Siheyuan: I earned foreign exchange in the heyday

Chen Changan looked at the old Chinese doctor with gray hair and asked, "What's your name?"

"No need to bother, my surname is Pu."

Well, this surname is rare. The most famous one is probably Pu Songling.

Chen Changan nodded. Seeing that the internist was still busy, he didn't want to disturb him and decided to chat with the old Chinese doctor Pu.

So Chen Changan asked the old Chinese doctor, "Mr. Pu, what do you think about the many sick people in our factory recently?"

Upon hearing this, Pu Lao hesitated for a moment and said, "In Western medicine terms, it is an epidemic infectious disease."

Chen Changan didn't care. After all, if Chinese medicine really used the concepts of yin and yang and the five elements, he really wouldn't understand it.

So Chen Changan continued to ask, "Do you have any way to treat it?"

“You have to see the patient to be sure.”

Well, this is an old Chinese doctor who doesn't want to talk much. I guess he knows everything.

After all, he is an old Chinese doctor with rich experience and must have treated many diseases.

This infectious disease has definitely been discovered, but due to the suppression of Western medicine, I dare not say much about it.

That's right, whatever you say, they will refute it. Then they will ask you to produce evidence. What can Chinese medicine do?

For traditional Chinese medicine, learning medicine depends on word of mouth from the master. After becoming a master, one can improve medical skills through talent, understanding, and experience.

How can I present evidence when debating with Western medicine? Should I tell the Western doctor that this is what my master taught me when I was a child? Or that this is the prescription written in the book?

Chen Changan thought about it and realized that it didn't matter what others said or thought. It didn't matter whether you were a Chinese doctor or a Western doctor. A good cat is one that can catch mice.

Regarding this epidemic, Chen Changan hoped that Chinese and Western medicine would unite. But Chen Changan knew his own limitations and that he would never touch upon such matters openly. It was even better not to express his position.

However, Chen Changan still has a say in this small piece of land of the motorcycle factory.

So Chen Changan said, "Mr. Pu, you may not know me. As for me, regardless of whether it is Chinese medicine or Western medicine, I think a good doctor is one who can cure the disease.

Traditional Chinese medicine and Western medicine each have their own advantages. Since you are a traditional Chinese medicine practitioner, I will not teach you about the advantages of traditional Chinese medicine.

Then let me talk about the advantages of Western medicine. The first is the vaccine. There is no doubt about it. One shot will keep you from getting the disease for the rest of your life. Chinese medicine can't compare.

The second is surgery. For some diseases, especially acute and severe ones, Chinese medicine is indeed inferior to Western medicine.”

Seeing that Pu Lao was a little unconvinced, Chen Changan understood what he meant, so he continued, "Of course, Chinese medicine also has some prescriptions for acute and severe diseases. But it is undeniable that Western medicine has its own set of procedures when dealing with acute and severe diseases.

Let’s not talk about the cure rate for now. Traditional Chinese medicine may have a good effect on some diseases, but overall, it cannot compare with traditional Chinese medicine in the treatment of acute and severe diseases.”

Mr. Pu sighed, agreeing with Chen Changan's statement.

Seeing Pu Lao's expression, Chen Changan changed the subject and said, "But Chinese medicine also has its advantages. When a new disease that has not been discovered before appears, Chinese medicine will perform better than Western medicine.

Moreover, Chinese medicine is better than Western medicine in treating chronic diseases, especially stubborn diseases.”

Chen Changan's words may have made Pu Lao feel that Chen Changan had no prejudice against Chinese medicine, so he said, "What's the use? Disease comes like a mountain falling, and it goes away like pulling a thread. Many patients, seeing that they have taken several doses of medicine without any effect, say that Chinese medicine is a scam and no longer believe in it. This is why Chinese medicine has fallen into the current situation."

Chen Changan felt that what Pu Lao said was not entirely right, so he said, "It's not entirely true. After all, Western medicine emphasizes science and experiments. Everything is out in the open. Many things in Chinese medicine cannot be proven, which is why many people are skeptical about Chinese medicine."

Mr. Pu was obviously disdainful of Chen Changan's words.

Seeing that Pu Lao seemed unconvinced, Chen Changan asked, "Then tell me, how can Chinese medicine prove itself? It cannot just rely on occasionally curing one or a few people."

Chen Changan asked Pu Lao to prove Chinese medicine himself, which obviously made Pu Lao unhappy, so he said, "Prove what? Do we need to prove to others what our ancestors have passed down for thousands of years?

So what about science? I don’t deny science, nor do I deny Western medicine.

But our traditional Chinese medicine is also a discipline, a completely different discipline from Western medicine.

Western medicine asks us, traditional Chinese medicine, to use Western medicine methods to prove ourselves, so why doesn't Western medicine use our traditional Chinese medicine methods to prove Western medicine?

They can’t prove it either.”

Pu Lao's words were a bit confusing, but Chen Changan understood them. Both Chinese and Western medicine aim to save lives and heal the wounded.

But the methods they use are completely different. Asking the other party to use their own theories to prove that the other party is right is indeed a bit unreasonable.

Although Chen Changan felt that what Pu Lao said made sense, there is one issue that cannot be ignored, which is whether the people or the patients can understand your theory.

For example, if you have a cold, Western medicine will say that you have a cold and your throat is inflamed. Can you understand that?

But Chinese medicine says that if you catch a cold, how is the clear qi, how is the turbid qi, how is the yin and yang. Do you understand?

Compared with traditional Chinese medicine, Western medicine's explanation of diseases is much friendlier than traditional Chinese medicine.

So Chen Changan said, "But the theory of Chinese medicine is too abstruse. Not to mention ordinary patients, even educated people would not understand your explanation.

If you put the theories of Chinese and Western medicine in front of patients, who do you think they will believe? "

After hearing what Chen Changan said, Pu Lao, who had been a little excited just now, suddenly became deflated.

Yes, many TCM practitioners themselves often make mistakes in TCM theory, which leads to misdiagnosis. If you explain it to people who don’t understand TCM, they will definitely not understand it.

This is also one of the important reasons why traditional Chinese medicine cannot be popularized.

Chen Changan continued, "Chinese medicine still adheres to the old-generation master-apprentice approach. Some Chinese medicine practitioners are unwilling to pass on their experience and prescriptions until they die.

Moreover, there are certain limitations in learning Chinese medicine. The master cannot guarantee that the apprentice will be able to stand on his own. It also depends on other aspects such as talent, understanding, etc.

How many years of training and growth does it take to become a good Chinese medicine practitioner?

On the other hand, in Western medicine, by building a medical school, it can train dozens or hundreds of independent doctors in three to five years.

Maybe their level is not very good and they cannot treat many diseases, but Western medicine has rigorous diagnosis and treatment methods.

For example, if a blood test shows a bad indicator, we can tell what the problem is; if we take an X-ray, we can see clearly where the fracture is.

On the other hand, Chinese medicine practitioners in their 30s and 40s often make misdiagnoses. They even rely on guesswork and repeated experiments to diagnose many diseases.

Tell me, if you were a person who didn't know any medical skills, who would you choose to see?"