Chapter 1346: Slow Rescue

Chapter 1346: Chapter 1346: Slow Rescue

(Thanks to book friends 20191123092721288, Don’t Be Afraid to Argue, and elefant for the monthly ticket encouragement)

"Director Liu, what would you like to eat? All four of our chefs are on standby."

When Liu Banxia arrived at the cafeteria, Zhou Qiang said quite earnestly.

"What to eat? My meal card is still with Liu Yiqing. This time, let me run a tab first, just give me some random dishes." Liu Banxia said.

"You didn’t know? The Chief Director said to eat as you please, he’s picking up the tab." Zhou Qiang said.

"When did that happen? How come I didn’t know? Uh... well, there’s not much time either, just get me something quick. There’s still a patient at the emergency room entrance." Liu Banxia said with a bitter smile.

If he had time, he would really order everything on the menu. But not now, the patient’s external concrete trimming should be fast.

Actually, it’s also because it’s too heavy now to get into the waiting hall of the emergency center.

Zhou Qiang is a straightforward guy, seeing there’s not much food left, simply fried two chicken legs for Liu Banxia and brought three remaining pig trotters.

Simple yet substantial, all meat!

And Liu Banxia? He doesn’t even know what being polite means; he was really hungry.

After performing emergency care for such a long time, he hadn’t had dinner. Eating an entire cow would be an exaggeration, but finishing what’s in front of him is a piece of cake.

"Manager Zhou, get me a bowl of egg soup too, need to smooth it down." Liu Banxia called out.

"Sure, coming right up." Zhou Qiang responded.

"Wow, Teacher Liu, you eat so heartily!"

At this time, Xu Yino strolled over.

"How’s the front going?" Liu Banxia asked.

"Still cutting, can’t make big movements, it’s all cut and stop, but for now, at least a substantial portion has been cut, another moment should be enough to move into the waiting hall." Xu Yino said as she sat down and grabbed half of a pig trotter.

"Where’s the breaking point?" Liu Banxia continued to ask.

"Currently, they’re hammering around the hand, can’t hit too hard, every hit makes the patient scream in pain." Xu Yino replied.

"Now he’s extremely thirsty, but we can’t let him drink too much water. Just enough to moisten his throat, still not sure if the urination issue can be resolved."

"Ah... this is quite troublesome." Liu Banxia sighed.

The patient’s condition, although not as urgent as trauma emergency patients, is indeed precarious.

Maintaining the patient’s current state is easy, but rescuing the patient could pose many dangers.

That’s why they called over many senior directors; the patient’s situation could change at any time, which requires adjusting the plan.

Speaking of his thirst, due to some dehydration and electrolyte imbalance in the body, there’s a need to rehydrate him.

But rehydration must pay attention to volume, adjusting electrolytes also requires care. Can’t be like other patients where hanging up an IV solves it.

What if rehydration goes overboard? The process wouldn’t be solved in a couple of hours then; what if it causes the patient’s bladder to burst?

"Teacher Liu, did you inform your wife?" Xu Yino asked.

"Yes, not going home tonight. Don’t know if progress will be faster, but coming is the priority." Liu Banxia said.

"Doctor Xu, want anything else to eat or drink?" Zhou Qiang asked.

"No need, half of the pig trotter is enough." Xu Yino replied.

"Manager Zhou, can a chef stay for a late-night snack? I see all the hospital leaders are here; if this patient’s situation isn’t resolved, I doubt they’ll go home."

"Thanks, Doctor Xu, no problem at all." Zhou Qiang said.

This was a reminder for Zhou Qiang, in situations with so many hospital leaders present, it’s smart to prepare ahead, whether they eat or not.

This is indeed the real social life, sincerely not many things are beyond doubt. Having good relationships could at least offer bonus points for future cafeteria contracts.

Liu Banxia ate fairly quickly; after Zhou Qiang handed over the soup, he shared some with Xu Yino. After drinking, he rushed back to the front.

While he ate, the patient was still at the emergency center entrance, but indeed a lot of concrete blocks were cut away from around.

"Filled up? You may need to hold up during the latter half of tonight." Chen Zhenxing said.

"Chief Director, progress isn’t fast." Liu Banxia remarked.

"No choice, it has to be cut and stopped. Vibrations from cutting are too much; it intensely hurts the patient. It’s assumed fractures exist, and now the fracture points have swollen."

"Ah... this is fairly worrying." Liu Banxia sighed.

"Hang in there a bit longer, the location around the hand is roughly charted, peel away more concrete, at least to correct his body’s acid-base balance." Chen Zhenxing said.

"Chief Director, Director, why not stay inside for now? Discuss further; I’ll monitor outside with Director Chen, we’ll alert you upon any patient condition changes." Liu Banxia suggested.

"Alright, if anything happens, just call us." Zhou Shuwen nodded.

There wasn’t much point in everyone waiting outside. At present, the rescue of this patient was going to be a very slow process.

"How are you feeling? Any sensations in your body?" Liu Banxia came to the patient’s side and asked.

"Pain, everything hurts when you touch or hit it. And now my body is a bit numb, I don’t know what’s happening." The patient said.

Liu Banxia frowned. This was the impact of concrete contraction on the patient’s body. The patient’s blood circulation wasn’t smooth, and there was a chance of thrombosis forming.

"How about you hold on for a bit longer? At least let us get your arm out first, so we can correct the electrolytes in your body." Liu Banxia cautiously asked.

The patient nodded slightly with difficulty, realizing his current situation was dangerous.

"Bro, I’m sorry for the trouble, but try to get his arm out as quickly as possible, then we can proceed slowly." Liu Banxia said to the fireman next to him.

"The main issue is he’s constantly in pain, so I’ll use more force this time." The fireman nodded.

Actually, Liu Banxia wanted to give the patient some pain medication, but for him right now, maintaining physical sensation was crucial.

The fireman got back to work, the constant clanging and banging sounds were unending.

The increased force also meant increased vibrations, making the patient’s expression very uncomfortable.

Everyone watched tensely, all worried about the patient.

"Liu Yiqing, go prepare the iodine and scalpel." Liu Banxia whispered.

Liu Yiqing nodded and quickly got to work.

The firemen’s preliminary work hadn’t gone to waste, but they had to consider the patient’s comfort, which slowed them down. Now that the patient was holding on, their speed increased considerably.

After nearly twenty minutes, the patient’s arm was finally freed to a section up to the elbow.

Once the firemen pried off the concrete block above, Liu Banxia rushed to the patient with scissors, cutting open his winter coat.

His arm was already swollen and discolored, showing signs of compartment syndrome.

Iodine was poured directly on, and Liu Banxia swiftly made an incision on the patient’s arm.

"Ah..."

The intense pain made the patient scream loudly, sounding utterly miserable.

"Didn’t dare inform you in advance, fearing you wouldn’t bear it." Liu Banxia said.

"Now it’s better, this arm is saved. Maybe your other arm and both legs will experience this too, it depends on luck."

The patient teared up from the pain, nodding slightly. At least that’s how Liu Banxia interpreted it.

"How’s it looking?"

Hearing the commotion, Zhou Shuwen rushed over.

"I’m afraid all four limbs will need fasciotomy for decompression." Liu Banxia said.

Zhou Shuwen nodded, understanding what was happening.

"Everyone, hang in there, bring over two blankets to cover this arm." Liu Banxia said.

After speaking, he inserted an IV into the back of the patient’s hand.

The freshly cut arm still had echoes of pain. Adjusting the patient’s arm position to be more precise almost made him faint from pain.

"Alright, we’ll rehydrate you soon, balance your electrolytes and adjust the acid-base balance. During the infusion, if you have the urge to urinate, just go ahead, don’t hold back." Liu Banxia warned the patient.

"In about half an hour, we’ll have this side cleared too, everyone work together to get you inside for treatment." A fireman interjected.

"Alright, hold on for a bit longer, it’s less than half an hour before we can treat you inside." Liu Banxia said.

"We’re not only trying to save your arms and legs but also your life. You have to hold on; this is about survival. Remember your friend’s contact info?"

"Hoo... hoo... hoo..., I need a breather." The patient took a few deep breaths.

Just then, a few cars drove in and parked nearby.

The city’s leaders stepped out from the cars, with Zhou Shuwen and Chen Xuehai going to meet them, while Liu Banxia signaled Xu Yino.

Someone needed to inform the leaders inside, to assure the city officials that the hospital was taking the patient seriously.

Liu Banxia wasn’t too concerned with these matters, after finishing the infusion, he picked up a hammer and chisel, joining in the demolition efforts.

Fortunately, this was concrete and not real granite; while not fast, they could gradually free the patient.

What counted now was time; the longer it took, the worse the patient’s prognosis. The recently freed arm was a stark example.