Surviving as a Rogue Hospital Director - Chapter 31

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 31.
The next day.
Seong Hyuk entered the Operating Room wearing a Sterile Gown over his green Surgical Gown.
Patient Kim Pan Soo lay anesthetized on the operating table, every part of his body except the surgical site covered in green Sterile Drape.
With the Scrub Nurse’s assistance, Seong Hyuk donned thin latex gloves, and at his arrival, Min Ho adjusted his position to clear the patient’s right side.
Se Ra, who had come to observe today, moved along with Min Ho’s footsteps.
“Is the preparation all set?”
“Yes, sir. It’s complete.”
Min Ho replied to Seong Hyuk’s question. Observing patient Kim Pan Soo’s condition, Seong Hyuk smiled slightly behind his mask, and only Min Ho could catch the subtle crinkle of his eyes.
With Seong Hyuk at the center, Min Ho stood across from him, and behind Min Ho’s shoulder, Se Ra craned her neck to look on. She had requested to observe because she was so eager to see Seong Hyuk perform surgery.
“We’ll start with PCI. Get the Femoral Artery ready.”
At Seong Hyuk’s words, the doctors who had been clustered around patient Kim Pan Soo’s chest moved down to his lower body.
The Femoral Artery, located between the hip joints, is a large vessel with a diameter of six to eight millimeters. Moreover, because it connects directly to the aorta, it’s easy to access.
Seong Hyuk normally preferred to use the Radial Artery near the wrist for patient comfort, but this time he had chosen the Femoral Artery for its stability.
Following the X-ray Fluoroscopy,
*
Seong Hyuk carefully advanced the Guide Wire into the Femoral Artery.
*A device that displays X-ray images in real time.
The thin wire, resembling a piece of metal string, traveled up from the hip joint along the Femoral Artery—a highway—toward the heart.
The Guide Wire would become, true to its name, the track along which the subsequent medical instruments would pass.
“Good. Dilatation.”
Once the wire had settled at the target site of the Coronary Artery, Seong Hyuk extended his hand. The Scrub Nurse placed the Balloon Catheter into his palm, and he threaded it onto the wire.
“Marker confirmed.”
Without being asked, Min Ho checked the position of the marker at the balloon’s tip.
Hearing his confirmation, Seong Hyuk slowly inflated the balloon within the partially obstructed Coronary Artery to push out the debris inside the vessel. Fifteen seconds later, he deflated the balloon and withdrew it.
“Next, stent.”
He proceeded methodically through each step.
Using the rail still in place, Seong Hyuk guided the stent up to the heart. A support structure that would sustain Kim Pan Soo’s weakened blood vessel for the rest of his life.
“Phew.”
Min Ho, who had been watching the fluoroscopy intently alongside Seong Hyuk, exhaled the breath he’d been holding as the stent properly expanded within the vessel.
Hearing that sound, Seong Hyuk gave Min Ho a knowing look.
“Not yet. Stay sharp and check the TIMI Flow Grade first.”
He wanted Min Ho to assess how much blood flow had recovered. The procedure wasn’t finished.
“Yes, sir! Injecting Contrast Agent now.”
Min Ho, who had briefly let his focus slip, snapped back to attention. He injected the Contrast Agent so the blood vessel would appear white on the X-ray.
As the liquid Contrast Agent flowed through the vessel, the Coronary Artery, now supported by the stent, turned white as well.
“Excellent. TIMI
*
3—normal flow.”
*An indicator measuring the degree of blood flow.
Under Seong Hyuk’s direction, the PCI concluded in merely thirty minutes, executed at an impossible speed and precision.
Because there were no mistakes, the pace was swift, and because his decisions were fast, the synergy kept building. The medical staff present could only watch in awe.
“…??”
“Wow….”
“…Ah! Thank you for your hard work.”
“Well done!”
The doctors, having missed their cue while marveling, belatedly offered their thanks.
“Truly! You are indeed the professor.”
Only Min Ho burst into genuine admiration, giving Seong Hyuk a thumbs up. Se Ra, seeing his sincere respect, shared in his joy.
‘Such a junior must mean Professor Seong is truly a good person, doesn’t it?’
Se Ra, who had mostly observed Seong Hyuk’s stern demeanor from alongside Han Seung Woo, looked at him anew.
Meanwhile, Seong Hyuk, embarrassed, quieted them down.
“Come now, check the ACT and let’s get the pacemaker in right away. Prepare the Subclavian Artery.”
Brushing off the praise to refocus on the surgery, his words sent patient blood into the coagulation test device.
Watching this entire process, Se Ra’s heart swelled.
‘He could be a professor immediately with no issues.’
Ever since hearing those words from the Hospital Director, her heart had been racing.
Through Seong Hyuk’s surgery, Se Ra absorbed things she could never have learned under Han Seung Woo.
And she found herself wanting to put these lessons into practice—not as Han Seung Woo’s subordinate, but as a full-fledged professor in her own right.
* * *
Patient Kim Pan Soo was transferred to the Recovery Room, and the doctors scattered from the Operating Room.
Because Seong Hyuk’s skillful work had finished the surgery ahead of schedule, Se Ra found herself with free time.
‘Should I go to the meeting? No, wait. Should I observe another surgery?’
The truth was, the Hospital Director had recommended observing patient Kim Pan Soo’s surgery beforehand. By chance, the Multidisciplinary Conference Room meeting overlapped with the procedure, and he had even given her a separate hint.
‘Go watch the procedure. You’d better not attend that conference this time.’
Because the Hospital Director had praised her so highly—saying she could be a professor without any issues—it was hard to refuse his words. That was why she had come to observe.
But watching Professor Seong’s surgery had proven far more valuable than she’d expected. If she hadn’t come, she would have deeply regretted it.
Nearly ten years after becoming a doctor, she had never seen a surgery like this. Se Ra felt envy watching Min Ho work in perfect rhythm with Seong Hyuk.
Min Ho, who had nearly completed his Residency, was her junior by a wide margin, but his composure in the Operating Room was so impressive.
‘I’m envious. Working under a professor like that. He’ll grow so fast. What was I even doing during my Residency?’
She couldn’t quite remember, but it seemed she had been chasing after Professor Han Seung Woo back then.
Researching materials for his papers, being the only woman at his social gatherings and livening up the atmosphere. That sort of thing.
Thinking of Professor Han Seung Woo, the Hospital Director’s words echoed in her mind.
‘Why did he tell me not to attend the meeting? Surely Professor Han Seung Woo isn’t alone in there right now?’
Though she sensed the Hospital Director had his reasons, she felt worried about Professor Han Seung Woo. The other doctors in the Cardiology Department didn’t follow him well.
Just then, Se Ra spotted Seong Hyuk passing by and called out to him.
“Oh! Professor, are you heading to the Multidisciplinary Conference?”
“Were you planning to go as well?”
‘How did he know?’
Se Ra’s eyes widened, and she nodded in affirmation.
“Do as you wish. But it won’t be a pleasant sight.”
It was similar to what the Hospital Director had said. Se Ra’s unease persisted.
Thus, Seong Hyuk entered the Multidisciplinary Conference Room, which was already in session. Se Ra followed right behind him.
“I apologize for being late. I was in surgery.”
Normally, having been in surgery would have prevented him from attending the conference, but Seong Hyuk, having accomplished both, apologized rather than boasted.
Around the U-shaped table sat professors from each clinical department, and along the wall, chairs were arranged in a row where Fellows and Residents sat.
The Hospital Director, of course, sat in the seat of honor. He raised an eyebrow seeing Se Ra arrive, and she returned a brief nod of greeting.
Han Seung Woo glared at Fellow Se Ra as she entered right behind Seong Hyuk. Sensing his mood, Se Ra took a seat behind Han Seung Woo.
Se Ra immediately picked up on Han Seung Woo’s displeasure.
During a discussion regarding operational coordination centered on the Cardiology and Thoracic Surgery Departments, Professor Han Seung Woo came under scrutiny.
He was scrambling to explain the number of PCIs performed at Korea University Hospital that year.
“I didn’t deliberately avoid performing procedures. That’s unfair. The situation just unfolded that way. I think it was because the timing of my transfer to Thoracic Surgery worked out well.”
‘Right, there’s no way he’d mention this only to me.’
Se Ra had already heard this from the Hospital Director in Professor Seong’s office. That must have been what he meant to say here.
“Come on, Hospital Director. You know my intentions, don’t you? I’ll do better.”
Trying to brush it aside, he watched as Beom Jun displayed the procedures and success rates conducted by the Cardiology Department on screen. PCI showed only one case, and because that single case had complications, the success rate was zero percent.
Other procedures, including CAG, were similar. The number of cases performed was nearly nonexistent. Se Ra had handled almost all of them.
‘My God, was it really that bad? I had no idea.’
“Professor Han, I think there’s a misunderstanding. Let me be clear—this isn’t about just one case.”
Under the physicians’ scrutiny, Han Seung Woo grew flustered. The image he’d painstakingly built was crumbling.
At that moment, Han Seung Woo attempted to shift the blame onto Se Ra.
“When I was a Fellow, I did all of it. You’re speaking without knowing what it was like then. Shouldn’t we give opportunities to our juniors? Isn’t that right, Fellow Se Ra?”
He turned and looked at Se Ra. Showing his back to the others, he shaped his mouth to tell her something.
‘Say yes.’
The man who had seemed so understanding now pressed her with domineering pressure.
Every eye in the Multidisciplinary Conference turned toward Se Ra.
“Ah, well, I—I….”
Forced to answer, she found herself unable to speak.
‘You’d better not attend that conference this time.’
‘Do as you wish. But it won’t be a pleasant sight.’
She understood far too late what the Hospital Director and Professor Seong had meant.
“Throw her aside and then claim you gave her opportunities? You should have guided her, stood by her side and taught her. Can you even call that education?”
Seong Hyuk, seated across the table, spoke in Se Ra’s defense, and as another speaker took the floor, she found herself free from the weight of all those eyes.
Han Seung Woo looked toward the other professors as if seeking help,
“Ahem.”
“Cough…!”
but they all turned away.
“What?! Why are you treating me like this? What’s so different about any other professor? You’re all the same! Be honest, isn’t what I’m saying right?”
As Han Seung Woo’s voice rose, Beom Jun lifted his right hand in a gesture.
Then, standing behind Beom Jun, Jae Kyung put on white gloves and withdrew a vinyl pouch from an inner pocket.
Inside the clear bag was the fountain pen Han Seung Woo had given him, still in its case.
Knowing what it represented, Se Ra squeezed her eyes shut. It was a failing she knew but could not speak against—his shame.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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