Surviving as a Rogue Hospital Director - Chapter 41

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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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Chapter 41.
At Beom Jun’s words, Min Ho began relaying the situation as a physician. Though treating Lim Seong Hyuk as a patient rather than a professor felt decidedly awkward.
“Ah! We found him collapsed in the Operating Room! His Vital Signs are stable, and we’ve only run an Electrocardiogram and blood work so far, but nothing’s turned up! He’s currently on Hydration Therapy. The Emergency Medicine professor mentioned overwork as a possibility!”
Lim Seong Hyuk wasn’t receiving any significant treatment. He was simply on IV Fluids, which meant it wasn’t serious. The Emergency Medicine department seemed to have provisionally diagnosed it as fatigue.
But Beom Jun was angry for a different reason.
‘Overwork? Come on. How many patients does he have assigned right now?’
The problem with Lim Seong Hyuk was that he couldn’t take care of his own health. Even after finishing the Seo Jin Ha patient’s surgery, he’d seemed mentally worn down.
He should have maintained his condition by eating properly and resting. In any case, he had failed in his responsibility.
“Director, we’re dealing with so many critically ill patients right now. By the way, the professor mentioned that you were once a TS….”
Of course. Min Ho’s reason for calling wasn’t just concern for Lim Seong Hyuk.
The bigger problem lay in the remaining patients.
The fellow had quit, and Lim Seong Hyuk was the only professor in an already understaffed Department of Thoracic Surgery.
Min Ho was probably panicking right now. The patients kept spiraling downward, and he didn’t know how to save them.
Beom Jun drew a deep breath.
Though thoracic surgery wasn’t his original specialty, he’d absorbed Lim Seong Hyuk’s knowledge. It couldn’t be helped. This was the best option for now.
“Notify me. It’s fine even if it’s early morning.”
“Really? You’re sure I can contact you, Director?”
At Beom Jun’s words, Min Ho was taken aback. Though filled with doubt, he seemed desperate, and reassurance came over him at the director’s promise.
“Right, I have no clinic hours tomorrow. What’s the most urgent thing right now?”
Tomorrow was surgery-focused with no outpatient clinic. That was fortunate. If he’d had to cancel clinic appointments en masse, it would have added to patient confusion.
“That’s right. Tomorrow it’s surgery only! We’re writing orders for today for patients, and I was just reviewing the list of patients being admitted tomorrow.”
Hmm, the things Min Ho mentioned did need to be handled by today, but they weren’t immediately critical. If handled properly, they might even be resolved by Min Ho himself.
[Name: Min Ho / Position: PGY-3 Resident]
History Taking: ■■■□□
Testing: ■■■■□
Diagnosis: ■■■■□
Treatment: ■■■□□
Follow-up: ■■■□□
– Growth Potential: Explosive
– Favorability: MAX
Min Ho had been following Lim Seong Hyuk around, and treatment had increased by one level. Since crisis was opportunity, Beom Jun could only expect that as Min Ho stepped into the forefront of treatment, he would build his skills.
“Diagnose as much as you can, then call. Got it?”
“Ah, I… Yes!”
But Min Ho seemed uncertain. Faced with Lim Seong Hyuk’s sudden absence, he hadn’t properly regained his composure, and noticing this, Beom Jun reassured him.
“Min Ho. Trust yourself. You must have learned plenty standing next to Lim Seong Hyuk all this time. Think of it the same way. As if Professor Lim’s spirit had possessed you.”
Even as Beom Jun spoke, he didn’t expect Min Ho to understand right away. If words alone could fix this, it never would have happened.
Instead, he activated Control Power on Min Ho.
[The target has been confirmed as belonging to the Department of Thoracic Surgery.]
[The target’s state has been confirmed as ‘very confused.’]
[Control Power has risen to Level 3.]
[Control Power activated. Level 3: Give it a try.]
“I-I’ll give it a try!”
Thanks to that, Min Ho said he understood.
“Right, call me if anything comes up.”
After Beom Jun hung up, So Jung beside him let out a sigh.
Now that she knew the Department of Thoracic Surgery’s situation, she was probably most worried about her own patient, like all medical professionals.
“Director, what should we do about Li Mu Seong’s surgery tomorrow? Should we postpone it…? I’m not sure if the patient can hold out.”
Li Mu Seong was already asleep. The Analgesic that had been flowing through his veins was running dry. The tension seemed to ease as pain disappeared. This was less sleep and more like passing out.
Beom Jun clamped the clamp on the medication IV line for Li Mu Seong’s patient. After the medication had fully entered, this prevented air from entering the blood vessel.
“I’ll go in.”
After speaking, Beom Jun covered his face with his palms. Rubbing his face roughly as if washing without water, he opened his eyes wide. Time was crucial for Li Mu Seong’s patient.
Also, there was no way of knowing when Lim Seong Hyuk would return. You couldn’t ask someone who collapsed today to perform surgery tomorrow. Postponing surgery was not the solution right now.
Beom Jun reviewed the knowledge about thoracic surgery and surgical methods he had gained from Lim Seong Hyuk. And the surgical scene of Li Mu Seong’s patient that had appeared in .
‘He said he missed the pericardium being torn, hidden behind the large vessel.’
The major vessel had compressed the bleeding site, but after this surgery was finished, the positioning would shift and cause a proper Rupture.
Beom Jun made a resolve to enter the Operating Room and examine the pericardium thoroughly.
In fact, it might be better for Li Mu Seong’s patient that Beom Jun was the one operating. Without further suffering, it would end in a second surgery.
Beom Jun cursed as he thought of Lim Seong Hyuk, who must be sprawled out on an Emergency Room bed sleeping right now.
‘Damn it, Lim Seong Hyuk, you better come back.’
Since he’d caused this much trouble, a punch would be insufficient.
Meanwhile, So Jung was somewhat concerned about the hospital director going into the surgery.
‘It’s been a while since he stopped seeing patients. Will he be all right?’
Whenever she spoke often about Li Mu Seong’s patient, he understood the patient just as well as she did. Still, treatment skills grew with practice and dulled without it.
“Li Mu Seong’s surgery tomorrow—was it a Multi-Disciplinary approach?”
“Yes. It’s the first surgery in the afternoon.”
But contrary to her concerns, Beom Jun appeared composed.
“Send the CT and Angiography images to my email. We’ll have Neurosurgery approach as primary and handle spinal fixation first, then hand over.”
Beom Jun asked her to send him the recent imaging files. He indicated to So Jung the timing of the surgical handover during the procedure.
‘Huh? That’s exactly what I was going to say.’
So Jung, the attending professor, would approach the surgical site first, and once she reached the pericardium, he would take over—this was exactly the method she had planned to use with Lim Seong Hyuk.
“That’s exactly what I was planning to do! Did Professor Lim pass this along to you?”
So Jung asked Beom Jun, wondering.
It was something they’d arrived at after repeated consultations with Lim Seong Hyuk, seeking the best surgical approach.
“How am I supposed to hear from a guy who’s passed out?”
Yet having answered correctly without hesitation, Beom Jun shook his head left and right with exasperation.

So Jung set aside her worries.
The hospital director hadn’t lost his touch at all. If anything, he was even sharper.
* * *
The next day.
Beom Jun stood before the mirror in green surgical scrubs. Only his eyes were visible. His head was covered with a curly surgical cap, and his mask covered both his nose and mouth.
‘How long has it been?’
Beom Jun felt sentimental putting on surgical scrubs after so long.
He used to dread putting these on every time, but not today. Instead, he felt as if he could do anything. Beom Jun was even excited.
“The director’s here?”
As he entered the operating room, everything was set up. The patient was prone under anesthesia, and every area except the surgical site was draped in green to maintain sterility.
“Let’s start with Time Out.”
At Beom Jun’s words, the medical staff in the operating room simultaneously verified patient and surgical information and counted every item prepared in the room.
“Li Mu Seong, 36 years old. Scheduled for Gunshot Wound Surgery for Spinal Fracture and spinal cord injury.”
Time Out is like a ritual performed both before and after surgery begins.
It exists to prevent absurd mistakes—operating on the wrong person, operating on the wrong leg, or leaving gauze inside the surgical site and closing it up.
While restaurants sometimes deliver the wrong order and packages get delivered to the wrong address, hospitals allow zero room for error.
A hospital is fundamentally a space where the phrase “it happens” cannot be used.
“Item count finished. Patient reconfirmed.”
“Anesthesia status is good.”
“Okay, Time Out complete.”
All preparations were done. Primary surgeon So Jung made the first incision around the patient’s spine with a latex-gloved hand.
Snick, snick.
Skin split cleanly on both sides of the scalpel’s edge. She deftly navigated around the periosteum, separating the erector spinae muscles and ligaments. On the opposite side, fellow Geon Tae pulled at the skin to expose the surgical field.
At the site where emergency treatment had been applied after the first surgery, the trace of the bullet’s passage was plainly visible. The disk that should have been between the vertebrae couldn’t find its place, and nerves and blood vessels were tangled messily.
“Approached T4.”
With Geon Tae’s support, she calmly secured her field of view. She aligned the fractured bone fragments with the surrounding bone and fixed them in place with a Metal Implant all at once.
Every step was swift and precise. Even watching the surgery, Beom Jun was impressed. She was easily on par with Lim Seong Hyuk.
‘There’s a reason her treatment ability is five levels.’
“We’re done on our end. You’ll be looking at the Pericardium, right? I think there might be Tamponade.”
So Jung spoke as she delved deeper into the surgical site. Before handing the patient off to the Thoracic Surgeon, she stated her findings. She was self-assured, as if she knew the patient well.
Though her specialty was different, she must have reviewed Li Mu Seong’s test results. CT, MRI, ultrasound—all of it.
“No, it’ll be a Rupture.”
But Beom Jun spoke decisively about the part that hadn’t been clearly visible on CT.
Li Mu Seong’s pericardial Rupture—in , too—had been discovered only after surgery was complete. A tiny tear in the thin membrane that wraps around and protects the heart. Imaging wouldn’t have caught it.
‘Even Lim Seong Hyuk struggled to find this.’
By the original story, it would have been revealed only after a second surgery. But this time was different. Beom Jun had entered the operating room.
So Jung seemed puzzled by Beom Jun’s words. Watching her skeptical expression, Beom Jun smirked slightly.
She was doing well. Medicine is fundamentally a discipline where you must even doubt yourself.
Beom Jun lifted the major vessel shielding the heart’s posterior and showed it to So Jung. Then the torn epicardium was revealed.
“See?”
“Yes. Wait, what?”
As Beom Jun spoke, So Jung saw it with her own eyes yet couldn’t easily accept that she’d missed something.
In that moment, Beom Jun began removing the blood pooled in the pericardium and started suturing. He carefully controlled the tension—loose enough not to unravel, yet tight enough not to compress the heart.
Among suturing methods, Beom Jun chose simple interrupted stitches
*
because it could prevent Ischemia in delicate, flexible tissue like the pericardium.
*One of the methods for closing a surgical site
Stitch by stitch at even intervals, Beom Jun sutured the pericardium, and So Jung, standing a step behind, marveled at the director’s surgical skill.
She, who had been confident this would be her surgery to lead, entrusted herself to the hospital director’s command.

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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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