A Surgeon Who Uses Martial Arts [EN]: Chapter 491

Martial Surgeon – Episode 491

Chapter 96: A Chance in a Million (2)

Nurse Kang Yu-jung couldn’t hide her astonishment.

Ever since boarding the helicopter,

Joon-hoo’s performance had been brilliant.

He seemed to have extensive experience in trauma care and treatment in helicopters.

He never showed even a hint of being overwhelmed.

His triage and orders were lightning fast.

“Professor Yoon, please start with abdominal and chest ultrasounds. Let’s assess the extent of the patient’s internal injuries first.”

“…….”

“Ms. Kang, please assist me. We’ll start by establishing a central venous line [a catheter placed into a large vein]. Set up the IV fluid set and prepare Hartmann’s solution [a crystalloid intravenous fluid] and vasopressors [medications that raise blood pressure].”

Even while issuing rapid-fire instructions,

Joon-hoo didn’t stop moving.

He grabbed the patient’s shirt with both hands and tore it open roughly.

Tudududuk.

The buttons fell off like kernels of corn.

The front of the shirt opened, exposing the patient’s abdomen and chest.

‘How strong must he be,

To tear off buttons with his bare hands?’

Meanwhile, Joon-hoo had already put on surgical gloves.

“Pilot.”

“Yes, go ahead.”

“Can you increase the helicopter’s speed any further?”

“Well… it’s possible, but the vibrations inside the cabin will make it difficult for you to treat the patient.”

“That’s fine. Increase the helicopter’s speed a bit more than it is now.”

“Hoo. I’m just doing as I’m told, okay?”

“Yes. I’ll take responsibility.”

The pilot, following Joon-hoo’s instructions, bit his lip and increased the speed control by one notch.

Dudududu!

The sound of the propellers became even more ferocious.

The cityscape beneath them receded so quickly it was hard to keep in sight.

As the pilot had warned, the vibrations inside the helicopter intensified.

“Are you ready?”

“Yes, Chief.”

Joon-hoo held a catheter in one hand.

And an alcohol swab in the other.

He swabbed the patient’s neck area with the alcohol swab. The sharp scent of alcohol filled the helicopter.

Poo-oook!

Joon-hoo thrust the catheter into the patient’s jugular vein.

‘Oh my!’

Kang Yu-jung reflexively turned her head away for a moment.

Joon-hoo’s actions seemed extremely reckless and crude.

Because…….

As the helicopter’s vibrations intensified, everything inside the helicopter was shaking.

Including people.

And people’s hands.

In this unstable situation, one should be extra careful, but Joon-hoo was shoving the catheter into the patient’s neck as if he had given up.

What if the catheter missed its mark?

“Ms. Kang. What are you doing? Get your head in the game!”

Joon-hoo’s reprimand exploded.

For a moment, Joon-hoo’s roar seemed louder than the propeller noise.

Startled, Kang Yu-jung flinched.

Was it just her imagination that it felt so precarious?

The catheter was accurately inserted into the patient’s jugular vein.

“I’m… I’m sorry.”

Kang Yu-jung apologized hastily.

She connected the catheter to the IV fluid set filled with Hartmann’s solution.

Ttok. Ttok. Ttok.

The IV fluid dripped like dew from the IV bag.

After checking the drip rate, Kang Yu-jung mixed the vasopressor Joon-hoo had mentioned into the IV fluid.

The subsequent process was also swift.

With Joon-hoo, there was no need to hesitate.

Joon-hoo was, in a word,

A medical navigation system.

“Oxygen saturation has dropped to 92 percent. I’ll secure the airway and attach a ventilator. Let’s start oxygen therapy.”

“Basic blood tests are possible, right? Proceed with blood tests immediately.”

“Elevate the patient’s head. Let’s lower the intracranial pressure [pressure inside the skull] even a little.”

Even while giving instructions, Joon-hoo continued to do something himself.

Which meant.

He was looking down from the top, overseeing the necessary treatments for the patient.

Moreover.

It meant he had an exceptional talent for multitasking.

Five years as a trauma center nurse.

Kang Yu-jung had never seen a doctor as perfect as Joon-hoo.

Joon-hoo was an iron fortress.

Steadfastly defending against the hordes of death that swarmed the patient every moment.

‘What? Only 7 minutes have passed?’

Kang Yu-jung chuckled as she checked her wristwatch.

It felt like 30 minutes had passed.

But it wasn’t.

It was probably because they had finished 30 minutes’ worth of work in just 7 minutes.

Joon-hoo’s orders were that sharp.

And Joon-hoo’s own treatments were dazzling.

“Chief. What should we do now?”

Kang Yu-jung’s gaze turned to Joon-hoo.

Joon-hoo was staring intently at the patient monitor.

Kang Yu-jung’s gaze followed Joon-hoo’s.

Among the vital signs, only body temperature and respiratory rate were normal.

Pulse and blood pressure were below average.

But this was a remarkable achievement.

Immediately after boarding the helicopter, the patient’s vital signs were almost those of a corpse.

Thanks to the aggressive administration of various drugs through the central venous catheter, the patient’s complexion had improved somewhat.

“Chief?”

“Now the EKG is acting up.”

Joon-hoo’s eyebrows twitched.

* * *

“Now the EKG is acting up.”

Joon-hoo said quietly.

It sounded like a soliloquy, but it wasn’t. It was meant for Kang Yu-jung and Yoon Deok-hwan to hear.

Unlike the two, Joon-hoo had already grasped the patient’s condition perfectly.

He had scanned the patient’s body with a full-body internal energy X-ray on the apartment rooftop.

After boarding the helicopter,

While quickly administering emergency treatment,

He had put out the urgent fires, but the most powerful fire still remained.

It was the patient’s cardiac tamponade [compression of the heart caused by fluid accumulating in the sac around the heart].

Cardiac tamponade.

Also known as pericardial tamponade, this condition occurs when the pressure around the heart increases.

In the patient’s case,

It was caused by a strong impact on the pericardium [the membrane enclosing the heart], due to trauma.

“The abdominal damage is unbelievable. The spleen has already ruptured, and the hepatic portal vein [a major vein carrying blood from the intestines to the liver] is also damaged.”

Yoon Deok-hwan, who had been quiet like a hermit, finally gave a notification.

His gaze was fixed on the ultrasound monitor.

The ultrasound probe in his right hand was still moving busily.

“The chest ultrasound is currently in progress…….”

Yoon Deok-hwan’s words suddenly stopped.

He paused for a long time before continuing the notification in a voice of dismay.

“Damn it! It’s pericardial tamponade.”

“P… Pericardial tamponade?”

Kang Yu-jung’s eyes widened in surprise.

The only one who remained calm was Joon-hoo.

“Let’s do pericardiocentesis [a procedure to remove fluid from around the heart using a needle] as a temporary measure. It’s the best we can do right now.”

“No. Pericardiocentesis is not the best option.”

Joon-hoo shook his head firmly.

‘Did he think Joon-hoo was picking a fight?’

Yoon Deok-hwan’s face crumpled.

“Then let’s hear what we can do besides pericardiocentesis.”

“It’s simple. We’ll do a thoracotomy [surgical incision into the chest wall].”

“Thoracotomy? Open the patient’s chest in a helicopter?”

Yoon Deok-hwan scoffed.

Performing a thoracotomy inside a helicopter was extremely rare.

Firstly, the helicopter’s vibrations increased the likelihood of making a mistake.

Secondly, if the thoracotomy failed, there was no way to recover.

Although the equipment in medical helicopters had improved significantly compared to the past, it was still not comparable to an operating room.

“Chief. Isn’t a thoracotomy too risky?”

Kang Yu-jung stepped forward before Yoon Deok-hwan.

Subtly dissuading Joon-hoo from his decision.

“Wouldn’t pericardiocentesis alone be enough to transport the patient to the hospital?”

“It’s not enough to just be ‘enough.’ If you want to save such a critically ill patient,”

“…….”

“You have to provide the best possible treatment every moment.”

Joon-hoo’s voice was unwavering.

From the moment he confirmed the results of the full-body internal energy X-ray, Joon-hoo had been considering an open cardiac massage (thoracotomy).

“I’ve been trying to stay still as much as possible because I have the hospital director backing me, but I can’t stand it anymore.”

“…….”

“Let’s not cross the line.”

“What line have I crossed?”

The two men’s heated gazes collided in the air. Sparks seemed to fly in all directions.

Kang Yu-jung, caught in the middle, was anxious.

“Get rid of that trivial hero complex. People can’t always choose the best option. Sometimes, pursuing the best can be toxic.”

“…….”

“Don’t you know ‘too much is as bad as too little’?”

“From my perspective… it seems like Professor Yoon is avoiding the open cardiac massage because he’s scared?”

“Yes, I’m scared. I’m scared you’ll kill an innocent patient.”

Joon-hoo didn’t retort immediately.

He stared silently at Yoon Deok-hwan.

He had sensed it from the first time they met. That Yoon Deok-hwan disliked him.

The reasons for that could be various.

He might have resented Joon-hoo’s success at a young age.

He might have been jealous because the hospital director trusted Joon-hoo more than him.

Or he might have fundamentally distrusted Joon-hoo’s skills.

But it didn’t matter.

Joon-hoo was always someone who made his own choices and took his own responsibility.

In Joon-hoo’s view, pericardiocentesis was a half-hearted treatment.

For the patient, a thoracotomy was the only right answer.

It wasn’t a subjective question; it was an objective one.

“When pericardial tamponade occurs due to trauma, a thoracotomy is essential. There may be damage to the heart. Are you aware of that?”

“Are you so eager to do a thoracotomy? Now you’re even making things up.”

Yoon Deok-hwan scoffed.

“It’s in the research papers. It’s also something I heard directly from my wife.”

“Oh, come on. I’m going crazy. Is your wife a cardiothoracic surgeon or something?”

“Yes. She is a cardiothoracic surgeon.”

Yoon Deok-hwan was speechless at Joon-hoo’s nonchalant answer.

He had said it to shut Joon-hoo up, but instead, his own mouth was sealed.

The husband is a neurosurgeon.

The wife is a cardiothoracic surgeon.

What kind of combination is that?

He wouldn’t be selling his wife just to do a thoracotomy, would he?

Yoon Deok-hwan, outmatched in connections(?), lost the momentum for a counterattack.

He just smacked his lips.

“Ms. Kang. Prepare for an open cardiac massage [direct manual compression of the heart during surgery].”

“Yes, Chief.”

Kang Yu-jung moved busily at Joon-hoo’s command.

“I’ll stop grumbling now. It’s just a waste of breath when you’re not going to listen anyway.”

“…….”

“I’ll just follow your instructions from now on.”

“…….”

“But if something goes wrong, I have no responsibility whatsoever? As you promised earlier.”

“You should have done that from the start.”

“By the way. Shouldn’t we slow down the helicopter a bit?”

Yoon Deok-hwan changed the subject and glanced at the cockpit.

Even if he somehow managed to handle the central venous catheter, performing an open cardiac massage in a shaking helicopter was impossible.

“I said earlier that the best of the best must overlap to save the patient.”

“Then surely…….”

“We’re going to keep this speed.”

“……Do as you please.”

Yoon Deok-hwan, who had been picking fights over everything, brushed it off coolly.

He seemed to have completely given up on Joon-hoo now.

It was a good thing for Joon-hoo.

After an instant that felt like an eternity, the thoracotomy setup was complete.

Before the full-scale thoracotomy,

Joon-hoo stared silently at the patient’s face.

Why would a prominent politician, who had nothing to envy and was envied by others, commit suicide?

What drove him to the steep cliff?

Joon-hoo couldn’t know the reason.

But if he saved the patient, he would hear the reason.

And Joon-hoo desperately wanted to hear that story.

‘I don’t know if I have the right to say this, but don’t give up yet.

Don’t give up on yourself.

At least, I haven’t given up on you yet.’

Joon-hoo used the compassion he felt for the patient.

As the driving force of his medical skill.

Woo-woo-woong.

The internal energy that surged from his dantian [energy center in the body] gathered at the crown of his head. The internal energy that gathered at the crown of his head then pressed down heavily on Joon-hoo’s entire body.

A thousand-pound drop to stabilize his center of gravity.

He had spread it throughout his body.

The helicopter’s vibrations that had been shaking Joon-hoo’s body had miraculously stopped.

It was a different dimension from Yoon Deok-hwan and Kang Yu-jung, who were constantly trembling.

But.

No one noticed the change.