He Yongsong: The "Medical Detective" Walking on the Frontline of Diagnosis and Treatment

The experience of COVID-19 prevention and control has made every citizen familiar with a term — nucleic acid testing. This “gold standard” for diagnosing SARS-CoV-2 infection has become an effective guarantee for achieving a major decisive victory in epidemic prevention and control.

To ensure the accuracy of the “gold standard” of nucleic acid testing, the clinical laboratory, which has long worked behind the scenes, is of paramount importance. With the development of modern medicine, the discipline of laboratory science plays a huge role in the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of diseases, and has evolved from medical testing to laboratory medicine.

“Without accurate medical testing, there can be no correct medical diagnosis, and it is difficult to achieve good treatment outcomes. This is no exaggeration.” He Yongsong, Director of the Clinical Laboratory at HeYou Hospital, hopes that within this high-quality hospital benchmarked against international standards, objective, accurate, and timely medical testing will become a key component in creating a warm, full-life-cycle care model.

He Yongsong (second from left), Director of the Clinical Laboratory at HeYou Hospital. Photo provided by the interviewee.

Building a First-Class Clinical Laboratory Center

In 1983, Chongqing Medical University established the Department of Medical Laboratory Science (now the School of Laboratory Medicine), becoming one of the first national undergraduate programs in medical laboratory science.

“I was in the second cohort of undergraduate students in the medical laboratory science program. It was a five-year program, and the focus was on training laboratory physicians.” He Yongsong explained that the original intention of training “laboratory physicians” was to enable them to directly participate in clinical rounds with doctors, interpret test reports, recommend personalized testing items, and provide diagnostic guidance.

After graduation, He Yongsong entered the First Affiliated Hospital of West China University of Medical Sciences, now the nationally renowned West China Hospital of Sichuan University, with outstanding grades, and worked there for 10 years.

“Later, I was sent as a visiting scholar to the University of Southampton School of Medicine in the UK to conduct immunopharmacology research on asthma. Subsequently, I studied medical laboratory science for three years at the Michener Institute of Applied Clinical Technology in Canada and then worked at Toronto General Hospital in Canada.” At this world-class hospital, He Yongsong not only witnessed but also personally participated in exploring the frontiers of laboratory medicine, accumulating a wealth of valuable experience.

“In April 2022, HeYou Hospital approached me, hoping I would join this brand-new hospital to lead the establishment of the clinical laboratory.” He Yongsong admitted that he was deeply impressed from the very first moment he learned about the hospital. “Especially since HeYou Hospital has built the first proton and heavy ion center in South China and the second in the country. To complement such top-tier medical equipment, a comprehensive and first-class clinical laboratory is absolutely necessary.”

Therefore, with the support of the hospital administration, He Yongsong applied his extensive experience and cutting-edge concepts gained from nearly 30 years of work in top-tier hospitals both domestically and internationally to build a high-level clinical laboratory. “All equipment in the department will meet international standards, and the talent recruited will be absolutely top-notch.” He Yongsong emphasized that through meticulously designed testing management processes and quality control systems, the laboratory will ensure fast and accurate test results, effectively improving the quality of medical care.

Precision Testing Throughout the Entire Disease Diagnosis and Treatment Process

“Abroad, the clinical laboratory is not considered a purely auxiliary department but an important frontline clinical department. Its test results have significant guiding value for disease diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis assessment.” He Yongsong quoted a statement from a former senior leader of Toronto General Hospital during his time there: “Over 90% of our doctors’ clinical judgments are based on laboratory test results.”

“Once, a woman in her 30s came to the emergency department at night with a low-grade fever and underwent a routine complete blood count. During the analysis, the testing instrument triggered an alarm. We immediately conducted a detailed examination and ultimately found that the patient had a high risk of acute promyelocytic leukemia.” He Yongsong recalled that this action promptly mitigated the potentially severe consequences of the disease for the patient, who had already been discharged.

Besides detecting potential diseases early, laboratory medicine also provides crucial indicators for physicians to design scientific treatment plans. “There was a patient with a deficiency of human coagulation factor VIII, caused by the body producing specific antibodies that destroyed human coagulation factor VIII. During the long-term treatment process, the patient teetered on the brink of death dozens of times.” He Yongsong said.

To precisely eliminate the specific antibodies, He Yongsong led the laboratory team to follow the patient’s entire diagnosis and treatment process. “Each time, the doctors relied on our test results to make the next decision. In fact, especially when facing difficult and complex diseases, laboratory medicine plays a vital role, serving as the most sensitive ‘eyes’ for clinicians to identify the root cause of the illness.”

“Therefore, I have always firmly believed that laboratory physicians should act as pioneers and be on the front line throughout the entire cycle of disease prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis assessment.” He Yongsong stated that this aligns perfectly with HeYou Hospital’s model of creating a warm, full-life-cycle care approach.

Building a Patient-Centered Healthcare Ecosystem

Currently, He Yongsong is leading his team to build the clinical laboratory for HeYou Hospital. “I will introduce the model of advanced foreign laboratories to fully enhance testing quality, improve testing efficiency, and meet the vast testing demands.”

He Yongsong stated that his over 20 years of overseas medical experience have given him a profound understanding of the important responsibilities shouldered by laboratory medicine. “For example, at Toronto General Hospital in Canada, although the hospital has only 700 beds, the laboratory receives over 10,000 test specimens daily. The testing frequency is also very high during surgeries and the monitoring of critically ill patients. Such a huge workload requires the support of a strong laboratory team.”

According to He Yongsong’s plan, the clinical laboratory at HeYou Hospital will be equipped with a full range of advanced laboratory medicine instruments and equipment in the future, covering professional groups such as clinical biochemistry, clinical immunology, clinical microbiology, PCR laboratory, clinical hematology laboratory, and blood transfusion department.

“Through the new-generation smart hospital information system, we will not only make test reports paperless but also extend our testing capabilities from clinical diagnosis and treatment to health management, and even to medical institutions in a larger area outside the hospital.” He Yongsong said that building this “patient-centered” healthcare ecosystem is precisely how HeYou Hospital fulfills its mission of “building a modern hospital that can carry the people’s aspirations for a better and healthier life.”

“At the same time, this is also my understanding of Mr. He Xiangjian’s founding philosophy and public welfare初心 of ‘benefiting the hometown and giving back to society.’” In He Yongsong’s view, there are various ways to give back to society. “For us laboratory professionals, the way we give back to society is to stay rooted in our positions, use precise test results to support the precision development of clinical diagnosis and treatment, and more importantly, connect with community medical institutions through smart platforms to provide high-quality medical services to more patients, thereby promoting the overall improvement of regional laboratory medicine standards.”

■ Quality Medical Care Notes

Respect is the Prerequisite for High-Quality Medical Care

In my view, quality medical care means that patients can seek medical treatment with dignity, and doctors can practice medicine with dignity. The doctor-patient relationship should be the most intimate and humane harmonious relationship. A hospital capable of providing high-quality medical services should demonstrate quality care in every aspect.

For example, when a patient arrives at the hospital, is parking convenient? Are the directions for seeing a doctor clear? When communicating with a doctor, is the atmosphere relaxing and comfortable? Does the environment protect patient privacy? Bringing high-quality medical services to the people, making good doctors and good hospitals more tangible, accessible, and reachable, relies not only on the medical team but also on a scientific and comprehensive logistical support system, ensuring that every patient feels respected from the moment they step into the hospital. This is also a manifestation of treating every patient equally, fairly, and with integrity in medical services.

At the same time, quality medical care is also reflected in respect for the patient’s right to self-determination. All high-quality, high-level treatment plans provided by doctors to patients are, in the final analysis, recommendations. Ultimately, they must respect the decisions made by the patient and their family, provided they do not violate national laws, regulations, and social norms.

Respecting life and safeguarding health. Doctors do not treat a disease; they treat a person with a disease. “Quality medical care” means being patient-centered, enabling the hospital to relieve the pain of illness and allowing patients to return to a better life.