A Surgeon Who Uses Martial Arts [EN]: Chapter 130

Surgeon Who Uses Martial Arts – Episode 130

Chapter 23: Conman (5)

“Wow, Doctor. You’re as strong as Hercules! I didn’t think you could move this patient all at once, especially alone.”

Surprised, Kyung-mi blinked.

At first, she thought Jun-hoo was just showing off his strength, but she was wrong.

Jun-hoo was literally strong.

His build was slender, but he seemed to have solid muscles under his gown.

“…….”

“…….”

Turning her head to the station, the situation was the same there.

Everyone had a dumbfounded expression.

“It’s not difficult if you have the knack and strength…….”

“Can I move this patient alone if I just learn the knack?”

“No. You can’t because you don’t have the strength. If you follow me, your back will break. Nurse Kyung-mi, get help from others.”

“Well… I guess I have to. Anyway, thank you, Doctor.”

Kyung-mi gave a quick wink and returned to the station.

From then on, Jun-hoo started his work.

It was the ICU [Intensive Care Unit] rounding.

Usually, interns rounded the general ward, and first-year residents rounded the ICU.

Jun-hoo carefully examined the unconscious patients.

Disinfection of the Foley (urinary catheter) and checking for infection.

Monitoring ICP (intracranial pressure).

Managing central venous catheters connected to various IV fluids.

Disinfecting and managing the intubation site, and so on.

The patients in the ICU were on the edge of a cliff called death.

If the nursing and monitoring were off even a little bit.

The condition deteriorated rapidly, as if falling.

So, even the slightest symptom or sign could not be missed.

While examining the critically ill patients.

The smile disappeared from Jun-hoo’s face.

His eyes were serious and sharp.

Sight, hearing, touch, taste, smell, sixth sense.

All the senses he could use became as sensitive as possible.

Jun-hoo, who had been examining the patients one by one, finally stood in front of the last patient.

The patient’s name was Min Tae-woong.

He was 40 years old.

He came to the emergency room with an acute cerebral hemorrhage, but his arrival was too late.

The staff saved his life with emergency surgery, but the patient had been unconscious for two months.

In other words, he was in a vegetative state.

Jun-hoo looked down at the patient with pitiful eyes.

A vegetative state meant that only the function of the cerebrum was stopped.

He could voluntarily maintain breathing, pulse, and blood pressure.

Unlike brain death, there were cases where they regained consciousness, but…….

Such cases were extremely rare.

It was close to a miracle.

‘What kind of dream are you dreaming?

Is it a good dream?

Is it a bad dream?’

Jun-hoo muttered inwardly, staring at the waves on the EEG [electroencephalogram] monitor connected to the patient’s head.

The brain waves of the vegetative patient that Jun-hoo was staring at were not much different from those of a normal person.

So, some doctors made this claim.

Vegetative patients may also be conscious.

But Jun-hoo still couldn’t know what was true.

He also didn’t know how a vegetative patient could recover.

Recovery of vegetative patients.

Recovery of brain-dead patients.

These two were unsolved problems for all neurosurgeons in the world.

And it was too much of a task for Jun-hoo, who had just become a first-year resident.

‘Even if it’s not now.

Even if I can’t do it now.

Someday, I will conquer the vegetative state and the brain-dead state.’

Jun-hoo sublimated the pain, as if cut by a knife, into a positive emotion. The word ‘give up’ was not in Jun-hoo’s dictionary, at least.

* * *

Putting aside human emotions for a while.

Jun-hoo coldly examined the condition of the vegetative patient.

The vital signs (body temperature, blood pressure, pulse, respiration) were generally normal.

Only the body temperature was a problem.

He had a fever of 38 degrees Celsius [100.4 degrees Fahrenheit].

The intracranial pressure was normal, and the oxygen saturation was 97 percent, which was within the normal range.

Then Jun-hoo’s gaze stayed on the tube inserted into the patient’s neck.

It was inserted to drain phlegm.

Jun-hoo connected a tube to the tube.

Ssssh!

With the sound of air bursting, sticky and thick phlegm came out.

Then Jun-hoo loosened the patient’s top.

He put the stethoscope he was wearing around his neck on the patient’s chest.

The breathing sounds were clear.

Nevertheless, Jun-hoo amplified his hearing with internal energy and auscultated the breathing sounds again.

Bubbling.

A faint sound like air bubbles was heard.

It was a sound called adventitious sound or crackle.

“Doctor, your examination is too slow. A turtle would want to be your friend.”

As he put the stethoscope back around his neck.

A sarcastic voice was heard from behind.

Turning around, Kyung-sook was standing there.

Seo Kyung-sook.

She was the head nurse who started working in the ICU a week ago.

She was in her late 40s.

“It’s not slow, it’s thorough. Can you treat ICU patients the same as general patients?”

“Our nurses take care of them and notify them periodically. Doctor Kyung-soo also came to check on them a little while ago.”

“…….”

“If you want to rest, just rest in the lounge. There’s no need to pretend to be looking after the patient.”

Jun-hoo frowned at Kyung-sook’s words.

At this point, it could only be seen as picking a fight.

Or maybe she intended to tame Jun-hoo, who was a first-year resident.

In terms of hospital work experience alone, Jun-hoo could not keep up with Kyung-sook.

“Even if you’re the head nurse, you should watch your words.”

“Hey. Can’t I say this much with my experience?”

Kyung-sook continued, sneering.

“This patient is fine. And he’s in a vegetative state anyway? You just need to change his position appropriately.”

“Are you optimistic, or do you just not want to take care of the patient?”

“What? Doctor, what did you just say?”

Kyung-sook glared at Jun-hoo’s words.

Kyung-mi, who was at the station, ran over at once when she saw that the two were not in good shape.

“Why are you both doing this? You can’t fight in the ICU.”

Kyung-mi began to mediate the two.

But the fire that had been lit did not go out.

“Isn’t the ICU a place where you have to be nervous and tense because you don’t know when the patient’s condition will worsen? But Doctor Seo’s attitude is too relaxed.”

Jun-hoo hit Kyung-sook back.

“Then what, how much, and how should we do more for a vegetative patient?”

Kyung-sook continued with a reddened face.

“We’re doing as much as we can.”

“You’re doing as much as you can, but you’re not notifying me even if there are suspected symptoms of pneumonia?”

“Oh, my. You’re making up illnesses because you think you’re going to lose the argument. Doctor Jun-hoo, I didn’t see you that way.”

“No. Doctor Seo, you just didn’t see the existing illness.”

“What’s the evidence that the patient has pneumonia?”

“The patient has a fever of 38 degrees and has thick phlegm.”

“If you’ve been hospitalized for a long time, you may have those symptoms.”

“I heard crackles with the stethoscope too?”

Jun-hoo answered without backing down.

He thought it was a good thing.

He wanted to tame Kyung-sook on this occasion.

“Doctor Kyung-soo also auscultated. Doctor Kyung-soo said he didn’t hear anything.”

“Kyung-soo is Kyung-soo, and I’m me. The patient’s symptoms may have worsened during the two-hour gap.”

“…….”

“I’ll order a CBC [complete blood count], sputum test, and chest X-ray to see who’s right. Then you have no complaints, right?”

“Okay. But I don’t know even if Doctor Jun-hoo is disgraced?”

“I’m disgraced? Not you?”

Jun-hoo laughed at Kyung-sook.

Only Kyung-sook didn’t know the predetermined fate.

* * *

ICU station.

Jun-hoo was sitting at his desk, looking at the nursing record of the vegetative patient.

The patient had been maintaining a temperature of 38 degrees since morning.

The only prescription he received was a single antipyretic prescription [medication to reduce fever].

He had diarrhea once at lunch.

Fever. Thick phlegm. Crackles. Diarrhea.

All the patient’s symptoms pointed to pneumonia.

If he had paid a little more attention to the patient.

If he had looked at the patient a little more carefully, he could have noticed it.

His colleague Kyung-soo too.

So did the head nurse, Kyung-sook.

They both seemed to be careless because the patient was in a vegetative state…….

That was a delusion and miscalculation.

Vegetative patients needed more careful observation.

“Doctor. Come this way. The test results are out.”

Jun-hoo called Kyung-sook to his seat.

Kyung-sook ran over as if she had been waiting.

Other nurses also peeked around or cast glances, wondering about the results.

“In terms of working period, I’ve been in the ICU longer than you, Doctor? Don’t ignore me just because I’m a nurse.”

“I’ve never ignored nurses. Rather, Doctor Seo ignored me.”

“Okay. Let’s see the test results quickly.”

At Kyung-sook’s urging, Jun-hoo brought up the test results.

First, he checked the chest X-ray image.

The image looked normal.

“What? It’s fine.”

“Does this look fine? I don’t think Doctor Seo’s eyes are fine?”

Jun-hoo zoomed in on the patient’s left lung.

To be more precise, he checked the area near the 10th rib.

As the image zoomed in.

There was a cloud-like white shadow spreading in the area.

Alveolar opacity.

It was clear evidence of pneumonia.

The results were the same in the blood test and sputum test.

The vegetative patient had early pneumonia.

Jun-hoo’s meticulous examination.

In particular, the auscultation sound obtained by amplifying the hearing had done a great job.

Originally, early pneumonia was difficult to distinguish because its symptoms were similar to those of a cold.

“This… this can’t be?”

Kyung-sook’s voice trembled.

Despite making a bold statement.

She was greatly shocked when she was pushed back by Jun-hoo’s diagnosis.

“Are you going to insist even after seeing it with your own eyes? You said the patient was fine?”

“…….”

“Say something?”

Kyung-sook couldn’t answer because of the sins she had committed.

She never thought she would be disgraced like this in front of juniors who were far behind her in experience.

She wanted to hide if there was a rat hole.

Kyung-sook’s face was gradually dyed with the red light of humiliation.

Kyung-sook never wanted this picture.

The picture Kyung-sook wanted was taming a first-year resident in front of her juniors.

“That’s… early pneumonia is difficult to detect. That’s why.”

Kyung-sook barely opened her mouth.

“Then you should have notified me that you suspected a cold in the first place. Or at least you shouldn’t have said that the patient was fine?”

“…….”

“What will the other doctors learn if the head nurse is like this?”

Jun-hoo’s words hurt Kyung-sook’s pride.

But Kyung-sook couldn’t answer or refute because everything he said was right.

“Doctor Seo, please take care of the patient properly from now on. Do you understand?”

“…….”

“I’ll call a pulmonologist consultant and treat the pneumonia, so please be aware of that. Check the vitals every hour.”

Jun-hoo sternly scolded Kyung-sook and got up from his seat.

Just in time, the vegetative patient who had finished the chest X-ray was entering the ICU.

Jun-hoo approached the patient.

He looked down at the patient and gently held the patient’s hand.

Suddenly, Sung-ho’s image overlapped with the patient.

The guardians are eagerly waiting for the patient’s return.

If you’re sleeping, wake up.

Return to your precious family.

Jun-hoo conveyed his unreachable sincerity to the patient.

If the patient had not given up on himself.

If the guardian had not given up on the patient.

Jun-hoo had no intention of giving up on the patient either.

No, even if the patient gave up on himself.

Even if the guardian gave up on the patient.

Jun-hoo had no intention of giving up on the patient.

Because the patient’s only place to turn was the doctor.

Bzzzz.

The pager rang just in time.

When he answered the phone, he heard the voice of Min-kyung, a second-year resident.

-Jun-hoo, where are you?

“I’m in the ICU. I’m about to return after finishing the rounding.”

-Then come straight to the operating room. I’ll explain later.

It was an unexpected call to the operating room.

Did something go wrong?