Physician Newspaper (Integrated Media Reporter Zhang Yanping Xiang Xue): There are plans to carry out a series of resource "grafting" between Leshan People's Hospital and West China Hospital of Sichuan University; with the support of the Leshan Municipal Committee and the Municipal Government, the new hospital district was successfully put into use; the hospital's implementation of the LEER model accelerated the recovery medical model, which was selected as one of the top ten typical cases in Sichuan Province to improve the medical experience and enhance patient experience; continuously pursuing medical quality, ranking at the forefront in the national examination in Sichuan Province; creating a national clinical key specialty... On May 25th, Zeng Guojun, the president of Leshan People's Hospital and a vascular surgery expert, showed in an interview with the Physician Newspaper reporter that this 130-year-old hospital always adheres to the patient-centered approach, constantly "seeking change," promoting high-quality development of the hospital in innovation, and contributing to the health of the people in the Leshan area.

Leshan People's Hospital President Zeng Guojun

Team: A Bundle of Unbreakable "Chopsticks"

   Leshan People's Hospital is located on Baita Mountain, facing the World Natural and Cultural Heritage Site, the Leshan Giant Buddha, across the river. 130 years ago, when Dr. Qi Erde founded "Le Yi," it was connected with West China Hospital, sharing the same name, origin, and source. In 2015, West China Hospital assigned Comrade Yi Qun to "Le Yi," successively serving as president and secretary, further building a bridge for learning and exchanging with West China Hospital. In October 2022, Zeng Guojun was transferred from West China Hospital to the position of president of Leshan People's Hospital, with plans to carry out a series of resource "grafting" between "Le Yi" and West China Hospital of Sichuan University. From the internal management of medical care to the improvement of medical quality, fully absorbing the experience of West China Hospital, "Le Yi" constantly shows "seventy-two changes," promoting the high-quality development of the hospital. We always say, "A single chopstick is easy to break, but a bundle of chopsticks holds together." Zeng Guojun said: The construction of the hospital is like a single chopstick and a bundle of chopsticks, bringing out a bundle of unbreakable "chopsticks"—the team. In terms of discipline construction, Zeng Guojun proposed to take advantage disciplines as the core and integrate related sub-specialties. For example, in 2023, a vascular center was established by integrating 23 departments and sub-specialties related to vascular diseases, such as vascular surgery, cardiology, cardiovascular surgery, cerebrovascular diseases, as well as respiratory and endocrine related to vascular diseases, to enhance the comprehensive diagnosis and treatment capabilities of vascular diseases with the power of the team. "The vascular center established by West China in 2012 can solve vascular disease problems in one stop." Zeng Guojun said that they combined the "West China model" with the grassroots, transforming it into the "Le Yi" model. At the same time, we also integrated resources related to tumors to establish a comprehensive tumor diagnosis and treatment center, providing the most suitable treatment methods for patients through MDT.

   Speaking of another innovative work of Leshan People's Hospital, the LEER model under the accelerated recovery surgery concept (LEER-ERAS) with "less pain," "early movement," "early food," and "peace of mind" as the core stage goals, was expanded from surgery to clinical professional application throughout the hospital as the president's project (LEER-ERAT), which Zeng Guojun is proud of, has truly improved the quality and safety of medical care, benefiting patients, and was awarded one of the top ten typical cases in Sichuan Province to improve the medical experience and enhance patient experience at the end of 2023. Another "change" is the promotion of the hospital's refined management of consumables (SPD), Zeng Guojun said that every consumable used in which department, which doctor collected it, can be traced, successfully achieving intelligent management of the entire process from application, procurement, acceptance, storage, distribution, to consumption of consumables, achieving better clinical services and effectively promoting the high-quality development of the hospital. In addition, by implementing salary performance reform and implementing the medical team leader responsibility system, while ensuring fairness, the enthusiasm of employees is improved.

Scientific Research Efforts: Making the "Good Power" More Sufficient

   As a century-old hospital that can continue to develop and serve the health of the people, Zeng Guojun said that another "change" is to focus on the scientific research section, which includes the hard work of many predecessors, as well as the hospital's continuous innovation and change, but there is only one purpose, which is to focus on medical quality. Our medical quality ranks at the forefront in the provincial national examination, and in the prefecture-level hospitals, medical quality is our trump card. In recent three years, two provincial clinical key specialties have been approved every year. "If clinical medical quality is our core, the engine, then scientific research is our good power." Zeng Guojun said. In order to make the "good power" more sufficient, "Le Yi" has gone all out in scientific research. To support scientific research work, the hospital has established workstations by contacting experts from West China Hospital. The Leshan People's Hospital Expert Workstation was approved in December 2020, and was awarded and established on March 3, 2021, with the establishment of the Cerebrovascular Disease Department You Chao Expert Workstation and the Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine Department Yi Qun Expert Workstation. In 2023, Professor Yang Jiayin of liver transplantation and critical medicine, and Professor Zhao Jichun of vascular surgery successively established Leshan People's Hospital workstations, and in 2024, the workstations will continue to increase. The workstation takes the hospital as the main body, and through all-round cooperation in clinical, teaching, scientific research, and management, relying on the resources of experts and their innovative teams, it provides intellectual support for the hospital's independent innovation and optimization and upgrading of the medical and health industry, and promotes the construction of specialty standards, technology, scientific research, services, diagnosis and treatment capabilities, business, hardware, and brand capabilities. In addition, the hospital has invited experts and professors from West China Hospital, provincial scientific research institutes, and the Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Medical University to "Le Yi" to teach and improve the ability level of doctors. In terms of scientific research support and rewards, the national project of the vertical subject is supported at a ratio of 1:4, the provincial 1:3, and the municipal 1:2, and the annual scientific research rewards have promoted various department teams to continue to work hard in the sustainable development of the hospital. At the same time, team scientific research is well managed. Zeng Guojun said: "The resources of doctors and tutors of the prefecture-level hospital cannot be compared with those of the provincial-level large hospitals. We have organized all the doctors and tutors of the whole hospital to establish a scientific research innovation club, apply for projects, team scientific research, and work together to carry out scientific research." In the process of applying for the national clinical key specialty in critical medicine, all the clinical departments, platform departments, and functional departments such as medical affairs, hospital office, and publicity have worked together with all hands on deck to make joint efforts.

Achieve the Downward Flow of High-Quality Medical Resources

Expand the Service Radius

   The Leshan People's Hospital continuously innovates and improves its medical skills while also committing to bringing high-quality medical resources to the grassroots level. Additionally, it increases technical support and guidance for county-level hospitals and rural medical and health institutions, expanding its service radius to provide convenient and efficient medical services to the local population.

On the early morning of January 29th, just before New Year's Eve, a traffic accident patient's condition was reported in the "Leshan People's Hospital-Jiajiang County Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital Communication Group." A 41-year-old female suffered an open cranial injury due to a traffic accident and was aphasic for three hours. The Leshan People's Hospital's regional collaborative emergency medical system quickly took action, activating a green channel and coordinating a multi-disciplinary response involving the emergency department, CT room, intensive care medicine department, operating room, and neurosurgery to clear a path for the patient's life. From entering the emergency department to undergoing a CT assessment, completing preoperative checks in the intensive care medicine department, and starting surgery, it took only one hour. The patient was discharged after one week of recovery.

   "As the leading hospital in the Leshan area, we have an inescapable responsibility and commitment in terms of medical quality control," said Zeng Guojun. "As the leading unit of the regional medical association and professional committees, we promote cooperation and exchange between our hospital and others in the Leshan area and its surroundings. We have brought the excellent experience of West China Hospital to 'Le Yi' (Leshan People's Hospital), and we will also lead the way locally with our integrated and innovative experiences."

   Zeng Guojun stated that Leshan People's Hospital has jointly built a medical consortium with hospitals such as the Jinkou River District People's Hospital and the Wutongqiao District People's Hospital, focusing on improving the regional medical consortium system. The 41-year-old patient was a beneficiary of the regional collaborative emergency medical network and standardized trauma center established by Leshan People's Hospital. The hospital actively plays the role of the trauma center in the regional collaborative emergency medical system, opening a green channel for trauma patients in surrounding areas, and racing against time through multi-party relays and remote consultations, achieving "single bypass" (direct from the hospital's emergency department to the operating room), "double bypass" (direct from surrounding area hospitals or city pre-hospital first aid to the hospital's operating room), and "triple bypass" (direct from surrounding area 120 emergency to the hospital's operating room), reducing the medical treatment time for trauma patients and secondary injuries, and winning precious "life opportunities" for the patients.

   In August 2023, Leshan People's Hospital and Wutong District Bridge People's Hospital cooperated to establish a gastroenterology and urology doctoral workstation. Using a "mentorship" model, the doctoral team has provided comprehensive guidance to the corresponding departments, including outpatient services, surgeries, case discussions, remote teaching, and clinical demonstrations, to support the talent team construction, department construction, and discipline construction of Wutong District Bridge People's Hospital, achieving full homogenization in medical care, management, and services with Leshan People's Hospital.

   Regarding the future development of the hospital, Zeng Guojun expressed that he will face difficulties and challenges together with the people of "Le Yi." Under the strong leadership of the Party Committee, he will unite the team, adhere to the hospital's mission of "benevolence and healing the world, sincere practice of medicine," be brave in pioneering, build an excellent team, learn from the excellent systems of West China Hospital, optimize and upgrade in system management, and at the same time, through salary performance reform, single-disease clinical pathways, and consumable management, promote the medical team leader responsibility system, focus on discipline construction and scientific innovation, continuously improve service quality, and fully protect the health of the people in Leshan City, promote the construction of a healthy Leshan, and continue to write a new chapter in the high-quality development of the hospital, helping to build a "healthy Leshan" and protect the health of the people in Leshan City.