Fifth Vital [EN]: Chapter 346

347. Hey!! You bastard!!

“Hey, hey there? Are you okay!”

The driver, who had been carefully obeying the traffic signals, got out of his car with a surprised look and approached Gong Sae-chan.

“Ugh! It hurts like hell, but I think I’m okay.”

Gong Sae-chan, who had flown nearly 5 meters [approximately 16 feet], didn’t appear to be seriously injured externally.

“No, how can you run like that through a red light?”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t see the signal.”

Gong Sae-chan couldn’t bring himself to admit he’d ignored the signal, so he claimed he hadn’t seen it.

“Is there anywhere that hurts badly?”

“I don’t know yet. But I’m usually really lucky. There probably won’t be anything wrong.”

“You’ve been in a big accident. If you drive a motorcycle like that, you could die. And it’s not just you who dies; you can hurt other people, too.”

The middle-aged man raised his voice, seeing Gong Sae-chan speaking as if it were a joke, not understanding the seriousness of the situation.

“Yes. I’m sorry. But mister, could you please report this to 911 [the emergency telephone number in the US]?”

“Okay, stay still and don’t move.”

The driver was dumbfounded, but he knew he should quickly get the injured person to the hospital.

“Hello. This is 911, right? There’s been an accident at the intersection near OO Mart in OO-dong. Yes. That’s right. Someone got hurt. Please come quickly.”

Shortly after, an ambulance quickly arrived, loaded Gong Sae-chan, and sped away.

“Excuse me, officer…”

Not long after the ambulance departed, Gong Sae-chan called out to the emergency medical technician (EMT).

“Yes, patient. Are you in a lot of pain?”

“Yes, it hurts like hell. But that’s not it. Can you take my cell phone out of the pocket down here?”

The EMT assumed Gong Sae-chan wanted to contact his family. But soon after, both EMTs in the vehicle were surprised by what they heard next.

“Officer, I’m sorry, but could you take a picture of me?”

“Yes, what did you say? A picture?”

The EMT, thinking he’d misheard, asked again.

“Are you saying you want me to take a picture now?”

“Yes, I’m an influencer. I have to take a picture of myself and upload it to social media.”

Gong Sae-chan, feeling anxious about missing even a day of posting due to his growing follower count, figured he’d get a lot of ‘likes’ if he uploaded a picture of his current state.

He wasn’t fully aware of the serious situation, even after causing an accident by speeding and running a red light.

“Ha!”

The EMTs were dumbfounded and speechless.

“Hey! Patient. We’re on the way to the hospital because of an accident.”

“Yes. I know.”

“What’s so great about taking a picture of yourself injured when you know that? Just lie still.”

“I think I’m okay…”

“According to what the driver said earlier, you flew through the air. That means even if you look fine on the outside, you could have internal injuries. Do you understand?”

“Emergency medical technician? I’ve been riding motorcycles for a while, and I’m not proud of it, but I’ve had several accidents. I’ve never been seriously injured so far. I’m wearing a helmet, so my head isn’t hurt.”

“Okay, let’s just get to the hospital. Got it?”

“Ah… Yes.”

In the end, sensing the cold atmosphere, Gong Sae-chan had to remain still without taking pictures.

“Really? Yes. I understand.”

“What are they saying?”

The EMTs were calling nearby hospitals.

“I don’t think OO Hospital will work?”

“Their emergency room often says no.”

“They said they don’t have a bed because it’s a TA [Trauma Alert]. Should we cross the bridge?”

“Then it’s too far. Let’s go to Yeoul-dong.”

“Yeoul-dong is *our* hospital?”

The senior EMT nodded at the junior’s words.

“Then I’ll call the emergency room.”

“Don’t call, just go.”

“Just go?”

“What if they say there’s no room after calling? It’ll waste too much time.”

The senior EMT kept emphasizing that time was critical because Gong Sae-chan was a motorcycle accident patient.

The officers had also seen many motorcycle accidents and knew the danger, so they were trying to hurry.

“That’s true.”

“So don’t call today, just go.”

“But I heard that our hospital’s emergency room is very busy at night these days. Will it be okay?”

“The director is different there.”

EMTs working in this area already knew Tae-kyung well.

EMTs usually call the hospital in advance when transporting a patient, but sometimes they can’t.

In that case, if the emergency room is full, they have to go to another hospital.

Of course, they accept patients in very urgent situations, but the decision of the doctor in charge is generally important at that time.

However, their hospital had never refused a patient brought in by 911, except in unavoidable situations.

That was all because of Tae-kyung’s instructions.

He always told the medical staff not to turn away urgent patients.

The reason was simple.

It wasn’t to make a profit by receiving even one more patient, but to save the patient.

It wasn’t an easy task from the medical staff’s point of view, but they knew Tae-kyung’s dedication to the patients, so they followed his instructions willingly.

And Tae-kyung also treated the employees well, so no one complained about this.

“Looking at it, our hospital director is very unique.”

“He thinks a lot about the patients. Check the patient well and tell them to go to our hospital quickly.”

“Yes, I understand.”

After being repeatedly rejected by other emergency rooms, the EMTs decided on their hospital as their destination and informed the officer in the driver’s seat.

* * *

Our Hospital-

“This is our hospital’s emergency room. Yes?!”

The nurse answering the phone at the station had a worried expression.

“Suddenly? Why didn’t you contact us in advance? Just a moment. Choi-ssam [term of address for a colleague or teacher, roughly equivalent to ‘Ms.’ or ‘Mr.’]?”

The nurse called Choi Mona, who was coming out of a patient’s room.

“Yes.”

“It’s 911. They said it’s a TA. They’re almost here. What should we do?”

“We can’t turn away a patient because it’s a TA. We’re still okay, so tell them to come.”

“Yes.”

Not long after hanging up, Gong Sae-chan and the EMTs arrived at the emergency room.

“Patient has arrived.”

“Ugh! Ah!”

In the meantime, Gong Sae-chan was complaining of more pain than in the ambulance, but he didn’t seem to be on the verge of death.

“Let’s go into this treatment room.”

Choi Mona, who was waiting, moved to the treatment room with the gurney.

“Patient, where does it hurt?”

“Doctor, I’ll take over.”

The EMT who came in with her continued to explain the patient’s condition in detail.

“It’s a car-versus-motorcycle TA (traffic accident, car accident). He was conscious when he was found and wearing a helmet. Currently, the visible external injuries are on the right upper and lower extremities…”

“Was there any LOC (loss of consciousness) at the time of the accident?”

Choi Mona asked after the EMT’s explanation.

“No, there wasn’t.”

“Okay. We’ll take it from here. Thank you.”

“Yes, thank you for your hard work.”

While the EMTs were leaving the treatment room and Choi Mona was approaching Gong Sae-chan’s head, other staff members cut the patient’s upper and lower clothing with scissors.

Then, they inserted IV lines into the blood vessels of both arms, and someone brought an ultrasound machine next to him.

After that, they wrapped a blood pressure monitor around his arm, and the rest of the preparations were carried out efficiently.

“Ah… Who are you?”

Gong Sae-chan, frowning, looked around and asked.

“Patient, do you know where you are?”

“Ah! Shibal [Korean swear word, similar to ‘damn’], it hurts like hell. I don’t think it hurt this much earlier… Damn it!”

“Hey? Patient, can you tell me where you are?”

“I know. It’s a hospital. Is my sister a doctor? What, am I badly hurt?”

The medical staff, including Choi Mona, were momentarily dumbfounded by his immature tone.

“I’m a doctor, not your sister. We’re going to run some tests first. From what I can see now, it doesn’t seem like your life is in danger, but I’ll explain it accurately after the tests.”

“No, don’t scare me for no reason and don’t make me pay a lot of money by doing a lot of tests. I’m broke now because I bought a motorcycle.”

“Hey, patient? There’s no sister here…”

Just as nurse Im Jeong-suk, who couldn’t stand it anymore, was about to say something to him when he called her sister again.

“Hey!! You bastard!!”

Everyone, including Choi Mona, was surprised and turned their heads at the loud shout.

“Gong Sae-chan, you’re really crazy.”

Then, a woman was standing outside the treatment room.

“Ah, she’s the patient’s family, his older sister.”

The nurse who had just entered the treatment room informed the surprised medical staff.

“Si, sister? How did you get here?”

“Shut up, Gong Sae-chan. What’s with your way of talking to the doctor? Why aren’t you talking properly? Why are you calling her ‘sister’ so rudely! Apologize quickly!”

“I’m so, sorry.”

“Are you not going to do it right? Do it right!”

“I’m sorry.”

Gong Sae-chan apologized to Choi Mona with a nervous expression at the appearance of his sister.

“It’s okay. Please be careful next time.”

Choi Mona came out of the treatment room to explain the situation to the guardian after determining that all the vitals were normal and there was no immediate danger to his life.

“Hello.”

“Yes, hello, Doctor. I’m the sister of that immature guy lying there.”

Unlike her earlier outburst, the sister who greeted politely was a woman in her late 20s.

At a glance, Gong Sae-chan’s sister was no ordinary woman.

Her shoulders were wider than most men’s, and her muscular arms suggested she was a professional athlete.

“We need to do more tests first, but Gong Sae-chan doesn’t seem to be in immediate danger. However, since there is an external injury to the right side, a fracture is likely. Therefore, we will proceed with a full-body CT scan first, and if necessary, we will proceed with surgery immediately.”

“Yes, Doctor. It’s a relief that there’s no danger to his life. It doesn’t matter if one of his arms or legs is broken, so please take good care of him.”

Choi Mona was slightly surprised by the sister’s calm, almost scary, words.

Moreover, she could tell that her words were sincere, not a joke.

Most guardians are very upset when it comes to fractures, but this composure was incomprehensible.

She was his real sister, so she just let it go, but it didn’t seem like anyone else would be so calm.

As if sensing Choi Mona’s thoughts, the sister explained the situation.

“You must be surprised by my attitude and tone, right?”

“Yes…? No.”

“The truth is, that guy isn’t fully mature yet. He’s been riding a motorcycle like that since high school, and he’s had several accidents so far.”

“Ah, I see.”

“I went to the accident site before coming here, and I think it’s a relief that he didn’t die. He collided with the car really badly. If he’s okay this time, I think he’ll ride a motorcycle again. So I’m a little conflicted right now.”

The sister’s face was full of worry.

“I don’t know if he’ll ride it quietly and properly, but he rides it recklessly, so I’m nervous. I think if he has another accident next time, he might really die. So I’d rather he get hurt somewhere and not be able to ride it.”

“Ah…”

Choi Mona understood the sister’s feelings after hearing the explanation.

Perhaps one of the things that emergency room doctors across the country have in common is their apprehension about motorcycles.

The reason is simple: accidents often lead to life-threatening injuries.

No matter how well a motorcyclist wears protective gear and obeys traffic laws, a collision with a car often results in more serious injuries for the rider.

Not only are various parts of the body fractured, but there are also cases where organs protrude from the collision, and some body parts are crushed. The horror caused by motorcycle accidents is beyond description.

Of course, not all motorcycle accidents are life-threatening, but it’s true that riders are often more seriously injured than car drivers.

Sometimes, there are patients who arrive so badly injured that the medical staff desperately tries to save them but can’t.

“Doctor, please take good care of him.”

“Yes, I and the medical staff will do our best.”

“I… And Doctor, I’m sorry.”

Gong Sae-chan’s sister suddenly bowed her head and apologized.

“Yes? No. There’s no need for the guardian to apologize.”

“It’s not that, but my parents will be coming soon, and it might get a little noisy because of my father. I’m apologizing in advance.”

“Don’t mention it. It’s okay.”

Unlike her reckless younger brother, she was a polite sister.

Choi Mona didn’t pay much attention to it, assuming it was natural for parents to be worried and angry upon hearing the news.

But until this moment, no one expected that Gong Sae-chan’s father’s anger would turn the emergency room upside down.