However, Wang Xiaoqiang's ranch was an exception. Thanks to Kobe Beef and the supply of Spiritual Energy from Wang Xiaoqiang, his three major ranches in Australia were all quite successful.

"Little Qiang, Sister Ya and I have discussed opening a few more large ranches. Our current scale is too small..." Zheng Ru said, filled with hope.

"Sure, go ahead with it," Wang Xiaoqiang replied cheerfully. "Do you have any other plans?"

"Also," Zheng Ru's white fingers traced circles on Wang Xiaoqiang's chest, "I want to have a baby with you..."

"Ah, that might not be possible," Wang Xiaoqiang exclaimed dramatically. "Last time I came back to China, your sister warned me not to get any ideas about you..."

"Psh, she can't control me..." Zheng Ru said rebelliously, but then her tone changed, "However, Little Qiang, you mustn't get any ideas about my sister..."

Wang Xiaoqiang thought to himself, unfortunately, you're too late, your sister has already taken actions, but he said aloud, "Of course, let's make a baby..."

Wang Xiaoqiang flipped over, ready for battle. He charged again.

"Hey, Zheng Ru, do you think I should send Sister Ya to a big hospital in Sydney for the delivery?" After their passionate activity, Wang Xiaoqiang asked Zheng Ru.

"Sydney is too far away. Sister Ya's belly can't handle the long journey anymore. It might be better to do it in a hospital near Bu Town," Zheng Ru suggested.

"Which public hospital is near Bu Town? It's all small private hospitals. They aren't reliable. If we encounter a black clinic, that would be even more troublesome..."

"Little Qiang, this is Australia, not back home. In Australia, there is a large presence of both public and private hospitals. Unlike back home, where people always think of private hospitals as possible black clinics, unlicensed operations, or cosmetic surgery centers, it's different here. Whether public or private, medical institutions here are very reliable.

Public hospitals are primarily subsidized by the government. For patients, the medical treatment is free. I had a friend who needed surgery for nasal polyps and stayed in the royal ear and eye hospital for two days without spending a dime. It wasn't until she was discharged and went to pick up her medicine that she spent a few dozen dollars at the pharmacy with a prescription. Since this friend was an Australian immigrant, all immigrants and Australian citizens have public-funded insurance called Medicare. After her treatment, the hospital reported her case to the government Medicare, which then paid the hospital for the patient's expenses during the hospital stay, including nursing fees, doctor's fees, various fees of allied health professions during the hospital stay, material costs, and surgery costs. Currently, because of Australia's tight budget, in order to prevent hospital wastage, every expense must be very detailed so the hospital can claim the money back. The impact on nurses is that the record-keeping must be very detailed, such as the fall risk assessment, where patients at higher risk constitute one type of cost, and those at lower risk another. The government requires records for all hospitalized patients, otherwise no money is provided. Generally, when a new patient is admitted, they must fill out dozens of forms, recording various details, which serve as evidence for the hospital's claims. It is said that in some states in the United States, if a patient in a public hospital develops bedsores, the government will refuse to pay the nursing fees for that patient. Since bedsores can be prevented by nursing, if they occur, the government might end up paying more, thus this policy was established. Although Australia is not so stringent, all occurrences of bedsores need to be documented in risk management, such as whether they were present upon admission or developed during the stay, which is also said to be related to hospital claims. However, even if the hospital cannot reclaim the money, it doesn't affect the patients, who still receive free treatment regardless of the hospital's disputes with the government. Some time ago, a well-known public hospital in Melbourne reduced its beds (unrelated to strikes) because it wasn't able to reclaim the money; admitting more patients meant more loss, so they simply closed some beds. Later, it was heard that they reopened them.

Private hospitals are divided into for-profit private hospitals and non-profit private hospitals. For patients, private hospitals are, of course, better. Regarding the friend with nasal polyps, when she saw a doctor, the doctor asked her if she wanted to go to a private hospital. She chose not to in order to save money and waited for a public hospital instead. Since public hospitals are completely free, there are many people waiting for beds, and one might have to wait a year for a heart surgery. Most patients in private hospitals have private rooms, the environment is good, and the service is also very good, with a strong focus on the hospital's brand image, mainly to attract more patients. The fees charged by private hospitals are very expensive, typically two to three times more than what public hospitals claim from the government for similar treatments and surgeries. However, essentially, patients coming to private hospitals still don't have to pay. Private hospitals directly claim their bills with private insurance companies. Apart from public insurance like Medicare that everyone has, there are many private insurance companies in Australia. It's akin to paying a few dozen dollars a month, and if any illness occurs, you can go to a private hospital, and the insurance company will reimburse the expenses. Therefore, the main source of money for private hospitals comes from insurance companies, which is why there is no phenomenon like queuing to pay at hospital checkout counters in Australia. If you don't have private insurance but choose to go to a private hospital, or if you are not an Australian immigrant and go to a public hospital for treatment, the hospital will send the bill directly to your home. It's very expensive. I also had a friend who was sent to an emergency room once for a minor issue, and it ended up costing 900 dollars.

Non-profit private hospitals are mostly church hospitals or charity projects of large consortiums and entrepreneurs, not aimed at making a profit but only seeking to break even. They only claim the amount equal to their expenditures. For-profit medical institutions, such as agencies, are purely personal businesses aimed at making a living. Although the government doesn't subsidize either type, it does provide some tax and policy support for non-profit private medical institutions, since it is a matter of national welfare.

A few days ago, when the nurses went on strike, those in the private hospitals did not participate, because they are not dependent on the government for their wages, unlike those in the public hospitals. Generally speaking, the compensation in public and private hospitals is similar. For instance, after we successfully negotiated a pay raise with the government, a few days later, I saw that the private hospitals had also issued notices for a raise. The terms were slightly less favorable than those of the public hospitals, but they were broadly similar.

For nurses, the differences are minor but not substantial. I had worked in both public and private hospitals concurrently before and had quite an experience with this. Patients in public hospitals tend to have more severe conditions and lower social status, and many of them do not speak English as their first language. I think it's crucial to conduct a public health survey, for example, to see if the immigrants in Australia generally have lower incomes or social economic status, which might lead to poorer health conditions. (I'm really applying what I learned, haha) The nurse-to-patient ratio is 1:4. In private hospitals, the clients generally can afford private insurance, are usually of higher quality – I genuinely think so – and the patients are polite and tend to suffer from less severe conditions, mostly being locals. The nurse-to-patient ratio is either 1:5 or 1:4. Speaking of the work environment, naturally, the private hospitals are somewhat better than the public ones. The private hospital I worked at was said to be the best in Melbourne; every ward there was like a three-star hotel. It was a pleasure walking around and talking to patients. Public hospitals typically have an 8-hour workday, whereas private hospitals have a 7.5-hour workday. I have discussed this in detail in my previous blog post – click here. Also, the working hours in public hospitals are a bit more flexible, like the morning shift, which officially ends at three-thirty, often ending five or ten minutes earlier, and it's possible to finish half an hour early on weekends; as for private... I've never really left on time. Regarding nurses' uniforms, public hospitals don't require them, and nurses can wear whatever they prefer, usually T-shirts, though some buy hospital uniforms, but it's not mandatory. Private hospitals, however, are very keen on appearances; they require all nurses to wear uniforms, which the hospital provides for free. There are also the matters of study leaves and various educational programs – public hospitals offer more than private ones, and the holiday pay for nurses in private hospitals is slightly less. Private hospitals are indeed a bit more stingy when it comes to employee wages. For instance, public hospitals easily offer domestic nurses salaries corresponding to their years of experience, whereas private hospitals tend to undercount domestic experience by two years; when public hospitals call a casual to work, even if the start is late by two hours, they still pay for a full shift; in private hospitals, even if they make a mistake in scheduling your shift and you show up without work, they'll send you back home, and in such cases, they're supposed to pay me for two hours.

I also once asked local students their opinions on private versus public hospitals. Many students answered this way about their impressions of the hospitals. They said for minor illnesses, of course, private hospitals are better in every way; but for serious, complex, or emergency conditions, they needed to go to public hospitals. For instance, Melbourne has several very large public hospitals with excellent medical resources: Alfred hospital's trauma center, royal Melbourne's cardiac. If Gerard in Virginia got hit by a car, he'd be sent to Alfred's center. The seriousness of emergencies can also be seen from the nurse-to-patient ratio in ICU and CCU. I have worked a few shifts in a private CCU, and it felt like the patients were not very serious. I've never been to a public CCU, but I once passed by one, and oh my, the patients there... I won't describe it in detail, but it seemed they needed two nurses each, or perhaps it was just that I happened to see the more serious cases... But apart from those top-notch ones, other public hospitals just can't match the quality of service of the private ones.

"For those just starting to look for a job, I think it's important not to be too concerned about whether it's a public or private position. What matters most is landing a job; don't give up any opportunity unless you're a nurse with over twenty years of experience."

"Well, it seems Australia is really nice, truly worthy of its reputation as the garden country," Wang Xiaoqiang remarked.

"So, I'm planning to settle down here. Little Qiang, I want our children to take root here too. Look how great the air is here."

"Hey, that's being overly fond of foreign things. That's not a good mindset; I need to criticize you..." Wang Xiaoqiang rebuked playfully and, with a movement of his hands, pinned her down on the bed, positioning himself as if he were pushing an old cart.

After Zheng Ru took Wang Xiaoqiang's virginity, she was no longer a virgin herself, and after being apart from Wang Xiaoqiang for so long without intimacy, her desires were strong. Moreover, she was eager to conceive Wang Xiaoqiang's child, so she was also yearning for his scolding. (To be continued. If you like this work, please go to qidian.com to vote and support the author, and mobile users can read on m.qidian.com.)

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