Dr. Shin Seonhan: The Doctor Who Sees The Future [EN]: Chapter 130

#130 Another Level (2)

The force patting my back felt unusual; I knew who it was without looking.

“Mr. Ma Dongseop!”

“Hey there?”

He seemed even bigger than the last time I saw him.

And right next to him was Ms. Song Yoozoo.

The thoracic surgery duo.

The size difference between the two was unbalanced, no matter how you looked at it.

Like a wild bear and a wild cat?

If I had to find a commonality, it would be that they both had a wild feel, befitting thoracic surgeons.

“Hello!”

“Where are you headed?” Mr. Ma Dongseop asked without stopping.

“I’m on my way to take over from OBGY [Obstetrics and Gynecology] next month. Are you heading to the main building?”

“Yeah. We have a conference in the main building.”

Taptaptap.

Their pace was as fast as race walking.

It seemed to be a habit unique to thoracic surgery people.

I had to speed up to match their pace.

‘They’re both really fast.’

People often say that you can tell interns and residents apart just by their gait.

If you see a doctor walking around the hospital lobby in March looking clueless? They’re 100% an intern.

Also, a way to distinguish doctors’ seniority in the hospital is by the state of their gowns.

Interns’ gowns are crisp and clean.

But by the third year of residency, the white gown becomes a worn-out rag.

Of course, I might look cleaner on the outside, but they look cooler to me.

It’s like a painter looks cooler with paint on their apron?

Of course, that might just be my own opinion.

“Hey, Song Yoozoo. Say hello to the intern. Aren’t you happy to see him?”

“Yeah. Hi.”

Song Yoozoo nodded lightly in my direction.

Then Mr. Ma Dongseop chuckled and asked mischievously, “Yoozoo, do you even remember his name?”

I was curious about that too.

Would she remember my name?

Song Yoozoo pondered, slowly opening her mouth as if buffering.

“…Shinseon.”

“Oh, you got two syllables right.”

Clap clap clap.

Ma Dongseop applauded as if it were a great achievement.

It seemed it was still not enough to make her remember my full name.

I said proudly in front of them, “I went on a dispatch and touched a heart.”

“What?”

Both of their eyes widened.

Ma Dongseop was one thing, but it was the first time I saw Song Yoozoo, who always had a blank expression, widen her eyes.

“What intern touches a heart? Did the hospitals interns are dispatched to change these days? There shouldn’t even be thoracic surgery at the dispatch location, right?”

“Well…”

I roughly explained what happened there.

A stabbing.

A stab injury to the chest.

An emergency thoracotomy [surgical incision into the chest wall].

Open cardiac massage done with my own hands.

And even helping Mr. Poong suture the lung with my own hands.

Only then did Song Yoozoo nod as if she understood.

“You met Mr. Poong.”

“Do you know him?”

“Of course. He used to be in the Department of Thoracic Surgery at Yeonguk University Hospital, right? I heard he’s in Gokdam now.”

Wow.

The world of thoracic surgeons is really small.

Well, people like Mr. Jang Poong wouldn’t be common in the Yeonguk University Thoracic Surgery family tree.

Or maybe they saw him at the thoracic surgery fall conference, which is said to be held once a year in a big way?

Mr. Poong didn’t seem like the type to go to conferences regularly.

While I was thinking about this and that, Mr. Ma Dongseop exclaimed.

“Wow. By the way, an emergency thoracotomy? And an open massage on top of that? You’ve had quite the experience for an intern. You must have leveled up a bit?”

Leveled up?

He’s using game terms again.

Mr. Ma Dongseop once talked about the stages of thoracic surgery as stages 1, 2, and 3.

But I had an experience that jumped over all those stages, so you could say I leveled up.

“So, what’s it like touching a beating heart? Did you distinguish between the atria and ventricles?”

“Honestly, I was so out of it that I don’t remember well.”

“Haha. Still, that’s amazing. Assisting for the first time and saving a heart with an open cardiac massage, and even sewing up a lung? You’re totally cut out for the operating room! You should come to thoracic surgery~!”

I smiled awkwardly at Mr. Ma Dongseop’s praise.

Of course, I’m still a greenhorn.

Surgical experience isn’t gained with just one or two assistances.

As if to remind me of that fact, Ms. Song Yoozoo asked,

“Have you rotated through any surgical departments?”

“I’ve only rotated through neurosurgery besides thoracic surgery.”

“You’ve probably only done car-in & car-out [transporting patients], right? You still have a long way to go to gain proper experience.”

Song Yoozoo said coldly.

That seemed to be the meaning behind it.

Then Mr. Ma Dongseop quickly interjected.

“Hey, Song Yoozoo. You should be gently coaxing the intern at times like this. Why are you already discouraging him?”

“Coax him for what?”

“Be nice to the interns. What if we don’t have a single thoracic surgery applicant next year?”

“What else? We all die from overwork.”

“Hey, now.”

The two bickered like that.

Ding—

At that moment, the elevator arrived at its destination.

As I showed signs of getting off, Mr. Ma Dongseop asked.

“Are you getting off here? Oh, right, you said you were going to take over from OBGY.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Good luck.”

“Yes! I’ll see you again.”

I bowed to the two and got off on the 8th floor.

As Ms. Song Yoozoo said, I still need more operating room experience.

In that regard, this month’s schedule is perfect for me.

.

Another major department.

And a department where you can get a lot of operating room experience.

It will be a challenge for me in a completely new environment, but…

‘I can do anything!’

Was it because of my experience in Gokdam?

I was filled with confidence that I could handle any intern job.

* * *

Taptap.

I headed towards the station with a light step.

Near the entrance, a fellow intern was waiting for me.

I approached her happily.

“Noona [term used to address an older sister or female friend by a male].”

“Oh my, Seonhan!”

“How have you been? Your skin looks great since I last saw you.”

“Ohhohoho. You. I’ve become a complete mess, what are you talking about? Thanks for the empty compliment!”

Thwack, thwack.

Ms. Miseon laughed and hit my shoulder.

Her laughter was so unique that she was called Miseon Ajumma [term used to address a married woman] among the intern colleagues.

She also had a cheerful personality that didn’t mind being called that at all.

“I’m even in the same group as our Seonhan while being an intern. Please take care of me! Hohoho.”

“Yes, please take care of me too.”

For the next month.

Ms. Miseon is a colleague who will work with me as a pair.

At 32 years old, she is somewhat older among the interns, and she is even married with a child.

She did her clinical practice while being pregnant two years ago, and she gave birth during the vacation.

Fortunately, the child is a very healthy baby, and I heard that they had the first birthday party last year.

“Ms. Miseon, isn’t it hard to juggle childcare and intern life?”

“My bones ache. It’s no joke~! But I have to work hard to earn money for baby formula. Ohhohoho.”

Ms. Miseon said that and suddenly took out her smartphone.

“Seonhan. Shall I show you pictures of my baby?”

“You showed me about 200 pictures last time.”

“Was that so? Ohhohoho, aren’t I being a bit much? Anyway, I guess all mothers are the same!”

Thwack thwack!

She hits my shoulder again while laughing.

Then, this time, she stares intently at the back of my head and asks.

“Seonhan. Come to think of it, you…”

“…?”

“The back of your head is so pretty! Did your parents roll it well when you were young?”

“Um… I don’t know?”

I wondered what kind of question it was since she asked with such a serious expression.

“I’m so worried these days. My baby’s head is as flat as an iron plate! Maybe your parents have a tip for making a baby’s head pretty?”

“I’ll ask my father later.”

“Okay, sigh… I wish my baby would grow up to be as handsome as you, Seonhan.”

Ms. Miseon sighed deeply, and I said with a smile.

“Don’t worry too much. If the baby resembles you, she will grow up to be pretty.”

“Oh my, oh my. Why do you say such pretty things, making a married woman flutter? Ohhohoho!”

Thwack thwack!

My shoulder won’t be left intact.

It feels like it will be dislocated by the end of the day.

We chatted about this and that and headed to the station together.

“Hey, Mr. Joongwon!”

“Ms. Miseon, welcome!”

Soon, the two interns greet each other happily.

The 32-year-old duo.

It seems that they have a good rapport because they are both older interns.

“Oh, Seonhan, it’s been a while?”

“It’s been a while, Mr. Joongwon.”

“Wow. Your face is a bit tan? Looks like you had some fun at Gokdam Beach?”

Mr. Joongwon, whom I hadn’t seen in a while, greeted me happily.

Mr. Joongwon was an OBGY intern last August.

Soon, we sat down at the OBGY station to receive the handover.

“Seonhan, didn’t you have anything fun happen in Gokdam? Tell us some stories.”

Fun things?

There were many.

I drove a taxi, pretended to be a shaman, stopped a stabbing in the market, and touched a heart with my own hands…

If I were to tell everything, there would be no end, so I replied briefly.

“I’ll tell you over drinks later.”

“Haha, okay.”

“Did anything happen to you, hyung [term used to address an older brother or male friend by a male]?”

“Hey, I was great! OBGY is the best! Our resident doctors treated me so well for a month. Wahaha!”

Mr. Joongwon said loudly as if for others to hear, then leaned close to me and whispered in a small voice.

“Save me. I almost died.”

“Why? What’s going on that you’re talking so quietly?”

“I’m comfortable talking to the male doctors, but I sometimes don’t get along well with the female doctors because of my personality.”

“Is that so?”

OBGY is a typical female-dominated department.

Of course, there are many male professors.

However, if you only consider the recent residents, the ratio of female doctors is almost 90 percent.

So, I heard that sometimes male interns have trouble adapting.

“Oh my, oh my, I heard that most of the OBGY resident doctors are nice, wasn’t that true? What should I do…”

Ms. Miseon asks with a lowered voice as if she is anxious.

She is speaking almost only with her mouth, in case others hear.

Then Mr. Joongwon looks around and whispers even lower.

“It’s not that, actually, all the other doctors are fine. But there’s one person who is particularly difficult.”

“…?”

“I must have said something wrong at the beginning and got on her bad side. She’s been tormenting me with a mean streak all month… I feel like I know what it’s like to be a squid drying on a drying rack by the sea?”

Mr. Joongwon says with hollow cheeks.

It seems that he had to be very careful while working for a month.

“Intern.”

Toc, toc—

At that moment, the sound of footsteps came from somewhere.

Mr. Joongwon flinched, and I looked at the newly appeared doctor.

‘Is that the resident who is said to be difficult?’