I Can Talk to the Internal Organs-Chapter 320 - 286: Traditional Chinese Medicine Intangible Heritage Inheritance Conference [Part 1]

Chapter 320: Chapter 286: Traditional Chinese Medicine Intangible Heritage Inheritance Conference [Part 1]

Lu’s Clinic.

In the past couple of months, Lu Jiu has occasionally been stopping by the clinic.

Now and then, he helps Lu Mountain with consultations.

Some patients from Garden Street know that Lu Jiu now has a hospital; however, it’s too far in the suburbs, and many people, if it’s just a headache or a minor illness, are too lazy to go that far. Besides, Lu Jiu’s grandfather’s medical skill is quite decent, although the effect is slow, it’s still effective, right? 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

Unfortunately, Lu Mountain only consults for half a day.

"Oh, Lu Jiu’s here?"

As soon as Lu Jiu stepped into the clinic, he heard Wang Li’s voice.

Since Lu Jiu used acupuncture to alleviate his issues quite effectively, his back hasn’t hurt much.

The reason he still comes to the clinic is to get some therapy when there’s nothing wrong, lest it becomes a problem, which would not only be painful but also more time-consuming and laborious to fix.

"Uncle Wang." Lu Jiu greeted with a smile.

Wang Li smiled, "I heard your hospital is super busy now, with lots of people going there. How do you still have time to come to the clinic?"

Lu Jiu gave a wry smile, "Precisely because there are too many people, the doctors at the hospital are a bit overwhelmed. I’m thinking of hiring some folk Chinese medicine practitioners to the hospital, but I don’t know such people." Saying this, Lu Jiu looked at Lu Mountain, "Grandpa, do you know any Chinese medicine practitioners in Jianghan? They don’t need to be highly skilled, just knowledgeable in their field."

Lu Mountain chuckled, "Well, they do exist, not a few in the townships, and their skills aren’t bad, but they lack certification, so they shy away from coming to the city and usually only see some elderly people in the villages."

Lu Jiu smiled, "It’s okay if they don’t have certifications. There are exams for the inheritance of traditional Chinese medicine now. The prerequisite is to practice medicine in a professional institution, and a doctor’s recommendation is needed. As long as these old Chinese medicine practitioners come to us, the certification issue is easy to solve."

Lu Jiu had consulted Huang Fusheng about this and got the response that as long as people come, he will take care of the certification issue.

With his support, these veteran Chinese practitioners won’t be unable to practice due to lack of certification.

With this assurance, Lu Jiu is naturally more confident.

After all, which Chinese medicine practitioner doesn’t wish to practice openly and legitimately? If Huang Fusheng can create conditions for them, Lu Jiu believes that for some capable practitioners who have been held back by a piece of paper for half their lives, the temptation is substantial.

Lu Mountain was surprised, "If the certification issue can be resolved, it’s worth a try. I’ll find some time to help you out, tell me about the benefits you’re offering them, and I’ll try to find some for you."

In the past, there were quite a few Chinese medical practitioners like Lu Mountain. One reason was family inheritance, and another was the rural doctor policy few decades back, which made many doctors rooted in the grassroots, serving the rural communities for their whole lives. When they needed new practice certifications, these doctors were either arrested alongside those fraudulently practicing under the name of Chinese medicine or stopped practicing altogether.

With the evolution of the times, many skilled practitioners continue to treat people in villages but never mention they are doctors. The villagers understand and protect them, and some local officials occasionally suffer minor ailments too, so they sometimes turn a blind eye to their unauthorized practice.

After all, ordinary people don’t care if you have a certificate or not, as long as you can cure them.

Lu Mountain has achieved some success now, and his sons and grandsons are doing well. Lu Jiu’s suggestion makes him quite happy too.

When his father was dispatched as a barefoot doctor in the countryside, he met many like-minded individuals. Back then, a barefoot doctor had to work in the fields and be responsible for the health of several villages. If someone fell ill, they’d put down their farming tools and make house calls.

The most rudimentary rural cooperative medical system was established under such sacrifices by barefoot doctors.

In the 1960s-70s, a community health room named Paradise Commune Du Family Village hung its sign, becoming the first farmer-established medical unit in the country without national funding or personnel.

The village residents each paid one yuan annually, and the collective village account contributed fifty cents per person, so medical consultations and medicine were free for the whole year!

The medical unit’s annual expenses didn’t exceed 1.5 yuan per capita, amounting to less than 1000 yuan in total—a scenario hard to imagine today.

Healthcare workers in the village had no salaries!

They were still required to perform all the farming tasks while being part-time medical practitioners.

Of course, if they were too busy treating illnesses to farm, the production team would credit them work points.

Yet the meager subsidies and work points were inadequate for sustenance, so they worked barefoot in the day and provided medical services, while also staying up at night to study medical knowledge.

Therefore, every barefoot doctor of that era made huge sacrifices.

With the onset of an economic society, such a system no longer aligns with humanitarianism. Moreover, nowadays, most sacrifices are made for employers rather than the people, making it even less sustainable.

"Alright, I’ll wait for the good news, Grandpa." Lu Jiu said with a smile.

Lu Mountain nodded and then said, "I heard from your uncle, Lu Ming is coming back."

Oh?

During the New Year, Lu Ming said he’d be back in a few months, and time seems to have flown by.

"When’s he arriving?" Lu Jiu asked.

Lu Mountain replied, "Around seven or eight o’clock tonight."

Just as Lu Mountain finished speaking, Lu Jiu’s phone rang.

He looked and was surprised to see it was a call from his cousin Lu Ming.

"Hey, brother, I heard you’re coming back tonight?"

Lu Ming laughed on the other end, "Wow, my dad’s got a big mouth, called him last night, and you already know first thing in the morning."

Lu Jiu laughed, "It wasn’t Uncle, it was Grandpa who told me."

Lu Ming said, "Then my dad must have told Grandpa. Anyway, heard you’ve set up a hospital—impressive! Been a few years, should I start calling you Dean Lu now?"

Lu Jiu chuckled, "If you want to call me that, I wouldn’t mind."

Lu Ming laughed, "I heard it’s quite special, your hospital. Coincidentally, I have to film some stuff after coming back. Maybe I could include your hospital in the shoot?"

Lu Jiu asked, "Is this about the project you mentioned during New Year?"

Lu Ming replied, "Yes, filming abroad is finished, and my friends are returning to the country with me. Next, we will shoot domestically. If our project works out, it might even be shown at the National Conference on Chinese Medicine Intangible Cultural Heritage."

That prestigious?

Lu Jiu was a bit surprised.

Chinese medicine as an intangible cultural heritage does often host conferences.

Just last year, one was held in Shangjing.

Wonder where they’ll choose this year.

Lu Jiu asked, "Do you already know when the Chinese Medicine Intangible Cultural Heritage Conference will be held this year?"

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