Fortunately, he met his bosom friend to establish a clinical base for cerebrospinal fluid disease “In fact, the idea of establishing a specialized department was born in the heart of Li Xiaoyong, the director of cerebrospinal fluid early in the formation of academic ideas, and at that time, he made several attempts in the hospital where he worked, but unfortunately, although this cutting-edge theory and technology had a certain impact due to its good efficacy, it did not receive any real importance.” Dr. Pan Dongchao, who has followed Li Xiaoyong for many years, told the reporter. In order to realize this ideal, Li Xiaoyong, who was already nearing the end of his life, even gave up his stable career and life in Beijing and moved to a professional brain hospital in Tianjin to look for opportunities, but after a year’s effort due to geographical restrictions, the dream in his heart sank again. Later, Li Xiaoyong was transferred to a famous university hospital in Beijing to start a new round of exploration and experimentation, but this difficult discipline did not usher in a turnaround in fate from then on, as a field that had not been deeply involved before, still facing the dilemma of high and low, no one support and understanding. After the department had been running for some time, the team he led was gradually cut back again, and the beds were being compressed until they were finally eliminated. In order for patients to receive timely treatment, he had to admit cerebrospinal fluid patients who came to him for treatment to a nearby hospital, and he himself was tired of running between the two hospitals all year round. During Li Xiaoyong’s long years of practice and waiting, one person was the first to notice the potential value of this discipline: his long-time colleague and friend, Dr. Jianxiong An, now assistant to the president of the Aviation General Hospital. Dr. An Jianxiong had been engaged in research for many years at prestigious medical research institutions such as Fu Wai Hospital of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and the University of Pittsburgh in the U.S. His good training and keen international perspective gave An Jianxiong insight into the important clinical value of this discipline. At that time, the Aviation General Hospital, under the leadership of President Gao Guolan, was implementing a “differentiated” development strategy in order to break through in Beijing, where there are many high-quality medical resources, and to be among the top hospitals. Li Xiaoyong’s academic and clinical thought system was soon recognized and supported by President Gao Guolan. “There is a considerable number of cerebrospinal fluid patient populations at home and abroad, and there is an urgent need for someone to take the lead in exploring this field. Dr. Li Xiaoyong’s academic and clinical background convinced me that he had the strength to do so.” President Gao Guolan, my famous expert in obstetrics and gynecology who served as Dean of Nanchang University School of Medicine and Vice President of Nanchang University for many years, concluded with her profound academic knowledge and strategic vision that the discipline of cerebrospinal fluid, with its great clinical value and broad development prospects in solving the ailments of many patients, would also be unique in neurosurgery and become an important breakthrough in the hospital’s quest for differentiated development. In July 2011, the first neurosurgery cerebrospinal fluid disease center in China was officially established in Aviation General Hospital. After 16 years of exploration, accumulation and development, Li Xiaoyong’s dream has finally become a reality. This is so far the first department in China and the world to specialize in cerebrospinal fluid disease and to be named as such. “In the nationally renowned neurosurgical hospitals, the treatment of related major diseases is already very mature, and it is difficult for anyone to pay attention to cerebrospinal fluid disease, a new discipline that has just sprouted, not to mention the difficulty of taking the risk of creating a new department that has never been seen before. From this point of view, I am also very lucky, and I have to thank the hospital leadership team for their foresight. I can say that without the support of President Gao Guolan, it would have been difficult to realize the landing of my academic ideas and system.” Director Li Xiaoyong told the reporter. However, the road of entrepreneurship is never a straight path. Although President Gao Guolan has implemented drastic reforms since he took office in 2009, the face of the hospital has changed tremendously, but as an industrial hospital that has just entered the fast lane of development, the shackles of old ideas still reveal their inertia from time to time and bind people’s minds. cutting-edge work? In addition, a discipline with an uncertain future, will not affect the hospital’s assessment index? With the shackles of thought and practical considerations, there was a huge amount of controversy and resistance. However, after careful consideration, President Gao Guolan has firmly believed in the development prospect of the discipline. After she explained its potential medical value and importance to the development of the hospital, some people understood and accepted this important strategic initiative, but some were still skeptical. But with her strong push, the new discipline was finally launched! The creation of the Cerebrospinal Fluid Disease Center was a crucial step for Li Xiaoyong toward her dream and vision. However, due to the variability in the translation of academic theory to clinical technique and ward management issues, several consecutive post-operative complications occurred between June and October of FY 2012, when reality seemed to confirm earlier concerns. How could a newly developed industrial hospital dare to aspire to climb a field that no one had dared to touch? To conquer a world problem? This is a nightmare! In a case discussion, a chief of internal medicine could not help but ask aloud, “How can our hospital dare to do a surgery that the best medical university hospital in a certain province cannot do?” The previous questioning evolved into “overwhelming” opposition, pushing the department to the brink of survival and destruction. At this moment of life and death, President Gao Guolan did not retreat and did not give up, but made the decision to keep the cerebrospinal fluid department running. Later, with technical corrections, all the above-mentioned patients obtained good treatment results. “The success of any business will not be smooth sailing, and my style of doing things is that I must persist in what I have agreed on, and only by persisting can I see the light of victory.” President Gao Guolan recalled that period of much criticism with a calm tone and a firm gaze. Later, in 2013 and early 2014, President Gao led the medical team and personally performed the caesarean section on Lu Yuanfang, a rare case of “acromegaly” in Asia, and on Sang Lan, a famous gymnast and the first case of paraplegic pregnant woman in China, in the face of resistance and difficulties. She has also demonstrated the resilience of her character. With the support of President Gao, Li Xiaoyong began a long period of calm contemplation, and ten days later, he implemented yet another reform of treatment techniques and patient hospitalization management. After the reform, the department’s treatment success rate once again improved significantly, the surgery rate increased by more than one-third, and patient satisfaction was once again substantially higher. “The discipline of cerebrospinal fluid disease is a discipline that started out from the experience of treatment failure, there is no previous experience to draw on, we can only feel our own development, each difficult problem is overcome, it is equal to a step towards the end of science, there will be more patients benefit from it”.
“And as far as the current clinical research results are concerned, the treatment cycle of the disease is generally about two months to six months, which is longer compared to other diseases and prone to recurrence, which requires both doctors and patients’ families to have enough patience.” Li Xiaoyong sums up his professional characteristics and patient group in this way. From 2011 to 2014, the Department of Cerebrospinal Fluid at Aviation General Hospital – a department born amidst controversy – has entered an initial stage of maturity after three years of development. Li Xiaoyong led his medical team to win patients’ reputation with efficacy and deliver a satisfactory answer to the hospital; he tested his academic theory with clinical practice and created an unprecedented new discipline. Li Xiaoyong’s achievements have also greatly boosted the morale of the hospital staff, and everyone has praised that the hospital leadership team, led by President Gao Guolan, has built a nest to attract phoenixes with a forward-looking vision, attracting “big monks to the small temple! The leadership team of the hospital, headed by President Gao Guolan, is forward-looking and attracts phoenixes. Under the active promotion of the leadership team of Aviation General Hospital, the hospital has not only become a clinical college of China Medical University, but also cooperated with Chinese Academy of Sciences to establish Beijing Institute of Translational Medicine of Chinese Academy of Sciences, and rapidly established six research laboratories for difficult diseases including cerebrospinal fluid disease, chronic pelvic pain, smog disease and herpes zoster in 2013. Currently, several studies have made important progress and reached international leading level. In order to cultivate the rising generation and strengthen the team building, Li Xiaoyong recruited the first specialized postgraduate student of neurosurgery with cerebrospinal fluid disease as the research direction in China in 2013, who will graduate in 2016.