came back. She doesn't have a fever or a cough now."

Lin Ye moved the receiver slightly away: "His temperature is 39.2 degrees Celsius. He stopped twice while climbing the sixth floor. He has chest tightness, is breathing rapidly, and can't finish a sentence."

After listening, Qin Hai reached out and took the phone.

"This is Qin Hai from the emergency department. Your father's CT scan is still being reviewed. He had to rest twice while climbing the stairs, and now he's experiencing chest tightness and shortness of breath. These conditions can't be delayed any longer. Please have him sit up and rest, put on his mask, and don't let him go downstairs by himself or drive him there yourself. You and your mother should change your masks and keep separate if possible. Don't call any neighbors for help. The hospital is contacting the local area and 120 (emergency services). They will call you when the ambulance arrives downstairs. Keep his ID card, the CT scan slip, and his usual medications together. Answer the doorbell immediately when it rings, and don't let him walk out on his own when the ambulance comes upstairs."

Upon hearing "120," Xu Jing's breathing became visibly erratic: "They're calling 120? Just how serious is his condition?"

"The pathogen test results will take some time. For now, let's bring the person back. Do as I say and keep your phone on."

Xu Jing responded twice and turned to tell her mother to put on her mask first.

An older woman's voice came through the receiver. She replied, "The hospital called 120. Don't help Dad downstairs yet." Then she went to find her father's ID card and the medical record slip.

Another cough came from the sofa, followed by Xu Jing's voice telling her father to slowly sit up.

After hanging up, Qin Hai reported Xu Wenliang's detailed address and changes in symptoms to the duty officer.

The duty officer has connected with emergency contact personnel in the jurisdiction, and the 120 dispatch center has also received a notification. The dispatch personnel will take precautions against respiratory infection risks, and the vehicle will not pass through the regular entrance of the emergency department.

While Nurse Zhu was recording Xu Jing's number, the infection control department updated the driver's progress: the taxi company had arranged a replacement, and the subsequent cleaning of the vehicle and parking location would be coordinated between the local authorities and the company.

The report status on the workstation changed to "issued" one after another, with the names Gao Limin, Shao Dequan, and Xu Wenliang listed on the same page.

The three tests were completed shortly after each other. Lin Ye paused the page on the report list, waiting for the radiology department to give its formal review opinion.

Nurse Zhu had just entered the driver's updated information when Han Zheng, a second-line radiology specialist, called back.

Han Zheng immediately pointed out the differences between the three imaging reports: "Gao Limin and Shao Dequan's lesions are relatively small, while Xu Wenliang's lungs are more extensively affected, with localized consolidation in the right lower lung. All three reports suggest infectious lesions with similar distributions, but a specific pathogen cannot be determined at this time. The reports have been reviewed and approved, and it is recommended that the infectious disease department conduct an evaluation as soon as possible, combining epidemiological data and etiological examinations."

After Qin Hai confirmed that the report had been uploaded, he asked Nurse Zhu to synchronize the results with the fever clinic and the hospital infection control department.

Lin Ye added "second-line imaging has been reviewed" after Xu Wenliang's name, leaving two blank fields below: real-time blood oxygen and transport destination.

More than half an hour later, the emergency room received a call from the 120 ambulance dispatch team.

The building's elevator was still under maintenance. Emergency personnel brought portable oxygen and a transfer chair to the sixth floor. After assessment, they secured Xu Wenliang to the transfer chair and carried him down from the sixth floor.

When the call came in, the patient had already boarded the vehicle, and the portable oxygen was still being supplied continuously.

The paramedics reported the situation: "Xu Wenliang has been received. His oxygen saturation was 88% without oxygen, and his respiratory rate was 32 breaths per minute. He was conscious. After receiving oxygen, it returned to 92%. The vehicle is preparing to enter the hospital through the designated channel of the fever clinic. Please pick him up in advance."

Lin Ye looked up at Qin Hai.

Qin Hai picked up another phone and relayed the situation reported by the paramedics to the fever clinic: "Xu Wenliang is already in the ambulance, how are you going to receive him?"

After confirming the patient's level of consciousness and blood oxygen levels after oxygen administration, the doctor on duty at the fever clinic immediately directed the patient's location: "The monitoring bed in the observation area is available. The ambulance should take the designated route and we will meet it at the door."

As soon as he finished speaking, the access control notification sounded on the other end of the phone.

The on-duty doctor only had time to add, "The car has arrived, I'll pick up the person first."