【Warm Doctor Essay Solicitation】“Sweeping Monk” Pharmacist Tang at the TCM Pharmacy

“A think monk in blue rob is holding a broom and bowing his body to sweep on the long corridor outside the window. This monk is aged, the sparse long whiskers are all white already. He acts slowly and weakly, and it seems not a warrior monk. Although the service monk is a monk served at Shaolin Temple, but they only tonsure without acknowledging a master, no Kungfu taught, no meditation, and they are not ranked by “Xuan, Hui, Xu and Kong” seniority. They only do some unskilled heavy manual labors like cooking, planting, seeping and sprinkling and civil work besides chanting sutras and worshiping Budda. Xuansheng, et al are No.1 monks in the temple, but it’s no wonder not knowing him, only listening to his elegant speech showing his outstanding knowledge and experience, and all secretly admire him.”

There is also a senior staff unknown to public but with unique skills at the hospital domain. His educational background is not high, not good at talking, and he even doesn’t appear at the drug delivery window. But he is pretty familiar with thousand drawers in the pharmacy. He is holding the drug bag and shuttling between them, and he acts very quickly during dosaging. The beautiful axe-shaped bag is nicely put on table……He is Tang Yawei from TCM Pharmacy, a senior staff quietly serving the patients behind.

There was a strong thing at our department when I first came to work at hospital. Some patients designated their drugs to be prescribed by Pharmacist Tang of the pharmacy. Out of the enthusiasm as a new employee, I always went there offer my helping hands, but I was always refused by the pharmacists with smiles. Then gradually I understood those patients were repeated patients over many years, each of them had their own unique requirements. Some of them required the drug to be contained in an environment-friendly bags, and some required extra packages. Some of them demanded extra papers for they would further decoct at home, and they even remembered the patients would catch up buses at what time......Pharmacist Tang would prescribe by himself upon requests from these several patients, and he would satisfy their requirements one by one, until they left in satisfaction. Maybe until now, these patients even don’t know there is one pharmacist who quietly memorizing all their requirements. ——Until then I understand, the pharmacists could also have fans.

The small package decoction pieces used by our hospital are clean but in large volumes and fast-consuming, and Pharmacist Tang bears the complicated prescription tasks, and he has to observe the dosing volumes of various decocations while prescribing and has to make supplements, so as to reduce the interval for waiting due to shortage, and it’s a strong guarantee for the patients to get their drugs quickly. He also picks up the decoctions of old batch numbers for consumption first during making supplements, so as to guarantee first-in-and-first-out, and to guarantee the patients could get their fresh decoctions. The TCM decoctions are different from Chinese patent medicines, the flower decoctions are easily color-changing, the fruit decoctions are easily rotten, the seed decoctions are easily extracted with oil, the root decoctions are easily damaged by worms, so continuous overturning examinations are required, particularly in the plum rain seasons. Pharmacist Tang is always taking his time to overturn and examine them, even a small worm and a small mildew cannot escape from his eyes. ——Until then I understand, the pharmacists could also have craftsmanship.

Different shapes and processed products of traditional Chinese medicines have direct influences on curative effects, and the routine drug forms often fail to meet the clinical demands. In order to better serve the patients and to exert the maximal effect of drugs, Pharmacist Tang prepares many “weapons” in his cupboards: agitating mortar, grinding pots, powder grinding machine and a whole set of boiler……Attributed to his many years of work experiences at a decocting pharmacy, Pharmacist Tang is familiar with processing of various decoctions, and the patients could obtain more appropriate processed drugs after his processing: he could fry on spot if there is any shortage, he grinds jasmines to facilitate processing with vinegar for external application to get rid of swelling, and he grinds precious drugs into fine powders to increase drug functions……Pharmacist Tang will carefully handle and meticulously process no matter the processing demands are from patients or colleagues on slicing, powder grinding, grinding or other simple processing demands. He often watches them leaving with packages of drugs with after-heat and in satisfaction.   ——Until then I understand, pharmacists could also have warmth.

Keeping patients’ demands in mind, guaranteeing a high quality and sufficient supply medicines and making all efforts to provide better pharmacist services to the patients from Pharmacist Tang are basic requirements for a pharmacist, and it’s also a spiritual inheritance accumulated and settled during laboring year after year. As a pharmacist, maybe we cannot provide direct diagnosis and treatment, that bag of meticulously decocted drug contains dedication and best wishes from all the pharmacists no matter at the drug delivery window or behind. “service to the best of its ability, and good medicine cures people”. Our hope: the patients take the warm medicine, with a warm heart.