Dr. Shin Seonhan: The Doctor Who Sees The Future [EN]: Chapter 62

#62 Isn’t Thoracic Surgery a First? (10)

I stared at the object that came out of Ryu Myung-in’s pocket.

That is…….

Banana milk?

A classic and simple way to express affection since our student days.

“I thought you weren’t eating well in the morning, sunbae [senior colleague],” he said with a sweet smile.

Yuck.

It’s hard to watch from the side.

Of course, he has a pretty decent face.

Should I say he’s a textbook example of the perfect younger man?

I heard that quite a few older female colleagues adore him.

However, Song Yoo-joo answers without a single change in her expression.

“I don’t drink milk.”

“Yes?”

“Lactose intolerance.”

“…….”

“Stop doing useless things and take good care of the patients.”

Screech―

Song Yoo-joo pulls out her chair and sits at the station.

I held back a laugh inside.

Watching that scene these days is secretly *kkuljaem* [very funny or entertaining].

Ryu Myung-in tries all sorts of ways to appeal to her, but each time he is blocked by an iron wall.

“Patient Yoon Sun-mi, what was the amount of chest tube drain yesterday?”

Teacher Song Yoo-joo started checking Ryu Myung-in’s patients first.

Patients who have undergone thoracic surgery come out of the operating room with a ‘chest tube’ inserted in their body.

This is to drain postoperative bleeding or pleural effusion [fluid around the lungs].

It can also check if air is leaking from the lungs.

Therefore, the tube is removed when the amount of drainage through this chest tube is below a certain amount and there is no air leaking through the tube.

“140cc drained.”

“Air leak?”

“None.”

Ryu Myung-in’s answer was quick.

Then, Song Yoo-joo, who was looking at the monitor, turned her head and stared at Ryu Myung-in.

“None?”

“Yes.”

“Are you just talking based on the chart, or did you actually go and check? Don’t think that what the nurses recorded on the chart here is 100% true.”

Song Yoo-joo’s question was sharp.

But Ryu Myung-in seemed confident.

“I checked it with my own eyes earlier.”

“Really?”

“Until yesterday, bubbles were constantly seen when breathing, but there were none today.”

Ryu Myung-in is quite diligent.

Not only is he smart, but he is not lazy in his work.

Of course, Song Yoo-joo is not the type to praise him for that.

“Do you think I’ll believe an intern’s words? I only believe what I see with my own eyes.”

“I saw it.”

“Are you sure?”

Song Yoo-joo asks, staring straight into Ryu Myung-in’s eyes.

Her eyes are always sharp.

But Ryu Myung-in is strange.

Suddenly his cheeks turn red.

……Is he *seolre* [fluttered or excited] because he made eye contact?

He really does all sorts of things.

“Why is your face red? Was it a lie?”

“It’s not that…….”

“I’ll go and check with my own eyes later.”

“……Yes!”

Ryu Myung-in barely answers with a reddened face.

Regardless, Song Yoo-joo had already shifted her gaze to the monitor and was checking the next patient.

“Next, patient Jung Si-won…….”

After checking the patients one by one in front of the computer, a full-fledged rounds begins.

Ryu Myung-in and I followed behind Teacher Song Yoo-joo and examined the patients.

And after a while.

We arrived in front of the patient in question.

The very patient that Ryu Myung-in had checked with his own eyes.

“Patient, did you sleep well?”

“Yeeh…….”

“Can you cough once?”

Song Yoo-joo says.

Then the patient points to Ryu Myung-in and complains.

“I already did it when that doctor told me to do it earlier, do I have to do it again? It’s not easy to cough once because it hurts.”

“Please do it one more time in front of me.”

“Cough―”

The patient coughed weakly, half-heartedly, with a dissatisfied expression.

Our eyes turned downwards all at once.

The chest bottle connected to the patient’s body.

If there is an air leak, air will definitely leak out through there.

“…….”

But, there is nothing particularly wrong.

Ryu Myung-in wore a triumphant expression as if to say, “See?”

But.

Teacher Song Yoo-joo’s check was not over yet.

“Patient. Instead of coughing like that, cough hard, even if it’s uncomfortable.”

“No, why do you keep telling me to cough? It hurts so much just to breathe…….”

“Don’t you want to be discharged?”

Song Yoo-joo asks.

It’s almost like coercion.

Eventually, the patient coughs, forced to do so against their will.

Cough!

The patient’s expression is contorted with pain.

And then.

Bubble―

Air bubbles that seemed like they were about to come out suddenly gushed out.

‘Air leak!’

I widened my eyes.

There was clearly no air leaking until just now…….

Ryu Myung-in is also surprised.

He has an expression as if he can’t believe his own eyes.

Song Yoo-joo stares at him silently and asks.

“There’s no air leak?”

“Clearly, there wasn’t any even when I coughed earlier…….”

Ryu Myung-in tries to make excuses but then closes his mouth.

Of course, he may feel wronged.

Clearly, he must have checked it well according to the manual.

But, as expected, Teacher Song Yoo-joo’s eyes, with her vast experience, were different from ours.

Is this the difference between knowledge learned at a desk and knowledge from the field?

Teacher Song Yoo-joo’s calm rebuke continues.

“If you remove the chest tube in this air leak state, what will happen?”

“……There is a risk of pneumothorax occurring.”

Ryu Myung-in answers in a lowered voice.

Air leak.

In other words, air is leaking from the lungs.

What if we had removed the chest tube and sealed it in this state?

Since air would continue to leak inside the body, air would accumulate inside the chest cavity.

That is, pneumothorax!

A situation would arise where we would have to make another hole in the body to remove the air.

Therefore, checking for air leaks before removing the chest tube is a very important procedure.

“Doctor, when can I remove this tube? It’s so uncomfortable. It hurts too…….”

The patient whined.

But Song Yoo-joo didn’t say much and simply answered.

“You can’t remove it today.”

“Yes?”

“The professor will come later and explain it again.”

“Heeing…….”

The patient makes a crying face.

Of course, Song Yoo-joo is not the type to comfort the patient.

As soon as she finished speaking, she coldly left the room.

As we came out of the ward, Ryu Myung-in said.

“……I’m sorry. I was lacking.”

“If you’ve been in TS (thoracic surgery) for a week, shouldn’t you be able to identify an air leak?”

“……Yes.”

It’s always a calm tone, but the impact is *chaljida* [impactful or hitting the nail on the head].

Ryu Myung-in, who was hit hard by Song Yoo-joo’s words, couldn’t say anything.

Watching it is a bit funny and a bit pitiful.

As I was thinking that and looking at his face…….

‘What. Why is this guy’s complexion so serious?’

I was a little surprised.

His face was pale.

He is pretending to be calm, but you can see that he is clenching his lips so hard that they are turning white.

Is his pride hurt?

It’s understandable.

Wasn’t he the one who never missed the top spot in college?

He probably has been getting good intern scores so far.

But this month’s opponent is Teacher Song Yoo-joo.

Unexpectedly, he is constantly being devalued, and it seems that he is not able to control his emotions well.

‘Is this guy a bit dangerous?’

Looking at his pale face, I couldn’t help but think that.

I had a feeling that he would cause an accident.

* * *

11 PM.

I finished putting in all the orders for my patients and went down to the dormitory.

How many times to check vitals the next day, what medicine to administer at what intervals…….

You have to decide in advance the day before and finish the prescription.

That way, the nurse in charge can proceed with the work without difficulty.

Click―

As I opened the door, familiar faces came into view.

“Oh? It’s Sun-han!”

“Sun-han, long time no see!”

What is this smell?

It’s the smell of chicken.

Two people are ordering and eating chicken in the intern dormitory lounge.

Judging from the sparsely empty crown of his head, that corner is probably Hyung Jung-won.

In front of him, judging from his broad back alone, is Geun-wook.

“It’s hard to see your face these days. What brings you down to the dormitory before 12 today?”

At Geun-wook’s words, I shrugged my shoulders and replied.

“I’m getting used to putting in orders now.”

Of course, it’s not a big boast.

In the first place, finishing the order before 12 AM is ‘normal’.

But interns who become the attending physician for the first time often barely finish the prescription by 1 AM.

In that sense, today was a monumental day for me.

I finished before 12 for the first time!

My body is tired, but I feel a sense of confidence that I am getting used to the work to some extent.

“Are you eating properly?”

“I’m so hungry because I couldn’t even eat dinner properly.”

“Want some *chimac* [chicken and beer]?”

Hyung Jung-won raises a can of beer and says playfully.

I chuckled.

*Chimac* during duty?

That’s ridiculous.

Even if those two are eating because they are off, I absolutely can’t.

Soon, Geun-wook next to him gives him a disapproving look.

“Aigo, hyungnim [older brother/senior]. Is Sun-han the kind of person who would secretly drink beer while on duty? You might as well offer a barbecue roasted whole to a monk.”

“I guess so. I was just joking. Keu keu.”

“Forget the beer, give me some chicken. I’m starving.”

I sat down next to him.

And I tore off the chicken that Hyung Jung-won handed me.

Keueu―

This is the taste of life.

A late-night snack during night duty!

How dry would life be without even this kind of taste?

Of course, it would be nice if I could drink beer too, but I poured cola into my mouth instead.

Gulp, gulp.

That alone felt like it was relieving enough stress.

“Sun-han. How’s TS? Is it manageable?”

“It’s still fun.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

“You’re the first person I’ve seen who says thoracic surgery is fun.”

Geun-wook looked at me as if I were strange.

It’s the same reaction as Yeon-seo saw during the day.

Then this time, Hyung Jung-won asks.

“Isn’t Teacher Song Yoo-joo tough? She’s a *sunbae* [senior colleague] who’s known for being *kkadaropda* [picky] with interns.”

“I think she’s someone I can learn a lot from in many ways. Actually, my *donggi* [colleague] is the biggest enemy, though.”

“Colleague?”

Hyung Jung-won tilted his head.

Then, he soon chuckled as if he knew what I meant.

“Aha…… you mean Ryu Myung-in! Well, that guy is a bit unique. He’s been a bit psycho since college.”

“Psycho?”

“Yeah.”

“How psycho is he?”

Geun-wook showed interest.

We are from other universities, so we don’t know much about the episodes of interns from Yeon-guk University.

“Come to think of it, there’s an interesting story about Ryu Myung-in. Have you ever heard of it?”

Hyung Jung-won took a stance and started revving up his mouth.

As expected, a *tumeochiteokeo* [too much talker].

A human bulletin board.

A loudspeaker with legs.

That is Oh Jung-won.

Everything that happens at Yeon-guk University Hospital goes into Hyung Jung-won’s ears and spreads out.

Soon his story bundle unfolds.

“Let’s see…… that was probably during the first year of medical school? It was during the cadaver dissection practice.”

Dissection?

We pricked up our ears.

Hyung Jung-won began the story in a spooky voice.