Chapter 93, Section 4: A Satisfying Blow (3)

"Mr. Son, how is your body feeling?"

I spoke to Son Myunghwan, who was lying on the emergency room bed.

Son Myunghwan was holding his chest, looking pained.

A woman in her mid-20s, who appeared to be his daughter, was by his side.

"It seems to be better than before. But the doctor I saw earlier doesn't seem to be here..."

"I came down in place of the on-duty doctor, who is busy."

"Oh, I see. Do university hospital doctors get chosen for their looks as well as their skills? They all look so handsome."

"Such a thing to say..."

Despite his pain, Son Myunghwan's attempt at a joke made my heart ache.

Although I haven't experienced it myself, in my previous life, Son Myunghwan died.

His death kept the hospital in the media for a while.

The cause of death was cardiac arrest due to acute myocardial infarction.

But that was just the surface cause.

The real cause was the negligent and lazy treatment by Kim Seulgi.

Son Myunghwan was an emergency patient who needed PCI (Percutaneous Coronary Intervention).

However, Kim Seulgi tried to replace PCI with drug therapy.

-Oh, that crazy guy just checked the ECG and left the patient alone for 6 hours.

-He only reported to his senior when cyanosis appeared. I thought the intern was a bit off, but it ended up like this.

This was what I heard from a classmate who was an intern in the cardiology department at the time.

'I can't let the same tragedy happen again this time.'

I resolved in my heart.

To come to a university hospital emergency room and die without proper treatment...

Son Myunghwan's death was unjust and heartbreaking.

Such a tragic event must not happen again.

"Doctor, if he gets treatment, will my father get better soon?"

Son Myunghwan's daughter asked me with innocent eyes.

Her appearance reminded me of myself in my previous life.

The way I looked before my father's OPCAB (Off-Pump Coronary Artery Bypass) surgery.

Because of this, I felt more emotionally invested in Son Myunghwan and his daughter.

"Well, we need to observe the situation a bit more. Mr. Son, please tell me if you're feeling any discomfort right now."

"It's the same as before. My chest is the most uncomfortable. It feels like someone is slicing my chest with a knife."

The patient's C,C (Chief Complaint) was a typical sign of acute myocardial infarction.

Even though I came down to the emergency room and saw the patient directly.

Even though I had already placed the test orders.

I couldn't understand why Kim Seulgi insisted on drug therapy.

Does Kim Seulgi not empathize with the patient's pain?

Or does she lack the ability to analyze test results?

Or is it because of a superficial sense of consideration, thinking that her senior might be bothered by her notifications?

I wanted to know the reason if this case was handled well.

"Still, the fact that you can speak... seems like a good sign."

"Let me check the vital signs first."

I checked the patient monitor connected to him.

Blood pressure was 80mmHg/50mmHg.

Body temperature was 36.5 degrees.

Pulse was 58 beats per minute.

The ST segment on the ECG graph on the monitor was still as if it would break through the ceiling.

In other words, the patient was barely maintaining his current state while receiving medication.

That's why the incident happened in the middle of the night in my previous life.

"Although it might be premature to say, Mr. Son might need a procedure."

I carefully changed the subject.

"Surgery?"

"No, not surgery, but a procedure. We insert a balloon into the patient's blood vessel to widen the narrowed area."

I started to explain the percutaneous coronary intervention.

The patient looked surprised, but he seemed to understand as I explained calmly.

"Senior, the patient's condition doesn't seem normal. Shouldn't we do a PCI?"

After returning to the on-duty room, I notified Kim Seulgi about the patient's condition.

But her response was outrageous.

"Hey, what do you know? Do you want to be a cardiology resident? How about we switch for a moment?"

"The ST segment on the ECG is too high. The T wave is also too sharp. Isn't this an anterior wall myocardial infarction?"

An anterior wall myocardial infarction is a severe form of myocardial infarction.

Continuous infarction.

Complete vessel occlusion.

Extensive infarction.

These three characteristics define an anterior wall myocardial infarction, and when diagnosed, early intervention is often recommended.

"What? Anterior wall myocardial infarction? You're a bold one. You're trying to teach me after I pampered you for doing well."

"..."

"Is it because the chief likes you that you're not afraid anymore?"

Did she think I was ignoring her?

Kim Seulgi's face turned red as she raised her voice.

She seemed completely unaware of the terrible things she was doing to the patient.

She was truly a frustrating person.

I wanted to slap her face so badly.

"Senior, we're only one year apart. Stop acting like a king."

"What? Acting like a king? What's wrong with this guy?"

"What's wrong is with you, senior. You're the one who's wrong."

I didn't back down and countered her.

I had already reported Kim Seulgi's misconduct to the chief.

If the negligence in treating Son Myunghwan is added to this, what will happen?

Kim Seulgi is like a gourd with its stem cut off.

It means I no longer have to fear her.

"Come here for a moment."

"I don't want to. If you want to call me, come over here, senior."

I said arrogantly and held my phone.

I called Chief Choi Hosub.

* * *

Slap!

A satisfying sound echoed through the on-duty room.

Chief Choi Hosub, who had rushed over after receiving my call, slapped Kim Seulgi's face.

"Kim Seulgi, are you in your right mind?"

Chief Choi Hosub glared at Kim Seulgi with burning eyes.

-It's really sorry, but could you please see a patient? Senior Seulgi says it's fine, but it looks very dangerous to me...

Upon arriving at the on-duty room, Chief Choi Hosub checked the electronic medical record of the patient I had mentioned.

His heart sank.

The patient had an anterior wall myocardial infarction and needed immediate percutaneous coronary intervention.

However, the on-duty Kim Seulgi had only administered a thrombolytic agent to the patient.

In other words, she was trying to let the patient die.

It was so absurd and so infuriating that Chief Choi Hosub slapped Kim Seulgi without hesitation.

But even after that, his anger didn't subside easily.

If I hadn't noticed and notified him, the patient would have died before midnight.

And a storm would have hit the cardiology department.

"Chief."

Kim Seulgi's eyes widened in shock after being slapped.

She held her cheek, not knowing what to do.

"You crazy fool! If you leave the patient like this, he will definitely die. Are you mistaking your medical license for a murder license?"

"I thought... that the patient could be treated sufficiently with medication."

"Is that an excuse now?"

Chief Choi Hosub raised his voice and continued.

"Even if I give you a hundred chances, you could have missed the anterior wall myocardial infarction. But you should have known it was a myocardial infarction."

"...Yes."

"If a myocardial infarction patient comes in, you should notify your senior first. What makes you think you can draw the line between drug therapy and PCI?"

"I'm... sorry."

Kim Seulgi lowered her head, looking defeated.

It seemed she finally understood what she had done wrong.

"Contact the angiography room immediately and secure a PCI room."

"Yes, Chief."

"Im, take the patient to the angiography room. Assist the attending physician and me in the PCI."

"Understood."

After straightening out the situation, Chief Choi Hosub added one more thing to Kim Seulgi.

"After the PCI, you're dead, Kim Seulgi. Be prepared."

Due to the information I provided, Chief Choi Hosub already considered Kim Seulgi a waste.

But after today's shocking incident, he found it even harder to forgive her.

He planned to escalate the situation to the point where Kim Seulgi would have to take off her gown.

That was the only way to save the cardiology department.

"Good job. If it weren't for you, we would have had a major incident."

As we left the on-duty room, Chief Choi Hosub lightly patted my shoulder.

Im, as his name suggests, was a trustworthy guy.

He exposed Kim Seulgi's misconduct just two days into his internship.

He accurately assessed the condition of a patient who needed emergency intervention.

Chief Choi Hosub had never met an intern like Im before.

"No, it was just luck."

Was it because Im was wearing rose-colored glasses?

Chief Choi Hosub even liked Im's modesty.

"It wasn't just luck. You said the patient had an anterior wall myocardial infarction. That means you can read ECGs well."

"I was studying ECGs personally and happened to apply it to this case."

"So that's not luck. You studied, so you recognized the anterior wall myocardial infarction. See you later."

"Yes, Chief."

Chief Choi Hosub parted ways with Im and headed to the angiography room.

At least the patient would be saved, which was fortunate.

* * *

Rattle.

I was pushing Son Myunghwan's bed to the angiography room.

Thanks to the advance notice that he would receive a percutaneous coronary intervention, I easily obtained his consent.

'A happy ending is just around the corner.'

Pushing the bed was tiring, but I felt proud.

Saving a patient who had died pointlessly in my previous life.

And being able to deliver a just blow to Kim Seulgi, who exploited her colleagues and subordinates.

Everything was proceeding according to my plan.

Wasn't this the gift that reincarnation had given me?

The foresight of major events to come.

The incredible growth from combining past medical knowledge with new medical knowledge.

If I could perform like this as an intern,

How much more could I achieve as a resident, fellow, professor, or department head?

It might be embarrassing to say, but I was already looking forward to my future.

"The guardian will wait in the waiting room, and I will take the patient to the angiography room."

"Yes, doctor. Please take good care of my father."

"You don't need to worry too much. The procedure isn't extremely difficult, and the timing is appropriate."

I reassured the guardian and pushed the bed into the angiography room.

Through the transparent window, I could see the busy staff preparing for the percutaneous coronary intervention.

It was time to bring this to a perfect conclusion.

Soon, the patient would receive PCI and recover, and Kim Seulgi would pay for her sins.

Whirr.

After scrubbing, I put on the surgical gown, mask, and gloves and entered the procedure room with the patient.