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

While the transport vehicle was still on its way, the staff at the fever clinic first opened the family contact page.

Chen Xiulan is in another isolation area, while Shao Kai and his son, who is hospitalized with a fracture, are still in the orthopedic ward on the eighth floor.

Shao Dequan lay in the isolation observation ward of the fever clinic, with a high-flow humidified oxygen therapy machine working right next to his bed.

After the high-flow oxygen saturation was activated, Shao Dequan's blood oxygen level temporarily returned to 93%. He could understand Tang Wenjie's commands, but still needed to stop and breathe when responding.

After receiving the patient, there will be ongoing communication regarding their condition, and important decisions may require family involvement. On the registration page, Chen Xiulan is listed first, followed by Shao Kai; it needs to be clarified before the transfer to the new ward to determine who answers the phone first.

The nurse at the bedside picked up her work phone and dialed Chen Xiulan's number first.

Chen Xiulan answered quickly: "I've been holding my phone the whole time. What happened to him?"

"Breathing is more difficult than in the afternoon, and blood oxygen is lower, so we've switched to stronger oxygen therapy. The designated hospital has taken over a bed, and the transport vehicle is on its way."

"Which department should I transfer to?"

"The infectious disease intensive care unit. Once you arrive, the ward doctor will contact your family again."

As soon as the word "critical" was uttered, the sound of a chair leg scraping against the floor came from the other end of the phone. Chen Xiulan paused for two seconds before asking, "Can he understand you now?"

"He can open his eyes when called, and he can answer with his name and age, but his response is slower than usual. The pulmonologist is still at his bedside."

"He gets so nervous he can't hear what others are saying," Chen Xiulan said quickly and incoherently. "I can't remember what the doctor said either. In the future, call my son first if he has any questions. Keep my number, don't delete it."

The bedside nurse asked her to give Shao Kai's mobile phone number. After verifying that the number matched the one on the registration page, she changed the contact order between the two to Shao Kai first and Chen Xiulan second.

"The designated hospital will call Shao Kai first," the bedside nurse confirmed. "If he doesn't answer right away, they'll call your number next. Keep both numbers on file."

"Okay, call him first." Chen Xiulan repeated, "He can remember what the doctor said."

Chen Xiulan then asked, "May I say something to him?"

The nurse by the bed glanced at Tang Wenjie.

Tang Wenjie was reviewing Shao Dequan's level of consciousness when he heard this and shook his head: "Let him rest first. After the reassessment before the transfer, he'll still have the energy to say something."

This message was relayed to Chen Xiulan via work phone.

She responded and quickly added, "He handed over his ID card and medical insurance card, and there's a pair of reading glasses at the very bottom of the cloth bag. He needs them to read, so don't leave them here."

The nurse beside the bed touched the inside of the cloth bag; the reading glasses were still there. She told Chen Xiulan on the phone that the glasses would be taken on the bus with other personal belongings.

Chen Xiulan wanted to ask something more, so she repeated "reading glasses" twice, and finally said, "You should make him listen to you. If he feels discomfort in the tube in his nose, he will touch it himself."

The nurse in the observation position was right next to the bed. After hearing this, she checked the ties of the high-flow nasal cannula again.

After hanging up the phone, the staff at the fever clinic then dialed the orthopedic nurses' station on the eighth floor from the clean area.

Shao Kai was called to the nurses' station. His son's left calf was still in a cast, and he remained in bed six. The ward nurses watched over him at the door for a few minutes.

When the child saw his father being called away by the nurse, he tried to sit up by supporting himself on the bed.

"where did you go?"

"Just take this call at the nurses' station." Shao Kai pulled the blanket back up for him, which had slipped down. "Don't move your legs. I'll be back in a few minutes."

The child pressed on, asking, "Is that Grandpa?"

Shao Kai's hand was still on the corner of the blanket. After two seconds, he said, "Grandpa needs to be transferred to another hospital for treatment. You stay here and behave so I can hear what the doctor is saying."

The child slowly lay back down and handed him the phone from beside the pillow: "Here, take this and don't miss any calls."

After hearing the transfer arrangements, Shao Kai immediately asked, "Do I need to come downstairs to sign anything?"

"The patient now understands the doctor's instructions and that he needs to sign the transfer documents himself. You stay on the eighth floor and keep your phone accessible."

"His reactions have slowed down; how can he still sign it himself?"

"The pulmonologist and bedside doctor will conduct another assessment before signing. If they understand and can explain, the patient will sign; if the condition changes, the doctor will contact you again."

Shao Kai was still standing by the nurses' station: "Then let me hear his voice, even just half a sentence."

The cleaning staff told him that Shao Dequan needed to conserve his energy and that no phone calls would be arranged by his bedside for the time being.

When Tang Wenjie was reassessed, he told Shao Dequan that Shao Kai was still taking care of the child on the eighth floor and that his phone would always be on.

Shao Dequan listened twice and said, "Let him take good care of the child."

This message was relayed by the staff at the fever clinic to the nurses' station on the eighth floor.

Shao Kai had prepared several sentences, but after listening, he replied, "Tell him I understand."

The nurse on the eighth floor relayed this message back to the fever clinic. The nurse by the bed told Shao Dequan, "Shao Kai understands." The old man nodded with his eyes closed, his hands still resting flat on the blanket.

When Shao Kai returned to bed six, the child was still waiting for him.

"What did Grandpa say?"

"Let me keep an eye on you." Shao Kai placed his phone next to his pillow and turned the volume up to the maximum. "If the designated hospital calls, call me when you hear it."

The informed consent form for the transfer was sent to the observation ward, and the nurse first helped Shao Dequan put on his reading glasses.

The bedside doctor explained the patient's current condition, the purpose of the transfer, and the risks along the way, and asked him where he was going and why he was going.

Shao Dequan paused twice before answering, "Go to the designated hospital and continue receiving oxygen," and then wrote his name in the signature column.

The nurse took off her reading glasses, put the items back into the bag that already had her name on it, and checked off a mark on the vehicle's inventory list.

The bedside doctor signed the transfer document and noted the notification time, while Tang Wenjie added the respiratory department's consultation opinion to the medical record.

The blood gas analysis results, taken before transport, were immediately delivered to the bedside. Under high-flow oxygen therapy, the oxygen partial pressure rose to 68, the carbon dioxide partial pressure remained around 30, and the lactate level was 2.3.

After Tang Wenjie finished reading, he called Shao Dequan's name again. The old man could open his eyes and hold his hand as requested, but he still spoke slowly.

"The result is a little better than before, but we still need high flow." Tang Wenjie instructed the transport doctor, "Keep the machine change time as short as possible. If the blood oxygen level drops and doesn't recover, or if the person can't be woken up, immediately check the oxygen source and tubing, handle it according to the vehicle's emergency plan, and contact the receiving party at the same time."

At 6:42 PM, a negative pressure ambulance equipped with a vehicle-mounted high-flow-rate device arrived at the designated exit.

After verifying the patient's identity and the latest blood gas readings, the transport doctor walked over to the high-flow equipment and confirmed the switching sequence with Tang Wenjie.

The on-board equipment is first powered on and tested inside the passageway, with the flow rate and inhaled oxygen concentration adjusted to the current parameters at the bedside.

The accompanying nurse checked the temperature and humidification status of the equipment, confirmed that the gas output from the tubing was normal, and reported the pressure reading of the backup oxygen source to the transport doctor.

The transport doctor calculated the distance and oxygen supply, and filled in the current flow rate, inhaled oxygen concentration, and backup oxygen source on the handover form. If parameters needed to be changed during the journey, he would adjust them based on the monitoring values ​​and keep a record.

After the gurney was moved into the transport channel, two pieces of equipment were placed side by side. The transport doctor held a new nasal cannula, while Tang Wenjie stared at the monitor.

"Change now."

The bedside tubing was removed, and the vehicle-mounted equipment was immediately connected.

His blood oxygen briefly dropped to 91, but returned to 93 after half a minute. Shao Dequan was able to open his eyes as instructed, and his blood pressure remained at its original level.

The transport doctor didn't rush to have someone take him away. After the blood oxygen level remained stable for two minutes, he personally called Shao Dequan again.

"Sir, it's time to get on the bus. Nod if you understand."

Shao Dequan nodded.

After Tang Wenjie and the transport doctor confirmed the numbers, the gurney continued to move out.

Inside the clean zone, Lin Ye received the data after the switchover and added the time and blood oxygen levels to the electronic handover form.

At 6:56 PM, the negative pressure ambulance left the First Municipal Hospital.

Staff called Chen Xiulan and the nurses' station on the eighth floor to inform her that the vehicle had left the hospital and that the designated hospital would call back after receiving it.

The three people are still in three different places, and the first number on the contact list has been changed to Shao Kai's.