Chapter 43: Online Star (2)
[LIVE ON AIR]
[Sukan’s Hospital Visit]
A handsome doctor appeared on the screen of Kim Suhan’s emergency center broadcast, which was watched by as many as 15,000 people.
“I am Park Dowook, the attending physician assigned to you.”
「Attending physician? Sukan-hyung’s looks can’t compare at all?」
「Ask him how old he is, hyung.」
「Right. If he’s older than Sukan-hyung, it would be unbelievable. He looks way younger.」
After a glance at the phone’s chat window, Kim Suhan asked.
“Doctor, you seem very young. If I may ask…..…….”
“I’m 33.”
“Whoa, hyung.”
Seeing the appearance of Kim Suhan who bowed his head right away in greeting, the chat window was filled with laughter.
-Diring.
[‘HandsomeDoctor’ donated ₩10,000.]
-Mr. Doctor. Even though Sukan looks like that, he’s 31 years old.
When the phone automatically read the message, the doctor turned his head with a puzzled look. In the meantime, Kim Suhan lowered his head and shouted as he posed with a double-chin.
“Goodness, ₩10,000 donated by HandsomeDoctor! I will keep working hard!”
“What on earth are you doing at the moment…….”
「Hahahahaha This must be that doctor’s first time seeing a live streaming.」
「Newbies on Twitch are so cute~」
“We have to discuss your symptoms, will you be keeping this on?”
“Oh, I’m sorry. The video I uploaded at dawn became a hit so I opened a live broadcast but this also became popular. If it doesn’t bother you, can I continue to film?”
-Diring.
[‘SaveSukan’ donated ₩5,000.]
-We also want to see! Please!
The doctor’s gaze turned to the direction of the phone where the notification came.
“Well…… That’s fine.”
“SaveSukan’s ₩5,000 donation! Thank you, thank you! Luv you~”
At Kim Suhan’s chaotic reaction to the donation in the middle of a conversation, the doctor pointed to the table in the hospital room with a confused face.
“Let’s sit down first.”
「The doctor seems a bit confused.」
「Hahaha I would also pretend not to know him if I met Sukan-hung outside. Really.」
The number of viewers in Kim Suhan’s broadcast channel, where messages appeared constantly, rose steeply and surpassed 20,000 viewers.
Dowook came to discuss the symptoms seriously but fell into confusion. He had seen countless patients with cerebral hemorrhage but he had never seen someone so normal.
Even Seong Chang Soo, who often spoke and acted like he had a few screws missing, was not this bad.
“You already know that a cerebral aneurysm had ruptured causing you to faint, right?”
“I heard it from the other hospital. But even though they said there was bleeding in my head, they didn’t even give me a single pill.”
“That’s probably because the amount of bleeding wasn’t that much and the blood was absorbed naturally. You also returned to consciousness pretty quickly.”
“Does that mean I’m not in any danger?”
“If that were so, you would have been discharged and not transferred to Myeong Sae Hospital.”
He tried to reflect on his usual tone when interacting with patients while calmly answering, but there was a cheerful sound from a phone.
A virtual voice spoke out one after another.
-He speaks very logically since he’s a doctor. My hyung’s QI is trash so he needs things explained simply.
“Whoa, ‘WhatDidYouDoLastNight’! Thank you for the ₩10,000 donation!”
Kim Suhan, who made a ridiculous posture emphasizing his chin fat, looked at Dowook.
“Doctor, then does that mean I’m in danger?”
“We need to find out through a few tests. Just now, someone said that something of yours was trashed…….”
“Ah, QI. It’s IQ backwards. It’s used when making fun of streamers.”
-Diring.
-A serious doctor and Sukan-hyung who doesn’t even know what that word means. It’s too funny~
Kim Suhan, who once again crossed his arms with his hands tucked within his armpits and showing off his chin. Then the room became quiet. Since there were only two people in this room.
Deciding to give up on building rapport with the patient, Dowook asked.
“Are you going to stay in that pose?”
“Ah. I’m sorry, doctor. It’s a rule if I receive more than ₩10,000. I play soccer games often, so this is a soccer play ceremony. Do you know Mbappe?”
“I know scrotitis. Hopefully you didn’t get it.”
“Heuk.”
Kim Suhan quietly took his hands out of his armpits and used them to cover an important area.
“Please focus on the medical consultation for just a minute. I have to go into surgery soon.”
“I understand. You guys also heard, right? Stop the pose for a minute.”
Dowook took out his phone and opened the video he was watching as he came to the room.
“This! This is exactly what happened yesterday, right?”
“Oh, did you also watch it, doctor?”
“Just this part.”
He stopped the video right before he passed out and approached Kim Suhan..
“You showed symptoms of arm paralysis before you lost consciousness.”
“Oh, that. My left arm suddenly couldn’t move. I don’t know if I suddenly got a cramp. When I woke up, it was better. It’s been a while since I stopped exercising.”
“It’s more accurate for a doctor to make a diagnosis. You don’t have to guess and analyze the cause yourself.”
-Diring.
-sharp. Hahaha
Dowook calmly continued as Kim Suhan nodded slightly with a start.
“From now on, we will conduct cerebrovascular MRI and basic tests, which take about 4 hours. It's expected, but there's a serious bomb in your head right now. Yesterday, it was a symptom that showed that.”
At this point, any patient was bound to be nervous. Kim Soo-han was no different. Until comments came out.
-Diring.
-Is my hyung dying? NO way, I can’t lose Sukan!
“Whoa, ‘PouringSauceIsATrend’! ₩100,000 donaaaatioooon~ Make some noise!”
Kim Suhan jumped up, turned around shaking his arms, and began to dance joyfully.
Dowook gently pressed his forehead and called one of his juniors to do the tests.
[Seongtae. I have to go in for surgery. Come to the 11th floor and take over a patient for me.]
Shwaaaaa.
An Hosan, who was washing his hands with disinfectant under running water, lightly greeted Dowook who just entered the D-rosette.
“Is the main surgeon for this surgery Prof. Choi or you?”
“It’s me.”
An Hosan smiled toward Dowook who started to wash his hands beside him.
“These days, I don’t have to worry when operating for neurosurgery. It’s so comfortable since Prof Choi marks for you. It finishes quickly. It’s clean. It actually makes me want to join in.”
“If you doze off because it’s comfortable, I can’t cover for you.”
“That's a big problem. I can't help but fall asleep when I'm with Professor Choi and you. Nurses yawn all the time. Don't you agree, nurse Song?”
The nurse, who was moving the cart to the operating room, nodded and covered her mouth with her hands, and laughed.
“See see. That stressed Nurse Song also said it’s nice.”
“This patient is not in good condition, so you have to pay a lot of attention to his vitals. I heard that he had hard training last week..”
“Training?”
“A soldier. A special forces soldier or something.”
A man in his 40s with the position of a sergeant. He, who had undergone surgery due to tissue necrosis caused by cerebral infarction, worked in a place with a slogan like, ‘Do it until it works, evil to evil.’
[TN: A cerebral infarction is the pathologic process that results in an area of tissue in the brain (cerebral infarct). It is caused by disrupted blood supply (ischemia) and restricted oxygen supply (hypoxia), most commonly due to thromboembolism, and manifests clinically as ischemic stroke.]
As they were talking, the patient arrived at the D-rosette.
“The special agent is here. I’ll go and start the anesthesia.”
“Please take care of me.”
After An Hosan went in, Dowook washed his hands carefully and stood in front of the operating room.
‘Phew. There are 3 surgeries today. Let’s do our best.’
The reason Prof. Choi’s hysterics calmed down was that Dowook would arrive first and look through the operating room with the Professor’s sense first.
“Nurse Song.”
“Yes?”
“That…… A strand of hair is out, could you fix it?”
Although covered with a mask, he could feel the nurse’s cheeks blush. But it was still better to receive criticisms like this rather than Prof. Choi’s knife-like comments.
‘The tools’ condition, check. Sterility, check. The floor’s ok, too.’
Dowook, who carefully checked the state of the OR for 15 minutes, finally felt relieved. It was hard work, but it made performing the surgery much smoother.
“Great work.”
After finishing a surgery that took 3 and a half hours, Dowook bowed at the waist toward Prof. Choi.
The surgery was neatly completed, but since the patient was known for overdoing things before he was brought in, they had to watch him carefully.
“Hana. Check the patient’s vitals every hour after the patient wakes up, and call me right away if his blood pressure drops.”
“Yes, senior. But, why didn’t you connect the blood vessels at the end after peeling off the necrosis?”
“Huh? That’s…….”
Since he skipped it because Prof. Choi’s sense didn’t want to, Dowook had to think about it for a while.
“I didn’t suture it in advance because there is a risk of developing calcified nodules.”
“Calcified nodules would develop?”
The rarest form of development mechanism among arterial thrombosis. Last Choi’s sense predicted it, and Dowook followed it and continued the surgery
“So you’re saying it’s better to watch and treat it with medicine. As expected…….”
Understanding Choi Hoo’s intentions, he hadn’t asked questions in the middle of the surgery, but Nam Hana was reviewing the surgery with wide eyes.
“Aren’t you going to send the patient to the recovery room?”
“Ah. I’m sorry.”
Nam Hana, who moved the patient onto the mobile bed with the transportation managers, looked at Dowook.
“I’m learning lots of things from going into surgery with you nowadays.”
“It’s all experience. Don’t miss one even if it’s hard and come watch.”
“Yes, senior.”
Dowook, who had taken off his gloves, mask, and gown, came out and headed for the waiting room.
When he entered a room, a large monitor showing what happened in the D-rosette, the wife was nowhere to be seen and 5 generals in Marine-boy style military uniforms were lined up in a row.
“Doctor.”
When he turned to look at the source of the loud voice, a man in a stylish naval uniform with three stars on his shoulder spoke.
“Are you the doctor who operated on Sergeant Major Jeong? I sent Hyejung away for a moment.”
The patient’s wife’s name was Jin Hyejung.
“Who……”
“I am Hyejung’s father. Sgt. Maj. Jeong’s father-in-law.”
Three stars, a lieutenant general of the Navy was the father-in-law. Dowook couldn’t help himself from being surprised.
“How did the surgery go?”
“It went well as expected. There should be no effect in his life, and I think we just need to prepare for the aftereffects that will appear in the future while watching the recovery process. There was nothing special during the surgery…….”
As the surgeon's explanation continued, sighs of relief poured out from the back of the Navy Lieutenant General. Dowook, who had turned to them, flinched.
He didn't go to the military because he worked as a public health doctor, but he knew well that the one-star and three-stringed Mugunghwa classes were also very high ranked.
[T/N: Mugunghwa is the national flower of Korea and used to show military rank.]
The 1-star general and lieutenants were waiting for the lieutenant general’s words like nervous recruits. It was a scene that was hard to see in a person’s life.
“Captain Park.”
“Yes! Lieutenant general!”
The answer of the captain with one-star was both modest and loud. Kim Suhan, who was broadcasting live earlier, was this loud, but the genre was completely different. The tension could be felt here.
“I will not stop you from controlling your soldiers with force. But, what kind of training is it that even the drill sergeant ended up like this?”
“I’ll fix it right away!”
“Don’t just say the words. Regimental Commander.”
“Yes! Lieutenant general!”
“Did I tell you to change Sgt. Maj. Jeong’s position or did I not?”
“But there isn’t a drill sergeant who teaches as well as Sgt. Maj. Jeong just yet……”
When the colonel with 3 Mugunghwa spoke for a long time, the one-star frowned and provided hints with his eyes.
“I-I’ll fix it right away!”
Dowook saw the universal truth right that the rank above was scarier than the rank far above.
It was interesting to see the elderly respond at the top of their voices, but it was difficult to fulfill his job as a doctor in this atmosphere.
“The patient will wake up in 2 hours, so I will see you in the patient’s ward then.”
The lieutenant general, who was giving a fierce look to the subordinates, turned to Dowook.
“Thank you for the hard work, doctor.”
Soldiers below One Star saluted Dowook as he was leaving the waiting room.
Dowook, who entered the staff office, grabbed his phone because he couldn’t see Kim Seongtae, who he had ordered to take Kim Suhan for tests.
“Seongtae, are you not finished with the tests yet?”
-Senior. This patient is driving me crazy. He’s noisy and all over the place.
“He isn’t still broadcasting, is he?”
-He stopped in the middle because his phone ran out of battery. I think he said he had 30,000viewers? He asked me to charge it because if he didn’t turn it on right away we’ll be attacked by terrorists.
“Which tests did you finish?”
-We finished most of them. We’re in the ECG room right now.
He walked over to a computer and opened the digital chart.
Checking the cerebrovascular MRI, Dowook swallowed a groan. The worst-case scenario that could have happened was spread out over the patient’s head.
Multiple aneurysms.
If you touch one, the other will inevitably burst, so the diagnosis was difficult and the surgery was more difficult, so there were many neurosurgeons that gave up.
This type of cerebral aneurysm was treated as a kind of incurable disease, in which you had to live with an artery in your head that might burst at any time.
“Seongtae.”
-Yes, senior.
“Listen to me carefully. Do whatever the patient asks of you first. Then make him sit him down in a quiet place. Tell him I’ll be right there.”
-Why are you like that?
“Do it first. I’ll explain later.”
-Yep.
Instructions. Performing as they were heard without saying a word.
Like the soldiers he had witnessed earlier, the professors and doctors learning medicine acted similarly. It was just that a doctor didn’t do the same after the age of 50.
Right after Dowook hung up, he called Chief Ha.
-Yeah, Dowook.
“Please check Kim Suhan’s chart.”
-Just a sec.
The rustling sound heard over the phone soon turned into a groan.
-What is this? Why are the blood vessels such a mess?
“I can’t tell if a surgery is possible or not.”
-Wow. Why is it so tangled at such a young age?
“Should I suggest conservative treatment or surgery?”
-Wait a sec. This can’t be solved after checking for a while. Did you tell the patient?
“I wanted to do it now.”
-Life. What a surprise to a kid who has such a fun broadcast. First, let's reveal the results of the examination as it is, and listen to the patient’s opinion for the surgery and discuss it.
Standing up from the seat, Dowook went to find the patient right away and make a decision on whether to operate or quit. He thought that this was what the patient needed.
‘Should I ask?’