Fifth Vital [EN]: Chapter 18

Fifth Vital Sign – Episode 18

18. The Doctor’s Duty

“Excuse me. Has the accident site been cleared yet?”

A private ambulance worker asked a citizen coming down from the site, leaning out the car window.

“Two doctors are working very hard. Thanks to them, the injured seem to have been taken care of.”

“Has the ambulance arrived yet, by any chance?”

“I don’t think the ambulance is here yet.”

“I see. Thank you.”

After the conversation, the private ambulance worker called 119 [South Korean emergency hotline] again.

“I’m sorry to keep contacting you. I’m the person who called earlier.”

-If it’s the national highway accident site, they should be almost there.

“Okay. Thank you for your work.”

“What did they say? Is the ambulance still not here?”

The patient, who was quietly in the car, was also curious about the situation outside.

“They said it’s almost here.”

“That’s the best news I’ve heard all day.”

“And it seems the on-site treatment of the patients has been completed.”

“Oh, that’s a relief. That’s a relief.”

“Indeed. The two doctors who came with us did a great job.”

“Of course. The doctors saved people’s lives.”

* * *

Just now, after hearing that the ambulance to transport the patients was almost there, the two doctors faced a dilemma.

“What should we do, Doctor?”

The reason was the two patients they had given first aid to. They had overcome the immediate danger, but a critical situation could still arise during transport.

“Anyway, one of us should go with the patient.”

“I think so too.”

One patient had an arterial injury, and the other had a spleen injury.

Even considering the possibility of complications, it was much better for the patient to be accompanied by a doctor.

“Dr. Lee Chan-hee?”

“Yes, Doctor.”

“Let’s do this.”

“How?”

“I’ll go with the patient until they get to the hospital.”

“You, Doctor?”

“Yes. Dr. Lee, you accompany the patient to the transfer area as scheduled.”

Lee Chan-hee also agreed with that idea.

Tae-kyung had saved a patient who could have lost his life in the raw, field-like situation.

Especially in the case of the current patient, it was right for Tae-kyung to accompany him rather than himself.

“Don’t take your eyes off the patient during the transfer, and call me immediately if anything happens.”

“Yes, don’t worry, Doctor.”

“When there are patients and doctors, the patient’s safety takes precedence over our safety. Do you understand?”

“Of course. I’ll keep that in mind.”

“Good. Then let’s meet at the rest stop halfway.”

“Okay. Be careful on your way.”

With that, Tae-kyung got into the arriving ambulance, and Lee Chan-hee headed to the transfer area with the other patient.

* * *

“Ugh!”

“Please don’t move, patient.”

“Doctor, it hurts so much.”

“Hey! I’ve been waiting here since earlier, when are you going to see me?”

“I’m sorry. We are seeing patients in order, so please wait a little longer.”

“Please redo the IV drip here.”

This place, filled with shouting people, people looking for doctors, and anxious guardians, was the emergency room of a university hospital in the province.

“Hah, hah!”

Lee Gi-tak, the paramedic who was at the scene of the three-car collision, gasped for breath and looked around the emergency room.

“Excuse me… I’m sorry to bother you while you’re busy, but can I ask you something?”

He looked around and politely called out to a passing nurse.

“Ah, yes. Are any emergency patients coming in?”

The nurse naturally asked the question after seeing his uniform.

“No. Have you seen a man in a beige jacket who came with the paramedics a little while ago? He’s about…”

He raised his right hand above his head and added an explanation.

“About this tall and of average build. And he was wearing navy blue scrubs.”

“We don’t have navy blue scrubs in our hospital.”

“I know. I’m not talking about a staff member here, but I’m looking for someone who came with the ambulance earlier.”

“Well… Since it’s an emergency room, it’s hard to remember everyone. I’m sorry.”

“Ah, no. Thank you.”

After greeting the nurse, Lee Gi-tak left the emergency room and headed out the front gate of the hospital.

“…!”

He hurriedly walked around, turning his head from side to side, and called out to someone heading to the taxi stand on one side.

“Doctor!?”

The person Lee Gi-tak desperately called was Tae-kyung.

“Wait a minute. Doctor!!”

He ran with all his might, raising his voice as loud as he could, but it was impossible to catch up with Tae-kyung, who had already gotten into a taxi.

“Ha! If I had known this would happen, I would have asked for his name.”

He regretted not even asking Tae-kyung’s name because he was so distracted at the accident site.

“I didn’t even get to say hello properly…”

The reason he was looking for Tae-kyung so much was because of his injured senior.

He wanted to thank Tae-kyung, who had saved the woman he liked.

‘Thank you for saving our senior. Like you, Doctor, I will become a paramedic who saves people in the field.’

He turned back to the hospital, vowing in his heart as he watched the taxi Tae-kyung was in drive away.

* * *

“This TA [traffic accident] patient was said to be from a three-car collision, right?”

A middle-aged professor was performing surgery on Lee Gi-tak’s senior.

“Yes, Professor. That’s right.”

The resident assisting quickly replied.

“The paramedic in charge of the transfer said that a piece of debris was embedded in his abdomen while rescuing a person who was injured in the accident.”

“Oh dear! It strangely makes me feel worse when a paramedic gets hurt. Don’t you guys feel that way?”

“We do too. I think it’s because we’re in the same profession of saving people.”

“I guess so. If it’s the spleen in the upper left abdomen, there would have been considerable bleeding, but anyway…!”

The chief surgeon was surprised when he removed the gauze covering the patient.

“You guys should take a good look at this too. It’s said to be the work of a doctor who happened to be at the accident site, but the emergency treatment is very clean.”

When the professor praised Tae-kyung’s treatment, the residents and interns focused more intently than usual.

“We should learn from this.”

The junior doctors wondered what was going on because the tiger professor, who was usually stingy with praise, was praising him.

“Dr. Park. Have you ever caught an artery in the operating room?”

“I have. Professor Lee told me to catch it during his surgery, so I did, but honestly, it wasn’t easy, so the professor ended up doing it.”

“Yes. That’s natural. Catching an artery is not an easy task. Now! Everyone, look here.”

The professor focused on the patient’s abdominal cavity, which was held open with forceps.

“What’s the condition now?”

“It’s clean.”

“Yes. That’s what I’m talking about. It’s very clean. What does that mean?”

“It means that the doctor who treated him on the spot stopped the bleeding cleanly.”

“That’s right. That’s why it’s clean.”

The professor’s praise for Tae-kyung, whom he didn’t even know, continued.

“Since it is virtually impossible to catch an artery from the outside, this doctor made a good decision to ligate [tie off] the blood vessels flowing to the spleen. In fact, as I said earlier, finding the damaged artery directly is so difficult in terms of probability…!”

The professor, who put his hand into the patient’s abdominal cavity and continued to speak, suddenly stopped talking.

“Professor?”

The residents and interns were nervous for a moment because the professor suddenly stopped talking.

“What’s wrong?”

The anesthesiologist in charge, who was watching the patient and the monitor, asked the professor.

“That’s… a little embarrassing.”

“Yes? Professor. Was the patient’s treatment wrong?”

The resident, who was assisting from the opposite side, carefully spoke.

“No, it’s the opposite. The damaged artery in this patient is accurately ligated.”

“Yes!?”

The surgeons in the operating room, who knew what the professor’s words meant, all widened their eyes with surprised expressions.

“I’ve never seen a doctor who ligated a damaged artery of a TA patient on the spot in my life.”

The professor, who had spent his entire life in the operating room and had performed countless surgeries, felt more than surprised, even bewildered.

“I want to see what that doctor looks like.”

No matter how experienced and skilled a doctor is, it is never easy to immediately ligate a damaged artery at the scene of an accident.

Moreover, the fact that it was so perfect without any flaws was astonishing.

“We are performing this patient’s surgery now, but we are not the ones who saved this patient. The doctor at the scene saved this patient.”

* * *

The day after transporting the patient, Tae-kyung went to work at the hospital because a patient who had gallbladder surgery was being discharged.

“I don’t see the other doctors today.”

“It’s their day off, so I came in today.”

“You should rest, Doctor, but you came to work because of me.”

“Of course, I have to come in. Is there anything particularly uncomfortable?”

“What are you talking about? Not at all.”

“Thanks to you performing the surgery well, my wife is recovering quickly and is in good condition.”

“That’s a relief. This is the medicine you’re leaving the hospital with, and you can get the prescription medicine from the pharmacy across the street.”

Tae-kyung also carefully went over the precautions the patient should take after discharge.

“And you may have diarrhea for a while, so it’s best to avoid foods that are too salty and fatty meats for a while. I’ve included the diet plan here, so please refer to it.”

“I’m getting healthier and being discharged thanks to you, Doctor. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. Then I’ll see you at the outpatient clinic.”

“Wait a minute. Doctor, do you have a girlfriend…?”

“Hey, you! I told you not to say useless things.”

The patient, who liked Tae-kyung, tried to ask a personal question out of gratitude, but was stopped by his guardian.

“It’s nothing. Thank you for your hard work.”

“Why are you covering my mouth?”

“You’re being too nosy. It’s rude to ask someone who might have a partner.”

“I’m just asking.”

“Be quiet and put on your jacket. You’ll catch a cold.”

“The weather is nice, what cold? I’m fine.”

Unlike when he first came to the hospital in pain, the patient left the hospital with a bright expression.

* * *

After the patient was discharged and he finished cleaning up, Tae-kyung headed to the front gate.

“Is treatment available?”

Someone who was checking the locks and securing the door called out to him.

“Of course. It’s possible.”

Tae-kyung quickly opened the locked door and turned around, looking quite surprised.

“…!”

“Nice to see you, Dr. Kim.”

The person who called Tae-kyung was Kim Cheol-gi.

“I didn’t know you would be here either.”

He was holding his wife’s hand tightly and had a kind expression on his face.

“How have you been?”

“I’m doing well, and so is this person, because we’re in a place with good air.”

“How have you been, ma’am?”

“Have I ever met you, Doctor?”

“I met you once before.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. I must be out of it because of childcare.”

Kim Cheol-gi’s wife, who had dementia, still cherished the baby doll and had an apologetic expression on her face.

“Don’t mention it. It’s okay. Shall I get you some coffee, Director?”

“It’s okay. And what director? The director of this hospital is you, not me.”

“No. But what brings you here…?”

“I came to Seoul on business and brought this person here because she said she wanted to see the hospital.”

“You should have contacted me.”

“What contact? Why did you come in on your day off when you have appointments starting in two days?”

“A patient who had emergency surgery was discharged today, so I came in.”

“If it’s emergency surgery, is it that cholecystitis [gallbladder inflammation] patient?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Kim Cheol-gi knew about the patient because of the work emails Tae-kyung sent him.

“By the way, about you sending me emails, I didn’t tell you to do it, so you don’t have to send them.”

“Is it uncomfortable?”

“Uncomfortable? I like knowing how the hospital is doing. Why go to such trouble when you’re busy?”

“Don’t worry, I’ll skip it on really busy days. Director?”

“You look like you have something to say.”

“That’s right.”

“Say what you have to say. You’re not going to tell me you’re quitting, are you?”

“No. It’s not that, I heard the hospital is not doing well.”

“Hospital situation?”

“I heard the number of patients has decreased a lot.”

“So? What about it?”

Kim Cheol-gi’s reaction, asking back without batting an eye, embarrassed Tae-kyung.

“I and the staff are worried that you are having a hard time.”

“Haha. Oh, my. Look, Dr. Kim. Did I tell you to bring patients?”

“No.”

“Then did I tell you to make money?”

“No.”

“Then what are you worried about? I entrusted the hospital to Dr. Kim, but I never told you to make money or bring patients.”

Kim Cheol-gi had never said anything about the hospital’s finances until now.

“What you and the staff should be worried about is not my financial situation, but how to treat patients well and alleviate their pain.”

There was nothing wrong with that. The doctor’s duty was only to the patient.

“There may be many or few patients. Don’t be too attached to that.”

“I understand.”

“By the way, how is the hospital? It’s small and nice, isn’t it?”

“Not at all. Where on earth does it look like a small neighborhood hospital?”

Tae-kyung continued the conversation cheerfully, but he was not very comfortable inside.

Prioritizing patients was also the most important thing for Tae-kyung as a doctor.

However, he couldn’t completely ignore Kim Cheol-gi’s situation, who had paid off a huge amount of debt for him.