Chapter 94: Turf War (1)
‘Is it still too early?’
Jun-hoo, entering the corridor lined with neurosurgery outpatient clinics, shook his head.
The waiting areas for other professors’ patients were bustling.
Some patients and their guardians were hovering near the clinics because there weren’t enough seats.
But in front of Jun-hoo’s clinic?
A cold wind was blowing.
A few elderly patients who looked uncomfortable were sitting with their backs hunched.
However, even they couldn’t be definitively identified as Jun-hoo’s patients.
It was possible they were patients of other professors, simply sitting in front of Jun-hoo’s waiting room.
Hmm….
Maybe it’s my face.
Jun-hoo frowned and pondered seriously.
Why does a doctor care about appearance?
Skill is all that matters.
…Many people would ask that.
But that’s not the whole story!
Appearance was also important to doctors!
Especially, a trustworthy appearance was important.
In Jun-hoo’s case, he looked too young and handsome. And looking young acted as a disadvantage in the world of doctors.
Looking young makes him seem inexperienced.
Seeming inexperienced makes him seem unskilled.
Experience = Skill.
This prejudice was hard to break.
“Director, are you going to have a leisurely day of seeing patients today?”
A familiar voice came from somewhere.
Turning his head, he saw Associate Professor Kim Han-sang and Choi Jin-gu approaching.
Where did they conspire to ambush me?
His ear had been itching since earlier [a Korean expression meaning someone is talking about you].
“Are you teasing me?”
Jun-hoo directly confronted Kim Han-sang without backing down.
“Oh, what are you saying? How dare I tease the director?”
“……”
“The first flash is a dog flash [a Korean idiom meaning initial results are poor]… Won’t the number of patients gradually increase in the future? I was just saying not to be disappointed.”
Kim Han-sang skillfully avoided the attack like a loach.
Indeed, it was the eloquence of the second-in-command.
However, Kim Han-sang was likely a completely different person on the inside.
In Kim Han-sang’s position, Jun-hoo was….
A mortal enemy.
He must be grinding his teeth, thinking that Jun-hoo stole his director position.
“Since you said it with good intentions, I will take it that way.”
“Oh, of course. Have a good day.”
“And Professor Choi, let’s meet briefly during lunch.”
“……”
Choi Jin-gu, who had an appointment with Jun-hoo, looked like he had eaten dog poop [meaning he looked extremely unhappy].
The two entered the outpatient clinic first.
Jun-hoo also headed to his outpatient clinic.
The outpatient nurse, who had just arrived at work, was working on the computer at the station.
“Nice to meet you, Hye-jin.”
“Hello, Director. You are even more handsome in person.”
Hye-jin smiled brightly at Jun-hoo.
Her voice was full of cheerfulness.
It seemed like he had met the right partner.
It was good for the outpatient nurse, who was in charge of guiding and registering patients, to have a bright personality.
“Do you know how many patients are scheduled for today?”
“Just a moment. I just turned on the computer.”
Three minutes, which felt like 30 minutes, passed.
Hye-jin’s eyes widened as she looked at the monitor.
“Director. Wow. I didn’t expect it to be this much….”
“It’s okay. I won’t be disappointed, so tell me honestly.”
“Disappointed? Why would you be disappointed when there are so many patients?”
“Wasn’t it… that there were no patients?”
“What? The schedule for the next month is already full!”
Unable to believe Hye-jin’s words, Jun-hoo approached Hye-jin.
It was true!
Today’s appointments, tomorrow’s appointments, and the day after tomorrow’s appointments were all full.
What on earth was going on?
Jun-hoo turned his head and looked at the waiting area again.
The waiting area still had plenty of empty seats.
The contradiction between the monitor and reality.
How do I interpret this unbridgeable gap?
* * *
Jun-hoo was busily moving around the outpatient clinic.
-These books are my well-worn books from when I was a resident. If you are interested in neurosurgery, be sure to read them.
-This is a picture I bought online. You know Millet’s *The Gleaners*, right? I hung it up because I always want to be determined to bow to the patients [a reference to showing respect and dedication to his patients, like the gleaners bowing to collect leftover crops].
Jun-hoo muttered to himself and took pictures of every corner of the clinic with his cell phone camera.
The filming ended in 7 minutes.
It was a video to be uploaded to NewTube [a fictional analogue to YouTube].
After completing the small task, Jun-hoo sat at his desk.
He still felt like he was walking on clouds.
His body felt like it was floating.
To think that the clinic, where not even an ant would come, was crowded with people….
Later, he found out.
The truth of the matter was as follows.
30 minutes ago.
The waiting area and corridor of the neurosurgery outpatient clinic were overflowing like dumplings bursting out of their skins [an idiom for being extremely crowded].
Because of what?
Because of the outpatients and guardians who came to see Jun-hoo!
It was so crowded that.
The guards were dispatched and only the patients who had booked Jun-hoo’s appointment were separated to the west of the lobby.
Then….
What was the reason why patients rushed in like a storm?
It wouldn’t be thanks to the banner.
It was probably thanks to the fame he was gaining on NewTube and SNS [Social Networking Services].
At least there’s no need to be discouraged because there are no patients.
Jun-hoo felt a sense of satisfaction as he recalled Kim Han-sang, who had mocked him earlier.
15 minutes before the start of the consultation.
Jun-hoo organized the outpatient schedule in his head.
The consultation days were Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
Among them, Wednesday was morning consultation and afternoon surgery.
Tuesday and Wednesday were entirely scheduled for surgery from morning to afternoon.
The consultation subjects were largely five categories.
Cerebrovascular part.
Brain tumor part.
Stereotactic neurosurgery part.
Cervical and lumbar spine part.
Pediatric neurosurgery part.
Usually, other professors only treat one major subject after completing their fellowship, but Jun-hoo digested as many as five.
It was the dignity of a top graduate of the Mayo Clinic’s Boost-Up program.
In fact, he could have majored in hand surgery and trauma surgery, but he didn’t go that far.
He decided to stand in as a substitute when emergency patients occurred in the two majors.
Knock, knock, knock.
He told them to come in when he heard the knock.
Woo-hyun came into the clinic.
“I am the outpatient resident who will assist the director today.”
“Okay. Please take good care of me.”
“I should be the one saying that.”
Woo-hyun smiled awkwardly and sat in a seat a little away from Jun-hoo.
The outpatient resident participated in the outpatient consultation and was responsible for writing down the patient’s symptoms and entering test orders.
Soon, the first patient entered the clinic.
It was a man who looked to be in his mid-50s.
The guardian appeared to be his wife.
The man said as soon as he sat down in the chair.
“Doctor. I have a time bomb in my head.”
The first patient was not easy.
* * *
‘Is he crazy?’
Woo-hyun looked at the patient who mentioned the bomb with narrow eyes.
But fortunately, the patient was not an oddball.
He was using a metaphor.
The patient, who had a health checkup a week ago, was diagnosed with a brain aneurysm through a Brain MRI [Magnetic Resonance Imaging].
A brain aneurysm is….
A disease in which the cerebral blood vessels swell or become twisted, and if left untreated, there is a high risk of blood vessel rupture.
“Do you have any uncomfortable symptoms?”
“No. I don’t have any. I don’t have headaches or dizziness. But I’m anxious because I don’t know when the blood vessels will burst.”
The patient said in an anxious voice.
“I’ll be direct. The prognosis for brain aneurysms is not good.”
“……”
“It’s best to take action with surgery as soon as possible.”
Jun-hoo, who was examining the MRI, bit his lip slightly.
Not all brain aneurysms are the same.
There were various classifications depending on the size and type.
In this patient’s case, it was a brain aneurysm with only malignant ones selected.
The shape of the brain aneurysm was fusiform, which is the most frequent cause of blood vessel rupture.
The size of the brain aneurysm was a whopping 27mm.
It was a giant brain aneurysm.
In this case, the golden time given to the surgeon in the event of a blood vessel rupture will be much shorter.
“What did the hospital where you had your health checkup say?”
“I decided to be hospitalized next week. They said it’s not a normal brain aneurysm, so they have to find out the surgical method themselves… I didn’t trust them, so I came to see you, doctor.”
The patient continued urgently.
“You can fix it, right?”
“Yes. It is possible. That doesn’t mean other hospitals are incompetent. It’s just that I have experience in operating on similar cases, so I have the know-how.”
“……”
“Don’t resent that hospital too much.”
Jun-hoo also took care of the other hospital. Putting others down to raise himself up was something only third-rate thugs did.
“Oh, of course. If the surgery goes well, I will repay you in some small way.”
“The best way to repay me is for the patient to regain his health. Then go outside and discuss the hospitalization date with the outpatient nurse.”
“Yes. Thank you.”
The patient and guardian left the clinic with relieved expressions.
Typing, typing, typing.
Woo-hyun, who was busy entering the order, asked Jun-hoo.
“Director. Is it really okay to operate on this patient?”
“What are you talking about? Of course, he’ll get better if he has surgery.”
“The case is a bit unusual.”
Woo-hyun clicked his tongue while looking at the patient’s MRI image on the left monitor.
There are two main surgical methods for brain aneurysms.
One is clip ligation.
A surgery to tie the brain aneurysm with a clip.
The other is coil embolization.
A surgery to fill the brain aneurysm with wire to prevent rupture.
But in this patient’s case.
Both surgeries seemed impossible.
The shape of the brain aneurysm was a difficult fusiform, and even the size was 27mm, which was huge.
No wonder even the hospital where the patient went first postponed the hospitalization, saying they had to find a surgical method.
But what?
Jun-hoo’s judgment was as quick as lightning.
He recommended surgery to the patient without hesitation for even a second.
Woo-hyun was curious about the basis for that.
“You can do hybrid surgery on this patient.”
“Are you going to do both clip ligation and coil embolization?”
“No. I’m going to add another surgical method to clip ligation.”
“What is it?”
“Guess.”
Jun-hoo deliberately delayed the answer and made Woo-hyun curious.
You have to study if you’re curious.
And studying will make it stay in your head for a long time.
After the first consultation, patients rushed in like a tide.
Jun-hoo calmly received the patients.
‘That’s strange. How can this be?’
Woo-hyun, who was helping Jun-hoo with chart input, tilted his head.
Woo-hyun had been an outpatient resident and had observed the treatment styles of many professors.
But Jun-hoo’s treatment style was completely different from other professors.
He hardly spoke.
He mainly listened to the stories of patients and guardians.
He only asked a necessary question or two from time to time.
But all the patients got up from their seats with satisfied faces.
If you listen to the stories of patients and guardians all the time, it seems like there won’t be enough consultation time….
But that wasn’t always the case.
Rather, Jun-hoo’s consultation time was shorter than other professors.
Not only that.
Jun-hoo sometimes helped with chart input when Woo-hyun was busy.
But his keyboard typing speed was crazy.
Symptom input and test orders appeared on the electronic medical record as if they were copied and pasted.
Even the world’s best stenographer would have to bow and ask for lessons in front of Jun-hoo.
Time flew by in the blink of an eye.
It was soon lunchtime.
“I’m sorry, but you’ll have to eat lunch alone today. I have an appointment with Professor Choi.”
“Yes. Director.”
“Buy something delicious with the outpatient doctor. The most expensive one possible.”
Jun-hoo smiled brightly.
He handed over his credit card and left the clinic.
Woo-hyun followed Jun-hoo’s back and looked down at the card in his hand.
He blinked his eyes.
This card was the Purple Card, which only the top 0.1 percent of Korea used.
He’s handsome.
He’s skilled.
He has a lot of money.
And he’s not lacking in personality.
Jun-hoo was so cool that even a man would fall for him.