A Surgeon Who Uses Martial Arts [EN]: Chapter 417

Click. Click.

Jun-ho’s hands were busy.

The scroll wheel of the mouse in his hand whirred down and down.

It looked as if he were binge-reading a webtoon.

But that wasn’t the case.

What appeared on the laptop monitor was a medical paper. And not even a Korean paper, but one written in English.

It took him only 10 minutes to skim through the paper, focusing solely on the crucial parts.

The speed was truly dazzling.

As a martial artist, Jun-ho’s eyesight was exceptional.

His ability to perceive and react to objects with his eyes was outstanding.

Avoiding the weapons of villains or heretics wasn’t exactly the same as reading, but the skills weren’t entirely unrelated.

Fast reading ability.

Wide viewing angle.

With the addition of speed-reading techniques, Jun-ho’s rapid reading reached an astonishing level.

If he wanted to, he could finish a book in five minutes.

“Hoo~”

Jun-ho sighed after finishing the paper. He leaned back in his chair.

His eyes, looking up at the ceiling, were listless.

Treatment of brain death and vegetative state patients.

The goal he had longed for was still a long way off.

Hadn’t he trained in Meiyu [a fictional martial art] for a full seven years?

He had high expectations, but in the meantime, there had been no progress in medical technology for the treatment of brain death and vegetative states.

It hadn’t moved an inch.

The number of papers published, including both domestic and international, did not exceed 50.

The contents of the papers were also too ambiguous to be considered actual treatments.

Most of the papers were statistical analyses of data from brain-dead and vegetative state patients.

The patient miraculously regained consciousness.

But the exact reason is unknown.

It was written down because it was thought it might be helpful.

…There were quite a few papers like that.

‘Isn’t this a problem I can’t rely on anyone for?’

Jun-ho muttered to himself.

He had a sinking feeling that even after 10, 20, or even 100 years, a real treatment for brain death and vegetative state patients wouldn’t be found.

If so, what was the reason a treatment for brain death and vegetative state patients didn’t exist?

Was it not a limitation of modern medicine, but perhaps fate itself?

What can’t be done, can’t be done.

No matter how good the medical skills, you can’t revive someone who is already truly dead.

Jun-ho lowered his head and looked down at his left wrist.

The silver bracelet sparkled, reflecting the light.

After Sung-ho passed away.

Jun-ho had never removed the bracelet, not even once.

‘I promised, so I won’t give up.’

Jun-ho’s eyes were filled with renewed determination.

Giving up isn’t always a bad thing.

Rather, there are times when you absolutely have to give up.

However, Jun-ho couldn’t bring himself to give up on finding a treatment for brain death and vegetative state patients.

Although not an exact statistic, nearly 1,000 brain-dead patients occur in Korea each year.

In other words, finding a cure would mean saving 1,000 lives and giving hope to their families.

How could he easily give up on something so meaningful?

Slap.

Jun-ho lightly tapped his cheeks with both hands.

The related papers were mostly disappointing, but occasionally, treasure-like information could be gleaned.

Then, it would be beneficial to develop an innovative treatment method by applying internal energy and martial arts to that information.

Click. Click.

Jun-ho dove back into the world of medical papers.

* * *

Squeak!

Jun-ho came out of the company commander’s office and entered the treatment room. Only Private Jung-min, the pharmacy assistant, was in the treatment room.

“Where did the others go?”

“They went to the ward to administer IV fluids.”

Jun-ho nodded instead of answering. He opened the refrigerator, took out a bottle of water, and drank it.

Only then did he feel a little better.

“Company Commander. I have a question, may I ask you?”

“Of course.”

“Why did you choose to specialize in neurosurgery?”

“How did you know I majored in neurosurgery?”

Jun-ho asked back.

No matter how hard he searched his memory, he had no recollection of telling the medics his major.

“I searched for the Company Commander’s name earlier. I was surprised because you are a very amazing person.”

“Not that amazing. Are you the only one who knows this fact so far, Jung-min?”

“Yes, Company Commander.”

“Then keep it to yourself.”

“Shouldn’t the medics know so they can be proud?”

Jung-min tilted his head as if he didn’t understand.

“To truly know what kind of person I am, you have to experience it firsthand, not through information on some portal site.”

“…….”

“Authority is 100 percent unreliable.”

“Oh. That’s a cool saying.”

“You have a crush on me.”

Jun-ho chuckled and turned to the medicine cabinet.

The medicine cabinet was made of steel and consisted of a four-tier cabinet and four large drawers.

However, the supplies stocked were so meager that calling it a medicine cabinet felt like an exaggeration.

Four types of analgesic antipyretics [pain relievers and fever reducers].

Three types of anti-inflammatory drugs.

Only about one type each of muscle relaxants, digestive aids, and dermatological drugs were available.

There were only three types of ointments.

Other consumables were also insufficient.

Aside from the laziness of some medical officers, the environment of the medical unit was also lacking.

Even if you wanted to provide proper treatment, there were extremely insufficient medicines or supplies to do so.

Jun-ho remembered the necessary items, wrote them on a post-it note, and handed it to Jung-min.

“I need to get these?”

“That’s…….”

Jung-min’s eyes narrowed as he scanned the items.

“I’ll try, but there’s a high possibility that it won’t work.”

“Why?”

“Treatment supplies are provided by the division medical unit, but they don’t give them out easily. They say they don’t have enough to use themselves…….”

Is there really a shortage of supplies?

Or is something being siphoned off?

Perhaps because it was the military, the explanation didn’t sound very credible.

“Who is in charge?”

“The pharmacy assistant at the division medical unit.”

“Not a soldier, an officer.”

“Wouldn’t it be the head of the division medical unit?”

“Then I’ll have to meet that person. I’ll have to see his face during the next outpatient visit.”

Even if internal energy and martial arts had miraculous abilities in diagnosis, examination, and treatment.

You couldn’t handle patients with internal energy and martial arts alone.

For example, when a patient has a scratch on his finger, what he needs isn’t internal energy, but a bandage.

“By the way, aren’t the kids taking too long?”

Jun-ho muttered, looking towards the entrance.

“Are they having trouble putting in the IV? Are they even making the IV properly?”

“I’ll go check.”

“No. You stay here.”

Jun-ho gently pressed Jung-min’s shoulder. Then he left the treatment room and entered the ward.

The ward was noisy with a patient’s shouts.

“Tae-won, what’s wrong with you? What are we supposed to do if even you fail?”

The patient shouted nervously.

Seung-beom was hanging his head like a sinner.

Tae-won couldn’t say anything, his face flushed.

He could understand the situation.

The private failed to insert the IV, and even the corporal who took over couldn’t manage it.

“C… Company Commander?”

“Looks like something’s not working out?”

“The patient’s arm is thin and the blood vessels are not visible, so…….”

“Okay, step aside.”

Jun-ho motioned Tae-won out of his seat and sat down.

Perhaps because he had been poked by the private and the corporal in turn.

The patient was looking up at Jun-ho with distrust.

He just couldn’t voice his concerns because Jun-ho was an officer.

“You’ve been through a lot. Your arm must hurt.”

“Yes, Company Commander. My arm is tingling as if I’ve been stung by a bee.”

“It’s okay. I’m here.”

Jun-ho naturally moved his index finger like lightning.

팟! 팟! 팟! [Sound effect: “pat! pat! pat!”]

He applied pain-relieving pressure points around the patient’s swollen arm.

Of course, no one saw it. Jun-ho’s hand speed was too fast for ordinary people to follow.

“Huh? But suddenly my arm feels better. Why is that?”

“Isn’t it good if it doesn’t hurt?”

“Still, it’s so amazing.”

The patient moved his arm around and smiled.

Jun-ho also smiled.

But it was at that moment that Tae-won, who had been silent, spoke up.

“Company Commander. Can you give me one more chance?”

Tae-won asked cautiously.

In fact, Tae-won didn’t have much faith in Jun-ho’s IV insertion skills.

Of course, there was a reason for that.

As far as Tae-won knew, doctors don’t typically perform procedures as they gain experience.

Interns give injections and insert IVs, but when they become residents, they leave such chores to interns or nurses.

So, there was a high probability that Jun-ho’s skills were terribly rusty now.

‘I really have to prevent that.’

Tae-won trembled inwardly.

Even though the medical unit’s reputation was already at rock bottom, if even the company commander failed to insert an IV, there would be no lower place for the medical unit to sink.

“You’ll have a chance later.”

“What do you mean…….”

“You’ll know even if you don’t want to. Okay, all done.”

‘Huh?’

Tae-won was so surprised that he almost fell backward.

He was clearly making eye contact with the company commander and talking.

But what?

The company commander had already stuck the needle into the patient’s left arm.

So, he was talking while simultaneously inserting the IV.

He was making eye contact with Tae-won with his eyes.

But his hands were moving separately to insert the IV.

Is it possible to do three things at the same time?

Especially when In-ho’s arm was notoriously difficult for IV insertion?

Drip. Drip. Drip.

The IV fluid drops were falling steadily from the drip chamber.

The patient’s arm wasn’t swollen either. It was proof that the needle had entered the blood vessel properly, not the muscle.

“Wow! You’re the best, Company Commander! I knew you would do it in one try!”

In-ho was being overly enthusiastic and acting up.

“You still have a lot of energy even though you have a high fever.”

“My body is tired, but my mouth is fine.”

“You’ll be fine by this evening. Get some rest.”

“Unity!” [Military salute and shout]

“You guys clean up and follow me to the treatment room.”

Jun-ho returned to the treatment room first.

He sat on the sofa and stroked his chin with one hand.

Even considering that it was difficult to get a line on the patient’s blood vessels, the medics’ skills were below expectations.

It wasn’t ABGA (arterial blood gas analysis) [a test to measure the levels of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the blood], but they poked the patient’s arm nearly eight times to insert the IV.

It was fortunate that it was the military.

If it were a private hospital, the patient and their family would have been furious and filed a complaint.

IV therapy was one of the most essential treatments.

Have you ever seen a patient being treated in a hospital without an IV?

Probably not.

Even if there is, it will be around the time of discharge.

That meant that IV fluids were that important.

Because it was possible to administer drugs directly into the blood vessels for fast and effective treatment.

Also, IV therapy was the best treatment available at the medical unit.

Any treatment beyond that had to be received at the division medical unit or the Armed Forces Capital Hospital.

But the medics can’t properly insert an IV?

This was a nonsensical situation, like a surgeon who can’t perform surgery.

It’s going to be difficult if it stays like this.

I’m not going to be stuck in the medical unit all day.

I have to turn the medics into blood vessel experts as soon as possible.

Just as Jun-ho’s determination solidified.

Seung-beom and Tae-won, who had finished cleaning up in the ward, returned to the treatment room.

They looked dejected because of the earlier incident. Neither of them dared to make eye contact with Jun-ho.

They just stood in their places, fidgeting.

“As you guys felt firsthand, we can’t have something like today happen again, right?”

“Yes.”

“Yes, Company Commander.”

“In that sense, it’s special training starting today. You probably haven’t had the chance to deal with patients with hard-to-see blood vessels, so you haven’t gotten the hang of it.”

“Yes. That’s right.”

Tae-won nodded vigorously.

“Then I’ll be the teaching material.”

Jun-ho held out his arm to the medics.

Originally, Jun-ho’s arm had well-developed muscles and thick, easily accessible blood vessels.

It was an arm that nurses were usually enthusiastic about.

But now, the blood vessels in Jun-ho’s arm had completely disappeared, as if they were playing hide-and-seek.

He had constricted the blood vessels by increasing the speed of internal energy circulation.

“Who wants to go first?”