Great Doctor Ling Ran

Ever since Ling Ran had his own ward, he rarely went to other wards.

It was a habit he had cultivated a long time ago. Once he got used to a place, he would just stay there because doing that felt safest to him. At least, there would be much fewer girls who would suddenly let out shrill screams because of him.

Huo Congjun was only giving recognition to an established fact when he assigned half of the Emergency Department’s original ward to Ling Ran. Ling Ran had been using most of the Emergency Department’s observation rooms anyway. Huo Congjun only made it official.

As a result, Ling Ran now had a fixed area to perform his ward rounds. The young nurses were the ones who derived the most joy from this, since they just needed to stand guard at the places where Ling Ran would definitely go.

The nurses’ tasks were complicated and difficult, causing them plenty of agitation. Only the sight of Ling Ran could lift their spirits a little.

With that thought in mind, the young nurses executed the policies imposed by Ling Ran with unprecedented dedication, whether those regulations were reasonable or not.

After he implemented the policy on hand-washing and the changing of slippers, Ling Ran also insisted on repeated inspection of the medical equipment. After that, Ling Ran reinforced the policy that those medical equipment had to be washed until they were sparkly clean.

When the Department of Infection Control realized what was going on, the Ling Treatment Group’s ward was already so strictly regulated that it was as if its internal structure had separated the group from the rest of the hospital.

“The policies are implemented pretty strongly.” When the visiting doctors from the Department of Infection Control saw that Ling Ran’s ward was full of signages with “wash your hands” written on them, they got pretty emotional.

Compared with other specialized departments, the tasks of the Department of Infection Control was actually pretty simple. Aside from supervising larger projects such as disinfection plans, all they needed to do was remind everyone to wash their hands.

And it was not easy to make doctors and nurses wash their hands all the time.

Hence, rather than providing medical services, the Department of Infection Control was more like an administration management department.

They often had to spend plenty of mental as well as physical energy to fight against the nurses and doctors. A more appropriate description would be that they needed to fight a battle of wits and courage against those medical staff.

Therefore, when they saw the Ling Treatment Group’s ward, the cadres of the Department of Infection Control actually felt quite emotional.

“It’s really well done.”

“Hey, look, that nurse washed her hands with alcohol-based hand sanitizer before she entered the ward.”

“The patient’s family member… What the hell? Even the patient’s family member washed his hands with alcohol-based hand sanitizer before entering the ward!”

It only took a few minutes for the cadres of the Department of Infection Control to go from standing by and watching the ward area to screaming in astonishment.

Those who have worked for a long time in the Department of Infection Control felt more despair than those working in the Oncology Department. At least, some of the patients with tumors could be cured and most of them were pretty obedient. It was the exact opposite when it came to the Department of Infection Control. A doctor may never have a chance to experience any sense of achievement even after working in the Department of Infection Control his or her entire life. To put it mildly, they were considered pretty good fighters who had no military achievements. To put it in a negative way, the Department of Infection Control was a department that doctors only turned to when calamities related to nosocomial infection occurred.

Most importantly, no matter how meticulous those in the Department of Infection Control were, the moment they let their guard down, all their prior efforts would become meaningless.

It was just like how a room would not stay clean for a prolonged period of time no matter how meticulous a person swept it.

As they gazed at the medical staff, patients, and patients’ family members who seemed to have received plenty of education regarding infection control, the cadres of the Department of Infection Control grew increasingly joyous.

Ling Ran did not feel anything though. He merely flashed a smile and said, “Everyone has been very cooperative.”

The cadres of the Department of Infection Control were immediately moved to tears.

The Department of Infection Control rarely got to hear the word “cooperative”. In contrast, they had encountered medical staff who used all means and methods to defy their regulations.

“Good morning, Doctor Ling.”

“Doctor Ling, I bought a bottle of wolfberry-flavored alcohol-based hand sanitizer. Why don’t you give it a try?”

“Hello, Doctor Ling.”

A few young nurses passed by and greeted Ling Ran with grins on their faces. One of them handed a bottle of alcohol-based hand sanitizer to Ling Ran while she was at it.

Ling Ran thanked the nurse with a smile and immediately opened the bottle of alcohol-based hand sanitizer, giving it a try.

It really smelled like wolfberries.

As the aroma of the familiar smell traveled into the nostrils of the middle-aged cadres of the Department of Infection, they were once again almost moved to tears.

“Doctor Ling, you really do manage your interpersonal relationships well.” Tian Ren was the youngest among the cadres of the Department of Infection Control, and he was the first one to regain his senses after being enraptured by the fragrance of wolfberries.

Next to him, Yu Yuan could not help but burst out laughing. “This is the first time I’ve heard anyone praise Doctor Ling regarding his interpersonal relationships.”

“Since when did you get here?” Tian Ren was extremely shocked.

The four-feet-nine Yu Yuan raised her head and recited the line she had to say every time, “I’ve been here this entire time.”

Tian Ren thought about it in suspicion. He did not recall there being such a tiny animal within his field of vision previously.

Yu Yuan chuckled. “With observation skills like that, it’s no wonder infections break out in our hospital every now and then.”

The cadres of the Department of Infection immediately became furious.

“Since when have there been breakouts of infection?”

“Last month…”

“In June…”

“In March, the Gynaeoncology Department…”

As they answered their own questions, their imposing presence instantly dwindled.

Nosocomial infections happened every now and then. It was basically impossible to completely eradicate them.

The most common ones were diseases that could be passed through the air, such as those caused by lung bacteria. It was a considerably chronic problem in large-scale tertiary Grade A hospitals. No matter how high the ranking of a tertiary Grade A hospital was, they would not be able to completely prevent the propagation of such bacteria. As such, an infection rate of below ten percent for pneumonia was considered normal.

Of course, if the Department of Infection Control did their job well, the prevalence of nosocomial infections could always be reduced.

Tian Ren looked around and could not help but say, “Doctor Ling, why don’t we work together?”

“How?” Ling Ran asked.

“We can participate in the infection control efforts of your treatment group—”

“Isn’t that your job to begin with?” Yu Yuan quickly cut him off before she lowered her head to send a text message.

Tian Ren furrowed his eyebrows. “That’s true, but Doctor Ling’s criterion regarding infection control are obviously higher compared with ordinary departments, isn’t it? I think that we can assist the Emergency Department in raising its standards when it comes to infection control. We can see it as an experiment, and both sides can derive benefits from it.”

Before Ling Ran could even reply, the pharmaceutical sales representative, who had been standing beside them, inched closer towards Ling Ran and said in a hushed tone, “Doctor Ling, because our criterion when it comes to infection control are different, the medical consumables we use are also different.”

The Department of Infection Control of Yun Hua Hospital procured medical consumables of a different brand. If the Emergency Department were to adopt the Department of Infection Control’s standards, the medical consumables they recently procured might not be able to be put to use.

As expected, Ling Ran furrowed his eyebrows when he heard that. He definitely preferred the alcohol-based hand sanitizer he chose himself.

*Squeak, squeak…*

Zuo Cidian walked over in small but swift steps. He held his phone in one hand, and rapidly swung his other hand. He quickly went up to Ling Ran.

“Doctor Ling, give me a minute.” Zuo Cidian panted a few times before he continued, “The Department of Infection Control wants to work with us?”

“Yes… You are?”

“Do you guys want to work in Doctor Ling’s treatment group?” Zuo Cidian did not answer. He threw a question at the cadres of the Department of Infection Control.

“Yes… You are?”

“You guys would have to listen to what Doctor Ling says.” Zuo Cidian turned and said, “Doctor Ling, our infection control measures are implemented really well, and we don’t need the Department of Infection Control to take over. It would also be impossible for us to let them take over. The most appropriate method of cooperation would be to ask the Department of Infection Control to listen to what we say.”

Tian Ren froze for a moment and was immediately infuriated. “Nosocomial infections fall within the domain of the Department of Infection Control to begin with. How is it possible for us to listen to a treatment group?”

“Hasn’t the Department of Infection Control been listening to the treatment groups all this while?” Zuo Cidian turned and answered coldly.

He had been mingling around in the operating theater every day and had gained considerable knowledge when it came to the mechanics of a tertiary Grade A hospital.

The Department of Infection Control was said to prevent nosocomial infections in the entire hospital. However, in truth, what they did was procedural work at most. When it was time for the policies to be implemented, none of the doctors or nurses would listen to them.

In the end, the Department of Infection Control had no choice but to assign the tasks to various departments and let those in charge of the departments implement those policies in their respective departments.

Throughout the process, the Department of Infection Control had no say over the compliance of those department directors and the lengths those department directors were willing to go to for the sake of implementing those policies.

In contrast, trying their best to complete their tasks, the Department of Infection Controls in some hospitals had to beg other departments to implement infection control measures on their behalf, or else, no matter how good the measures they came up with were, it would be pointless if no one implemented them.

Aside from a small number of hospitals, the Department of Infection Control could be said to be the least influential department in most hospitals. They could not even measure up to the Medical Laboratory Department. At least the Medical Laboratory Department could be used to house the relatives of hospital leaders who had low academic qualifications.

“Excuse me, who are you?” Tian Ren asked again.

Zuo Cidian chuckled. “I am Zuo Cidian from the Ling Treatment Group. ‘Zuo Ci’ [1] as in the ‘Zuo Ci’ from the Three Kingdoms [2] period, and my ‘dian’ means canon. It is also the word found in Chinese Pharmacopoeia[3].”

Tian Ren thought for a moment. “It’s also the ‘dian’ that means mortgage, right?”

Zuo Cidian’s expression darkened. “Do you guys want to work together or not?”

“Yes, yes.” The other cadres of the Department of Infection Control quickly smoothed things over.

“I told you so.” Zuo Cidian let out a laugh that sounded like that of an official, and he had a very imposing presence.

Zuo Cidian then turned and asked in a tactful tone, “Doctor Ling, what do you think?”

Ling Ran nodded slowly. “Sure.”

Even with Ling Ran included, the Ling Treatment Group only had four people and a half, and it was impossible for them to spend their mental energy in controlling nosocomial infections in the long run. Moreover, aside from hand-washing and disinfection, infection control also included the closed-loop management of medication, problems related to storage, the logistics when it came to transportation of items, and other such matters.

Not only were the doctors in the Ling Treatment Group not willing to do all that, but they were also not capable of doing them even if they were willing to.

Of course, for the Department of Infection Control, a treatment group that was willing and capable of upgrading their infection control measures was very hard to come by.

As for the matter of listening to Ling Ran’s requests, Tian Ren and the others gave up on fighting against it after remaining stubborn for a few minutes.

“All right, it’s decided then.” One by one, the cadres of the Department of Infection Control shook their hands with Ling Ran, and they instantly felt extremely relaxed.

Ling Ran nodded and took out the wolfberry-flavored alcohol hand sanitizer while he was at it. He pressed some onto the center of his palm and rubbed it evenly on his hands.

“You were born to carry out infection control measures.” At that moment, Tian Ren was already convinced by Ling Ran’s abilities.

Zuo Cidian let out a few coughs and said, “Can I say something…”

Everyone’s body immediately stiffened out of habit.

“I feel that we should write a document, the type that looks like a joint statement…” Zuo Cidian smiled and said, “As the saying goes, ‘verbal words carry no weight.’ Even Zhuge Liang [4] needed to write a memorial to the throne [5] before sending his troops to war.”

The creation of the document would mean that the relationship between the Department of Infection Control and the Ling Treatment Group was penned down in black and white. The cadres of the Department of Infection Control glanced at one another and were all unwilling to do so. One of them made an excuse. “We don’t know how to write documents like these.”

Zuo Cidian laughed out loud and said in a relaxed tone, “I know how to. I’ve been writing documents for the past twenty years. Just wait for two hours while I draft the document. Once I’m done, you guys just need to sign.”

Before everyone else could say anything, Zuo Cidian left swiftly.

Translators’ notes:

[1] A legendary personage of the late Eastern Han dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period of China. (Source: Wikipedia)

[2] The tripartite division of China among the states of Wei, Shu, and Wu. It started with the end of the Han dynasty and was followed by the Jin dynasty. (Source: Wikipedia)

[3] The Pharmacopoeia of the People’s Republic of China (PPRC) or the Chinese Pharmacopoeia (ChP), is an official compendium of drugs, covering Traditional Chinese and western medicines, which includes information on the standards of purity, description, test, dosage, precautions, storage, and the strength for each drug. (Source: Wikipedia)

[4] Zhuge Liang was a Chinese politician, military strategist, writer, engineer and inventor. (Source: Wikipedia)

[5] An official communication to the Emperor of China. They were generally careful essays in Classical Chinese and their presentation was a formal affair directed by government officials. (Source: Wikipedia)