Chapter 248: Urgent Operation: Pulling Strings for a Life-Saving Surgery

Normally, for adults, the safe dosage of 50% glucose for intravenous injection is about 40 to 100 ml.

Zhou Can had already given him the maximum dose.

If the patient can eat normally, there’s really no need for IV glucose—just some sugar water, candy or biscuits by mouth would do.

After treatment, the patient slowly regained consciousness and their body returned to normal.

But he still looked very weak.

If they don’t fix his vomiting, it’s only a matter of time before something happens again.

Since the patient can’t eat, his calorie intake ends up lower than what he burns through activity and metabolism. So whatever energy his body stores gets steadily converted into glucose for fuel.

But the body’s energy reserves are limited. If he keeps going without replenishing, his stored energy will all turn into glucose, and when that’s gone, and his body can’t keep up, he’ll end up with hypoglycemia.

This kind of hunger-induced hypoglycemia is actually pretty common.

Some people, short on cash, out of work or under financial pressure, just can’t bring themselves to spend money on food.

In the end, they collapse from hunger right on the street.

In cases like this, if you have sugar on hand, just give the patient a piece to hold in their mouth—they’ll start coming around.

Then make sure they eat as soon as possible to get their strength back.

“Let’s give him a nutrient IV first!”

Zhou Can wrote up another medical order.

He wondered how Director Shang was doing with those arrangements.

They’d already identified the source of this patient’s illness, and removing the parasite with a craniotomy shouldn’t be complicated. He could be cured in time.

Zhou Can decided he’d go to Director Shang’s office and give him a nudge.

That was his responsibility as the doctor in charge.

He headed straight to the office, only to hear a dull thud from inside, like someone had slammed a desk or thrown something.

Looked like Director Shang had taken quite a bit of frustration.

Thud, thud, thud!

Zhou Can hesitated a few seconds by the door but eventually knocked.

“Come in!”

Director Shang’s voice sounded calm as always.

Pushing open the door, Zhou Can saw a thick book lying on the floor.

He picked it up instinctively, set it on the desk, and then said, “Director Shang, that patient with the brain parasite fainted from hypoglycemia.”

“How’s he doing now? He’s been vomiting badly, can’t eat at all. Quickly get him an IV of glucose—start with 60 milliliters. Make sure it’s 50% solution.”

Director Shang was still fuming, but hearing about a sudden issue with the patient snapped him right back to focus.

And he immediately gave clear and precise treatment instructions.

“He’s already been treated, and the patient is stable now. I’m just worried about that worm wriggling around in his head—if something goes wrong, that’d be a real shame. Has General Surgery agreed to send someone for the operation yet?”

Zhou Can guessed this probably hadn’t gone smoothly.

From the crashing noises earlier, it seemed Director Shang’s coordination attempts had hit a wall.

“Don’t get me started! The guys in General Surgery are pros at dodging responsibility. I asked to speak to Director Wu, but they told me he was in surgery and they’d pass along my message when they could.”

Just mentioning it made Director Shang angrier.

And the more he spoke, the more his irritation showed.

Yesterday he got stonewalled by a nurse. Today he’d tried someone higher up, but it was still the same brush-off.

“Yeah, that would drive anyone mad. I get how tough this is for you. Let’s give it a bit more time. I’ve started a nutrition drip for the patient, so I’ll go watch over things in the ward. I’ll leave you to your work.”

After leaving Director Shang’s office, Zhou Can realized he might have to step in and build a bridge himself.

Any more delays would be bad for the patient and the Gastroenterology Department.

He knew the chief physicians in General Surgery fairly well, especially Director Wen, who was closest to him. He could also talk to Wu Baihe, though not quite as easily.

Zhou Can thought it over and decided to try Director Wen first.

As for helping Director Shang vent or giving that receptionist nurse a hard time—forget it.

There’s an old saying—big-hearted people can let things go, generals can ride across their brows!

Who doesn’t get frustrated now and then in life?

He walked all the way to the end of the hallway before dialing Director Wen’s phone.

“Hello, Director Wen? It’s Zhou.”

“Of course, I still have your number! Just the other day I was talking about you, and now here you are calling—took you long enough! How’s your residency? Still going well?”

Director Wen greeted him with his usual warmth.

You could hear the genuine concern in his tone.

“Thanks to your support, residency’s been going smoothly. Yesterday I got a case of a patient with a brain parasite who needs it removed by craniotomy. Our Gastroenterology Department can’t handle that. So I wanted to ask for your help.”

With people close to him, Zhou Can never beat around the bush.

No need to risk getting scolded.

Being direct was always the best way with them.

“A craniotomy for a parasite? That’s simple stuff, you know how to handle it! Why call me for help?” Director Wen knew just how skilled Zhou Can really was.

Back during his surgical residency, Zhou Can’s skills were already impressive.

Given how fast he’d progressed, after all this time and rotations through multiple departments, his surgical skills could only have improved.

Removing a brain parasite was nothing to him. He’d handled even tougher cases.

“But I don’t have the rank! Craniotomies are major, grade-three or four surgeries—you need to be at least an associate chief physician. If you can come supervise, that’d be perfect.”

Zhou Can grinned as he spoke.

Progressing this fast did come with its annoyances.

Low seniority meant he wasn’t approved for major surgeries.

Plus, he couldn’t get his own outpatient slots due to insufficient experience and credentials.

“What kind of parasite is it? How long do you expect surgery to take?”

Director Wen’s questions made it clear he intended to help.

“Sparganum. The CT scan shows just one for now. If all goes well, the fastest would be about twenty minutes. If we have to open the skull, it should be under three hours.”

Zhou Can estimated the operation time.

The worm’s body was probably quite long—some inside the cranial cavity, some even poking out between the skull and scalp.

If the parasite stayed still, Zhou Can could grab its part beneath the scalp and pull it all the way out. Of course, there were risks, and he’d have to decide during surgery.

If he thought it might break, they’d need to open the skull for complete removal.

Lots of parasites have crazy regenerative abilities, like earthworms or leeches. Even if you tear them into pieces, they can grow back from the leftovers.

That’s why, for parasites, the whole body needs to be removed if possible.

You can’t leave torn pieces behind in a patient’s body.

“When can the patient have surgery?”

Director Wen asked again.

“If you’re willing to help, I’ll discuss it with the senior doctors right away. It all depends on your schedule.”

Zhou Can couldn’t help but marvel—connections really do matter.

If he wasn’t close with Director Wen, this whole thing might have dragged out for another day or two.

It would have taken several departments to coordinate a joint operation—never easy.

It could definitely get done,

but any extra day or two would just increase risks, not to mention extra cost for the patient.

“If you can get things ready after six tonight, send the patient to General Surgery’s operating room. I’ll work late and do the surgery myself.”

Director Wen didn’t even ask for further details. Trusting Zhou Can, he agreed on the spot.

That meant it would happen later today—really soon.

But it also meant Director Wen would be working overtime.

That just went to show how much respect Zhou Can commanded.

As for setting up the operating room, that too would be handled by Director Wen himself.

In a world that runs on connections, having someone look out for you makes everything easier.

“Thank you so much for helping out! I always feel bad having to trouble you.”

This wasn’t the first time Zhou Can asked Director Wen for a favor.

But every time, he agreed without hesitation.

“No need for thanks! Just keep training your medical skills from every angle. We old-timers are looking forward to the day you join us for good!”

Director Wen never expected anything in return.

He genuinely hoped Zhou Can would succeed and become an outstanding doctor one day.

After hanging up, Zhou Can felt a warmth lingering in his chest.

He counted himself lucky—ever since starting his residency at Tuyu Hospital, he’d met so many supportive supervisors who were all in his corner.

With everything arranged, all he needed to do was tell Director Shang and surgery could be scheduled for this afternoon.

He was pretty sure both Director Shang and the patient’s family would be thrilled.

But when Zhou Can got back to Director Shang’s office, he found it empty.

Just then, Duan Zifu came walking over from the ward.

“Dr. Duan, have you seen Director Shang?”

“He just left, probably headed to class at the medical school. If you need anything, talk to Deputy Director Shi.”

In Director Shang’s group, Deputy Director Shi was the only associate chief physician—very experienced. Whenever the group leader wasn’t around, Director Shi handled things.

“Alright, I’ll go find Director Shi then.”

Compared to Duan Zifu, Zhou Can was much savvier—he would never call someone Deputy Director to their face, left and right.

People hear that too often and it just feels awkward.

He caught up with Deputy Director Shi, who was about to head to the outpatient clinic.

“Director Shi, General Surgery has agreed to do surgery for the patient with the brain parasite. They’ll take him to OR 2 after six this evening.”

A craniotomy needs specialized equipment.

The Gastroenterology Department’s interventional operating room is really only good for interventional procedures.

Just wearing the lead aprons for these is tough enough—they can weigh as much as twenty pounds.

Some weigh forty! Most women doctors can’t even lift one.

For older male doctors, it’s like donning a suit of heavy armor. Doing surgery like that is rough on the body.

So whenever Internal Medicine needs an operation they can’t do,

the usual rule is to transfer the patient out.

No surgeon wants to work in the interventional OR and take all that radiation anyway.

“Oh! General Surgery finally agreed? Director Shang was grumbling earlier about how hard it was to get through to their staff. Guess talking to hospital leadership really does work!”

Director Shi looked genuinely pleased to hear it.

That surprised Zhou Can a bit.

“So Director Shang really went to the hospital leader about this?”

Chief physicians definitely have strong personalities.

After putting up with so much from General Surgery, of course he’d complain to the higher-ups.

And he wasn’t the only one—Director Xie had done it too.

Just like kids run to a teacher or parent when something’s unfair, grown-ups do the same at work.

Even the most senior, accomplished doctors still can have their childish moments.

“He went to Deputy Director Ye. I bet General Surgery got a talking-to before agreeing so quickly.”

Director Shi said this with no small amount of satisfaction.

Zhou Can opened his mouth, then swallowed his words.

Maybe he really was still too young.

If he’d known things would turn out this way, he might not have called Director Wen to help at all.

Now, after all this hoopla, how was he going to explain it to Director Wen?

…

That afternoon, Zhou Can was assigned three new patients.

He was now responsible for seven beds in total.

Director Shang was gone teaching, and Director Shi was in the clinic, so Zhou Can and Duan Zifu kept things running in the inpatient unit—handling all the grunt work.

By about five forty, Zhou Can had finished handing over his patients to Chief Resident Luo Shengsheng.

That’s when Director Shang got back after his class.

Zhou Can, Director Shang, and three graduate students wheeled the patient with the brain parasite to Neurosurgery. Director Shang led the group, while the family accompanied them.

On the way there, Zhou Can was already thinking how he’d explain things to Director Wen.

“Hello, we’re from Gastroenterology. We’re here to bring the patient with the brain parasite. Could you tell us which operating room he’ll be in?”

Director Shang casually asked the nurse at the station.

“Director Wen already arranged everything—it’s OR 2. Dr. Zhou, want me to show you the way?”

Head Nurse Hu Shuiling spotted Zhou Can and hurried over with a smile.

In her mind, Zhou Can’s position far outranked that of Director Shang from Gastroenterology.

After all, Zhou Can was highly valued by many surgical chiefs. One word from him could affect the course of her career.

But no matter how high-ranking Director Shang was, he was still just Gastroenterology’s chief.

To a head nurse in Neurosurgery, he had zero real authority.

So she barely paid Director Shang any attention.

Zhou Can even wondered if she’d been the one to stonewall Director Shang’s call the previous day.

“No need, we know the way. Thanks!”

Zhou Can was very familiar with the surgery suite in Neurosurgery.

They wheeled the patient down toward the operating rooms.

“Hmph, these people from General Surgery—they used to be so difficult. Now look at their warm welcome. Really takes the edge off,” Director Shang huffed.

Seeing General Surgery had everything arranged and their staff so friendly, Director Shang finally felt relieved.

With that simmering anger gone, he was much more at ease.

He thought General Surgery’s change in attitude was all thanks to the complaint—unaware that it was really Zhou Can calling in a favor from Director Wen.

Soon the patient was inside the OR. The anesthesiologist was already in place.

It was Dr. Guan, who Zhou Can hadn’t seen for a while.

For this level of operation, Dr. Guan was more than enough.

Only the riskiest surgeries got Dr. Feng personally involved.

“Dr. Guan, long time no see!”

Zhou Can smiled and stepped up to help with the anesthesia.

“It’s been a while! I heard you transferred to Internal Medicine. Honestly, we miss having you around,” Dr. Guan said. Having Zhou Can help definitely made his job easier.

Zhou Can could already handle almost any anesthesia procedure solo.

Whether it was general or spinal anesthesia.

“Once I’m done with my Internal Medicine residency, we’ll be working together even more. Hope you don’t get sick of me then!”

As soon as he was back in Emergency, Zhou Can planned to build a surgical team.

At that point, he really might end up seeing Dr. Guan every day.