Sports Medicine Master System-Chapter 100 - 80: Free Clinic (2)

But his health insurance had lapsed, and a trip to the emergency room would cost him at least a year’s pay.

"It’s nothing serious, just some swelling." It had been a day, after all.

Chen Yu grabbed the man’s arm. "Byron, hold him."

Nelson and the others had also been roped in by the team to help.

Byron Howard stepped forward and held the middle-aged man tightly.

"This will hurt a little. I’m going to count to three."

The middle-aged man gritted his teeth, a look of panic on his face.

"One, two..."

With a sharp CRACK, Chen Yu gave the man’s arm a sudden pull and push.

The middle-aged man screamed. ’I thought you were going to count to three!’

"There. Try moving your shoulder," Chen Yu said, pulling his hands back.

Still stunned, the middle-aged man moved his shoulder and was amazed to find his arm could move again.

"I’m all better!" His face was filled with elation.

Chen Yu sat back down, casually wrote out a prescription, and handed it to him. Then he shouted to J Kidd, "Next."

The middle-aged man stood up and bowed repeatedly, thanking him profusely.

His condition wasn’t serious, but a hospital visit would have cost him at least ten thousand US dollars.

But now, he was all better without having to spend a single penny.

You could say that with that one casual push and pull, Chen Yu had saved his impoverished family.

"Don’t mention it." Chen Yu smiled and waved his hand dismissively. Joint reductions counted as Sports Medicine experience, and that was precisely what he needed to grind the most.

He looked toward the next patient, a woman who was limping toward him.

Chen Yu knew the cause with a single glance.

’A hairline fracture of the tibia—the shinbone. Probably caused by an impact.’

"Do you have health insurance?" Chen Yu asked as he had her sit down for an examination. 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

The woman dodged the question, saying, "I was hit by a bicycle, but the guy took off. The police can’t find him, so no one’s taking responsibility."

Chen Yu glanced at an officer standing guard a few meters away. ’In this kind of situation, you just have to chalk it up to bad luck,’ he thought.

’So she doesn’t have insurance.’

After running through the examination, Chen Yu said, "You’re lucky. It’s not a full fracture, just a hairline one. I’ll put it in a cast for you. Rest for a month, and you should be fine."

’No need for X-rays.’

If she’d had insurance, he could have sent her straight to Saint Luke Hospital for X-rays.

Chen Yu had already made arrangements with Saint Luke and three other hospitals in the city. Any necessary tests could be done there, and more serious cases would be admitted directly for Chen Yu to operate on.

"Will it cost anything?" the woman asked Chen Yu apprehensively.

"No."

’It’s just a bit of plaster. This is a charity event, after all. The team is covering the cost of simple supplies.’

He quickly applied the cast, wrote her a prescription, and sent her on her way.

The entire process took no more than ten minutes.

Normally, for a condition like hers, if she didn’t go to the ER, she’d have to book an appointment with a specialist, which could take up to a month, only to end up with a cast anyway.

A small clinic could handle it, of course, but you’d run into the same problem: high costs.

In short, not having health insurance was a real problem. Many people let minor ailments drag on until they became major illnesses; some even ended up permanently disabled.

The next patient was a young man with a head wound he had wrapped in gauze himself.

The free clinic had been advertised as focusing on orthopedic issues, but they could also treat simple external injuries.

’Someone in his situation probably doesn’t have insurance either and is afraid to go to the ER.’

The law might require emergency rooms to treat you, but you can’t escape the massive bill that comes later.

And you couldn’t get out of paying it unless you were willing to give up completely and become a homeless person.

Chen Yu tore away the messy gauze. ’The wound looks recent, and he disinfected it himself. No signs of serious infection.’

Without asking any more questions, he stitched up the wound, bandaged it, and sent the man off with some anti-inflammatory medication.

In the distance, Moratti watched quietly, not saying a word.

He watched for about half an hour before heading over to where his assistant was holding a spot in line and getting in line himself.

Chen Yu worked quickly, so even though there was a long line of people, it was constantly moving.

About four hours later, it was Moratti’s turn.

"Please, have a seat." Chen Yu was still smiling.

Moratti noticed, however, that beads of sweat had formed on Chen Yu’s forehead.

’He probably hasn’t taken a single break. It’s impossible not to be tired, seeing patients at this speed and dealing with so many different conditions.’

Just as Moratti was about to speak, Chen Yu beat him to it. "Lower back pain, right? Lie down."

To speed things up, Chen Yu had started skipping the full examination process for certain conditions. A quick glance was all it took anyway.

’If anyone asks, I’ll just say it’s like with Hill—I could just see it.’

’No one would question it, probably.’

Of course, if an examination was truly necessary, Chen Yu would still arrange for the patient to be tested at a hospital.

Moratti was stunned. He did, in fact, have lower back pain, partly due to his age and partly due to old injuries from his soccer-playing youth that had left him with chronic issues.

’The crucial part is, how did Chen Yu know without even examining me?’

’It’s a bit uncanny.’

But he didn’t say anything. He just did as Chen Yu asked and lay face down on the examination table.

Chen Yu went straight to work with his hands.

’This old man’s condition is similar to Quinn’s. It’s likely an old injury, compounded by his age, skeletal degeneration, and a resulting slight misalignment.’

’It can be corrected manually.’

He felt Chen Yu’s hands palpating his back. Just as he was about to ask what Chen Yu was going to do, he suddenly felt Chen Yu’s hand press down hard.

He vaguely heard a CLICK, and a jolt of pain made him shudder.

"All done." Chen Yu patted Moratti’s back. "Make sure you get some exercise. Riding a bike more often would be good for your back."

Cycling strengthens the lower back muscles, improving their support for the spine and relieving pain.