Chapter 145: How to run a hospital
Translator: imperfectluck Editor: Kurisu
Zhang Fan felt reassured after he successfully helped Chen Qifa find a job. This was how people were. Relationships would improve over time.
Zhang Fan had gotten really close to Chen Qifa with time. Although Chen Qifa was rather stingy, he was still a nice person at heart. A middle-aged man like him being stingy was because he had a family and responsibilities! He was a reliable family man!
One week passed. Zhang Fan finished his one week stay in the rural area, and was rotated to the cardiothoracic surgery department when he returned.
In northwestern China, most hospitals’ cardiothoracic surgery departments mostly performed basic thoracic surgeries. Heart surgeries were quite underdeveloped. Young doctors also didn’t like joining the cardiothoracic surgery department. Cardiothoracic surgeries were extremely complex. Even the border province’s provincial hospital was only mediocre at offering heart surgery services, so of course smaller hospitals would have it worse!
This department didn’t have any development potential, which meant that people were unwilling to join it. Not only that, it would be especially difficult to get promoted in this department. In Chasu City Hospital, the cardiothoracic surgery department was one of the smallest surgical departments. There was only one director, two attending physicians, and two resident doctors in this department. There wasn’t even a vice director.
The doctors in this department were quite carefree. They would steal collarbone fracture patients from orthopedic surgery departments, while the orthopedic surgery departments would steal rib fracture patients from them. However, the orthopedic surgeons wouldn’t take thoracic disease patients even if such patients were offered to them! Liu Boyan was the director of the cardiothoracic surgery department. The two attending physicians under him were still incapable of independently performing thoracic surgeries, which meant that Liu Boyan basically performed every single surgery in the department personally.
Zhang Fan was now famous in the hospital. Director Liu even came up and shook Zhang Fan’s hand! It was as if the two were connected at the hands! Zhang Fan had to take the hand since the director wanted to shake hands! Zhang Fan felt really awkward 1 about this!
“Doctor Zhang, you see, there’s not many surgeries or patients in our department. We can’t compare to orthopedic surgery, general surgery, and other such departments. For the first week, just get accustomed to our department. You can independently work by yourself. Feel free to directly take collarbone fracture or rib bone fracture surgery patients without informing me. Those ravenous wolves in the orthopedic department are so greedy! They won’t even let go of chances to take rib bone fracture patients!” After Director Liu said this, he then told his other subordinate doctors about Zhang Fan, and then left to perform outpatient services. Still, the director felt that the collarbone was also part of the ribcage! Since Zhang Fan was originally from the orthopedic department to begin with, it was as if the director was indirectly cursing at him!
There were only 10 patients in the department, and all of them were almost finished with their treatment. Zhang Fan had nothing to do, so he brought out his textbooks and started studying. The two attending physicians in the cardiothoracic department were leading the other rotation doctors in changing medicine. Zhang Fan felt too awkward about offering to do such work as it would only make everyone feel awkward.
Zhang Fan didn’t need to do any work in the first week apart from getting accustomed to the department. This was because Zhang Fan had performed far too excellently. Two directors had been assigned to be his surgical assistants at the superintendent’s personal command. Although it was in order to help both directors save face, no ordinary person would have possibly been chosen by the superintendent in that time of crisis. This was why the doctors and nurses in the cardiothoracic department were very polite and respectful towards Zhang Fan. However, there was still a slight sense of distance between them. Zhang Fan didn’t mind this, as he figured that the sense of distance would disappear once everyone got used to each other.
Later that night, Zhang Fan visited Shao Hua’s home. Ever since Shao Hua had taken Jingshu and both their mothers to Shanghai, Shao Hua’s mother was now treating Zhang Fan as her daughter’s fiancé, although they weren’t formally engaged. She would always make Zhang Fan’s favorite foods. Although Shao Hua’s cooking skills were currently only average, she would always make food that had an exquisite appearance! It was just that she was slow at cooking because she spent too much time focusing on the food’s appearance. It would often take her more than two hours to cook a meal!
After dinner, Zhang Fan had a discussion with Shao Hua in her bedroom. Before, she wouldn’t let Zhang Fan into her bedroom, but Zhang Fan was the shameless type who would constantly try to get in regardless. After a while, Shao Hua gave up and simply let him in!
“I need to talk to you about something. You see, the new apartment’s renovations are done. How about you find a time to talk to your parents about moving!”
“Hmm?”
“I want to have your parents move into that apartment behind the hospital. This apartment is far too old. It’s not that good of a place to live in.”
“That won’t do!” Shao Hua’s eyes were reddening with tears because she was so touched by Zhang Fan’s offer.
“There’s nothing that won’t do. Your parents should enjoy themselves. That apartment has elevators unlike this place which only has stairs. It’s also much closer to supermarkets and so on. The only bad part is that it’s a bit farther away from your workplace. How about you learn how to drive and also get a driver’s license? I don’t use my car very much. At most, I just drive to other cities’ hospitals to help them perform surgeries.” Zhang Fan was lying on Shao Hua’s bed while talking to the ceiling rather than looking at Shao Hua.
Shao Hua gently snuggled up against Zhang Fan, and softly replied, “Okay! But if you let my parents live in that apartment, where will you live? Besides, that apartment should have been for your parents!”
“The hospital is building new apartments for its employees soon. The superintendent has already promised one for me. Besides, your parents are my parents. It doesn’t matter which set of parents lives there. I can just stay in my current apartment for the time being, and if things don’t work out, I can move here. Your parents are getting older. An apartment with an elevator will be more convenient for them. Besides, that apartment is on a higher floor, which means better lighting and sunshine. Getting more sun will be good for their bodies.”
Zhang Fan had been staring at the ceiling, and hadn’t been paying attention to Shao Hua. When he turned around, he saw that Shao Hua’s face was covered in tears. He opened his mouth to say something, but Shao Hua suddenly kissed him! Zhang Fan touched Shao Hua’s skinny waist and slowly moved his hands down.
“Cough! Cough! Cough!” Shao Hua’s father sounded almost as if he was dying with his exaggerated fake coughing! Shao Hua’s face was bright red as she pushed Zhang Fan out of her room. There was no helping it. Zhang Fan splayed his legs and walked like a crab, pretending that his legs were numb as he moved out of Shao Hua’s room.
“Come, Zhang Fan, play some Chinese chess with me.” Shao Hua’s father was unhappy because Zhang Fan had stayed in his daughter’s room for too long. He wanted to bully Zhang Fan some more in Chinese chess.
After dinner, Zhang Fan went over to see how Chen Qifa’s preparations for moving were. Before, Chen Qifa lived in Kuake City, so they would only occasionally talk to each other on the phone, but now, Chen Qifa was moving to Chasu City, so it would be far easier to see each other.
Shao Hua pulled her mother into her room after Zhang Fan left. She needed to first talk to her mother about moving into Zhang Fan’s apartment before trying to convince her father. Otherwise, her father would worry about face and refuse.
“Mom, you know how Zhang Fan’s apartment right behind the hospital is finished with its renovations? Since that apartment has elevators and ours doesn’t, Zhang Fan wants you and Dad to move to that apartment.”
“How could that possibly work? That apartment is going to be the wedding home for the two of you. It would be ridiculous for your father and I to move there. Besides, Zhang Fan’s parents...”
“The hospital is constructing new apartments for their employees. Zhang Fan said that there will be one for him. Since his new apartment has elevators, he said that it will be much easier for you and Dad. I’m truly happy that he feels this way. Mom, I feel so blissful right now!”
“My daughter’s luck is so good! Zhang Fan is a good person. Not only is he dutiful, he’s also really filial. Just look at how he treats his younger sister. You have to remember to treat his family well in the future.” Shao Hua’s mother held on to her daughter as the two chatted on Shao Hua’s bed.
“Then will you and Dad move there or not?”
“The two of you haven’t even gotten married yet. How are we supposed to move in just like that? It wouldn’t be proper. Besides, you also need to consider your dad’s feelings, right?”
“I’ll talk it over with Zhang Fan some more, then. I bet that he has an idea to convince Dad. Don’t look at how foolish he seems sometimes, he’s actually quite a schemer!”
“Look at what you’re saying! It’s called quiet and steady.”
Chen Qifa’s wife was a stay-at-home mom who didn’t have a job. She simply took care of the housework. Since her son was attending a boarding school in Chasu City for high school, she now had a lot more free time and much less work to do. This time, her husband had found a new job and even apartment in Chasu City without mentioning anything to her beforehand. She was somewhat worried that he was going to work for a private hospital, since Chinese people had different opinions of public and private hospitals. Most ordinary Chinese people would feel that private hospitals were unreliable.
However, she wasn’t too worried, because her husband now had a medical license. She just felt like it was a pity that Chen Qifa had given up on his job at Kuake City Hospital. His current status at Kuake City Hospital was that Superintendent Zou had suspended him, telling him to go study. Chen Qifa simply stopped going to the hospital without handing in an official resignation. That was how it was!
The apartment that Ma Wentao gave to Chen Qifa wasn’t that large, at about 60 square meters. Chen Qifa’s wife had already cleaned the place up and started cooking a meal. Her son would be coming by every day for lunch and dinner since they were living in Chasu City now.
“How is it, is the private hospital a reliable place to work at?” Zhang Fan asked Chen Qifa out of concern.
“It’s not bad. Although I haven’t had any surgeries to perform yet, there are many people coming in for checkups. There’s police, judges, all sorts of government officials, and so on in large numbers,” Chen Qifa said. Meanwhile, his wife poured a cup of tea for Zhang Fan, and then went out because she knew that the two men wanted to have a discussion.
“Oh! What’s with this? Is Ma Wentao intending on opening up a physical examination center?” Zhang Fan asked in some confusion.
“I don’t think so. All of the necessary operating rooms, C-arm X-ray machines, and other necessary medical equipment has been prepared already.”
“Then let’s wait and see for a while longer. If there’s any general surgeries that need to be done, accept them and call me. I’ll find time to come over and perform them,” Zhang Fan told Chen Qifa.
“Sure thing, Teacher Zhang. Oh, Li Liang wants to resign from Kuake City Hospital, but I told him to wait because we still don’t know what the situation at this private hospital is like yet.”
“Yep, that’s the idea. Let’s wait and see for a bit first. It would be troublesome if there’s not enough patients and this private hospital goes bankrupt within a few months.” Zhang Fan also had a poor opinion of private hospitals. He had no idea how to run a hospital or how rich Ma Wentao was. He just felt that it would be incredibly difficult for a private hospital to succeed.
As for Ma Wentao, none of this would be a big deal. What did a hospital’s reputation depend on? Word of mouth. Advertisements would only affect a minority, and not really be effective.
Hence, he had a discussion with City Leader Zhao of Chasu City. It was arranged for all of Chasu City’s government organizations’ employees to have their physical checkups performed at Ma Wentao’s hospital, which was why Chen Qifa had seen so many government officials getting their checkups done there. Ma Wentao was confident that after this wave of checkups finished, his hospital’s business would definitely improve.
Also, Ma Wentao’s doctors of internal medicine were all previously department directors at either the provincial hospital or bigger city hospitals. Just one of these directors would be one of the most elite doctors at any smaller hospital in Chasu City, but Ma Wentao had four such doctors! Also, the medical equipment that Ma Wentao purchased was all the newest and of the best quality, matching that of Chasu City Hospital. It would only be natural for his hospital to have good business.
As for his surgical department, his plan was to start with only a hand and foot surgery department, and then slowly raise his own expert doctors loyal to him.
Chasu City had abundant resources, with a large number of coal mines, precious metal mines, and so on. Previously, these mines were nationally owned and operated, but over time, they somehow became privately owned enterprises. Of course, the rich owners of these mines were intimately connected to the government.
It was common for accidents to occur in the mining industry. Major accidents would cause deaths. Minor accidents would cause all sorts of hand, foot, or limb injuries. The mines’ owners didn’t lack money at all. As long as none of the workers died, which would be a major incident, the owners wouldn’t even bat an eye at having to pay hundreds of thousands of yuan in compensation for the mine workers’ hospital fees.
Although Ma Wentao wasn’t able to do much for the mine owners, he still had a discussion with them. If the mine owners didn’t send their injured employees to Ma Wentao’s hospital and he learned of it, he would stir up trouble for the mine owners.
Ma Wentao’s hospital thus got off to a solid start. With the government employees of Chasu City all coming here to have their checkups done, that would already recoup his hospital startup costs. Although the ordinary citizens would curse dirty politicians every day, it was still the politicians who controlled society.
[Author’s note: Have you ever seen before how an unknown hotel or restaurant suddenly became extremely popular overnight? What do you think the reason would be? Do you think it would be that easy? Haha, of course not! Think about the reason for yourself. I won’t say much else.]
Ma Wentao’s hired department directors were all real expert doctors. Ma Wentao had no intentions of scamming anyone who came to his hospital. Many government employees had slowly noticed the benefits of having checkups done at his hospital as these expert doctors were highly skilled at identifying the patients’ problems. This slowly helped Ma Wentao’s hospital to obtain repeat customers. In modern society, as people lived longer, there would be far more people with all sorts of minor health problems, chronic illnesses, and various diseases. The health industry would forever have customers! Ma Wentao’s strategy for running his hospital had been quite good. Although he wasn’t familiar with the medical field at all, he was an expert in business, psychology, and management. As long as his overall direction for leading the hospital was correct and he didn’t act ridiculously, his hospital wouldn’t do poorly.