March 31st, 9:37 AM.
「Before the Duke Village Clinic.」
After a month of rushing about, Du Heng had finally arrived at his ho village.
Before him were many familiar faces. So he would call Grandpa or Grandma, while Uncles and Aunts appeared one after another.
However, Du Heng wasn’t sitting outside the clinic to treat patients as usual. Instead, he was inside the clinic and, surprisingly, had started performing acupuncture.
Although his hands were steady and his breathing was calm, the anxiety on his face was visible to everyone.
"Xiao Heng, Sir Tian’s shoulder has been aching for several years; it’s not so urgent that it needs to be treated this very mont. How about you finish with your other patients and then treat ?"
Sitting on a clinic chair was a middle-aged man, around forty years old. Though he didn’t look old, he was of Du Heng’s grandfather’s generation.
At this mont, his expression wasn’t good, mainly because Du Heng’s proactive behavior made him feel uneasy.
Du Heng didn’t speak, still concentrating on inserting needles into Sir Tian’s shoulder.
"Sir Tian, please don’t talk. If I make a mistake with the needles, I won’t be responsible."
"Xiao Heng, tell , do I have a terminal illness? Don’t worry, I can take it; I’m quite resilient."
"Why would you think that? It’s nothing, just periarthritis."
After inserting the last needle, Du Heng let out a long breath and prepared to leave the room.
Sir Tian’s shoulder was full of needles, and he dared not move. Seeing Du Heng about to leave, he hurriedly called out, "Xiao Heng, just tell frankly. It’s okay, I can handle it."
Du Heng stopped and looked at Sir Tian’s distressed face, feeling helpless. "It’s really nothing."
"I don’t believe it. Previously, no matter how serious anyone’s illness was, you never perford acupuncture on the spot. So why are you in such a frantic hurry to use needles on ? It must be because my illness is severe and cannot be delayed, right?"
Du Heng felt a pang of frustration. It wasn’t that Sir Tian’s illness was so serious that it couldn’t be delayed; Du Heng himself couldn’t afford any delay.
Today was the thirty-first. According to last month’s salary paynt schedule, the money should be in his account around eleven o’clock.
Yet, he still had two tasks uncompleted.
He’d already waited for an hour, and not a single new case had co in. With it rapidly approaching ten o’clock, he couldn’t sit still any longer.
If he didn’t complete the tasks before his salary arrived, wouldn’t that an a difference of forty thousand yuan, in and out?
This wasn’t four yuan, nor forty. This was forty thousand yuan!
How could he not be anxious?
But now that Sir Tian had asked him this, he was truly at a loss for words.
Fortunately, he was quick-witted. An idea struck him, and he imdiately said, "Sir Tian, I’m truly not deceiving you. For the others, acupuncture wasn’t necessary. But for your condition, a couple of needle treatnts can save you from taking several courses of dicine. Acupuncture is well worth it in your case."
"Really?"
"Of course, it’s true. Don’t move; just sit here. I’ll co back in a few minutes to remove the needles."
After speaking, Du Heng dashed out of the room; every second counted now.
Returning to his desk, he ignored Wu Buwei’s puzzled look and imdiately began another consultation and examination.
"Grand Aunt, tell , what’s wrong with you?"
"I’ve had a cold for the past two days, a constantly runny nose, and my lower back doesn’t feel good; it’s sore and heavy."
The pulse diagnosis wasn’t good either; it was a deep pulse.
Du Heng didn’t dare to rush; he had to calm down and examine her carefully.
Just as he was about to switch hands to continue the pulse examination, he felt sothing was wrong with her wrist.
Taking her wrist for a closer look, he noticed a slight swelling.
With a slight frown, Du Heng walked out from behind the desk, pulled up the old lady’s pant leg, and indeed, her calf was also swollen. He pressed it lightly, and a small pit appeared, which then very slowly returned to normal. The recovery was so slow it could practically be asured in minutes.
"Grand Aunt, please open your mouth and let see."
"Aaaah..."
Pale tongue with white coating.
Kidney disease?
Du Heng’s heart skipped a beat.
"Grand Aunt, when did this start? Has it been going on for long?"
"Not long. I just caught a cold the day before yesterday, took so anti-cold dicine, and then this happened. I’ve always been fine before."
"The day before yesterday?" Du Heng’s eyes lit up. "What dicine did you take?"
"I don’t know. You should ask your cousin Fei; he prescribed it for ."
Fei, whose full na was Du Fei, was Du Heng’s distant cousin. He was also the village doctor at the Duke Village Clinic, a position he had taken over from his father. Both father and son had served as village doctors in Duke Village and received subsidies from the Health Clinic.
Du Fei, who was currently nearby helping asure soone’s blood pressure, walked over when he heard his na ntioned.
He glanced at Grand Aunt and said with a sowhat dejected expression, "Xiao Heng, I was just about to tell you. Two days ago, I saw Grand Aunt had a severe cold, so I gave her an anti-cold drug. Yesterday afternoon, when she ca to find , she had started to swell all over. I checked her but found no obvious problem. I didn’t know you were coming today, so I was waiting for you to take a look."
An anti-cold drug!
Du Heng breathed a long sigh of relief.
"Fei, Compound APAP Tablets, which is a type of anti-cold drug, shouldn’t be given to children, the elderly, or those with poor liver and kidney function. This kind of dicine contains acetaminophen. In the elderly, whose organ functions are generally diminished, the half-life of acetaminophen can be extended, making adverse reactions more likely."
Du Heng patted Du Fei lightly. "In fact, many Western cold dicines contain this ingredient, so you need to pay special attention when prescribing them for children, pregnant won, or people with impaired liver or kidney function."
"So, what should we do now?"
"It’s not a big problem. Grand Aunt is currently experiencing edema due to kidney deficiency. However, this isn’t caused by any underlying lesions in her kidneys. If she stops taking the dicine, she should recover on her own in a few days."
"Then what about her cold?"
"There are many Chinese patent dicines that can treat colds. For example, Minor Bupleurum Granules, derived from Minor Bupleurum Decoction, can not only treat colds but also enhance immunity, disperse wind and reduce fever, as well as soothe the liver and relieve depression. It’s very suitable for Grand Aunt’s situation."
Du Fei felt a bit embarrassed. Not knowing this only highlighted his superficial knowledge and significant lack of professional skill.
Du Heng helped the old lady up. "Grand Aunt, let’s go. I’ll help you over to take the dicine, and we can observe you in the clinic for a while."
"My grandson is so capable!"
Hearing Grand Aunt say this in front of Du Fei made Du Heng feel awkward, and Du Fei even more embarrassed.
However, Du Heng couldn’t really say much.
To be strict about it, Du Fei had made a major mistake.
First, the patient’s dical history hadn’t been clearly established, his examination wasn’t comprehensive or rigorous, and he hadn’t been cautious, prescribing dicine that ultimately caused problems for the patient.
Second, the patient had developed edema and had co to him for help. Yet, he neither advised her to go to a proper hospital nor took the initiative to send her there.
These two points alone made him unqualified as a village doctor.
Fortunately, the patient wasn’t in serious trouble, and she was one of their own people, so the matter could be let go. If a real problem had occurred, his career as a village doctor would likely have been over, not to ntion the considerable sum he might have had to pay in compensation.
"Grand Aunt, let’s not dwell on it. Please, go and take your dicine now."
Du Heng didn’t want to delay any longer.
Finding the cause of the old lady’s illness sooner or later wasn’t the critical issue for him; his tasks, however, couldn’t wait. It was already almost ten o’clock.
He had to see her take the dicine; otherwise, he wouldn’t be at ease.
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