Legend (5)
“The general anesthesia is over. I will maintain your vitals from now on.”
The doctors exchanged glances as they reported to the anesthesiologist.
“From now on, duodenal reconstruction and splenectomy will begin.”
At Smith’s words, the second assistant disinfected the abdomen and covered it with a cloth.
Song Myeong-jin’s appearance looked even more pitiful due to the steel frame rising above the cannon.
“Meth.”
Smith received a scalpel from a sterilizing nurse and performed a laparotomy.
The skin, fascia, muscle layer, and peritoneum were separated one by one, revealing the inside of the abdomen at a glance.
The steel frame pierced the peritoneum and became lodged in the 2nd and 3rd duodenum.
The surface of the area where the steel frame was embedded was gray and dead, and there was a small amount of bleeding.
In addition, due to the shock, fluid was stagnating in the portal vein and bile was stagnating in the retroperitoneum.
“I’ll start by controlling the bleeding.”
Click! Click!
Ki-Seok Choi used vascular forceps to tighten the upper and lower parts of the duodenum where the steel bars were embedded. Then, a suction device was used to suck out the blood accumulated within the organ.
“The two people there take off the bandages and grab the rebar. Mr. Choi is the one who pulls out the rebar.”
“yes.”
Following Smith’s instructions, the intern and second assistant removed the bandage that was binding the rebar.
In response, Choi Ki-seok took a deep breath and placed his hand on the rebar.
In the past, when I was at medical school, I operated on a patient who had a side mirror stuck in his spleen.
Reminiscing about that time, I used the Tyrant’s Descent.
Sooooooooooo.
When I applied force and pulled up the rebar, it fell out at once.
If he had applied clumsy force, there would have been damage to the surrounding tissue, but his treatment was clean.
“Good job Mr. Choi.”
“thank you.”
Choi Ki-seok changed his surgical gloves and stared at the surgical site.
The rebar has just been pulled out, but there is a long way to go.
I hope that the teacher will endure well until then….
“The area where the rebar was stuck cannot be saved. First, the area must be excised and a debridement procedure will be performed. Scalpel.”
Smith completed the duodenectomy and began disinfecting the surrounding tissue. Because the area contaminated with rebar was large, disinfection took quite a long time.
‘Has it already become like this?’
Smith checked his surgical clock and frowned.
One of the few doctors he recognizes is Song Myeong-jin. As a result, treatment had to become much more thorough.
However, the problem is that the surgery must be completed as quickly as possible.
Song Myung-jin must undergo not only general surgery but also thoracic surgery and neurosurgery.
The longer the surgery time, the more damage accumulates.
Just right. Just right. Just right.
Smith hit his teeth without realizing it.
“No matter how much I think about it, there’s not enough time, Mr. Choi.”
“Yes, Head Chief.”
“From now on, we will begin suturing the upper and lower portions of the duodenum simultaneously. I will anastomose the upper portion, and you will anastomose the lower portion. The suture is 3-0 vicryl.”
“All right.”
Choi Ki-seok nodded and held the needle holder in his hand.
Gigigigigeek.
I tightened the needle with the needle holder and looked down at the duodenum where the anastomosis was to be performed. Although I was promoted early, I scrubbed for most general surgery operations.
Even Whipple surgery.
The duodenal suture was sufficiently confident.
“Then let’s begin.”
“I’ll start too.”
Soon, the two people began suturing simultaneously.
The suturing method is a simple interrupted suturing method in which the surgical area is tied together stitch by stitch with a needle.
Although it is the most basic suturing method, it requires a lot of work and takes a long time.
click. click.
Only the sound of the knot being cut echoed in the quiet operating room.
The two sergeants who began suturing said nothing, as if their mouths had been padlocked.
I just concentrated all my attention on suturing.
Meanwhile, other staff members helped the two people and often stared at the operating clock.
In this surgery, quick completion is as important as accuracy.
Amid the suffocating tension, Smith sighed and straightened his back.
The anastomosis of the upper part of the duodenum was completed.
I pressed the anastomosis site with forceps, but there were no signs of leakage.
“I’m done too.”
Choi Ki-seok scored a needle holder one beat late.
Accordingly, a second assistant performed a final inspection of the anastomosis site with ethylene solution.
Suturing on both sides of the duodenum was completed successfully.
“The spleen will be removed and the surgery will be completed.”
Smith, with the help of Ki-Seok Choi and other staff, removed the bleeding spleen. Surgery time was drastically reduced at an unrivaled speed.
“Now I’ve done everything I can.”
“Thank you, Head Chief. If it wasn’t for Head Chief…”
Choi Ki-seok was so overcome with emotion that he couldn’t finish his sentence.
He placed me first,
trusted me, entrusted me with simultaneous suturing, and shortened the surgery time with his unique skill.
If someone other than Smith had been the surgeon, this result would never have occurred.
“It’s too early to get emotional. We’ve only just crossed one ridge.”
“…yes.”
“Let’s go out.”
The general surgery staff and Choi Ki-seok left the rosette at the same time.
Outside the rosette, pulmonary and esophageal surgery chief Yasada and cardiothoracic surgery fellows, as well as cardiac surgery fellows, were waiting.
“Your skills haven’t rusted yet.”
Yasada said something to Smith.
He gathered the staff and rushed to the operating room when he heard that Song Myeong-jin had been in a car accident. And I watched Smith’s surgery in the observation operating room.
His speed and accuracy are unrivaled.
I felt once again that Smith was the person closest to the Great Surgeon.
“If you are a soldier with rusty hands, you should retire. Please take care of me.”
“of course.”
Yasada nodded and continued speaking.
“I can’t let Dr. Song go in vain like this.”
“I agree.”
After a short conversation, the general surgery and thoracic surgery staff crossed paths.
Buck. Buck. Buck. Buck.
The thoracic surgery staff all scrubbed.
“Chief. I also want to help with the surgery.”
“no.”
“I majored in thoracic surgery in Korea. I scrubbed for various surgeries, including CABG. I would like to help in some small way with my teacher’s surgery.”
“But that doesn’t work!”
Yasada flatly refused.
“We have already selected staff who are optimal for surgery. We cannot change people now.”
“I know it’s unreasonable for me to come forward, but I feel like my heart will burst if I stay like this.”
As Choi Ki-seok expressed his anger, Yasada’s expression subtly changed.
He knew very well how much Song Myeong-jin cared for Choi Ki-seok.
If we were to interpret this in reverse, it would mean that Choi Ki-seok also greatly respects and follows Song Myeong-jin.
Amidst the tense tension, Yasada spoke first.
“If you insist until the end, I will give you an internship position. However, no more than that is possible.”
“thank you.”
Choi Ki-seok bowed his head.
Thanks to Yasada’s consideration, I was able to get at least an internship position.
Jiiiing.
The staff members who finished scrubbing entered the rosette at the same time.
While the surgeons were settling in, a heart-lung technician inspected the heart-lung machine. In order to restore the damaged pulmonary artery, the help of a heart-lung machine was desperately needed.
“Administer heparin (anticoagulant). Connect the cannula first.”
“yes.”
Under Yasada’s instructions, Choi Ki-seok injected heparin into the intravenous line, and the second assistant inserted cannulas into Song Myeong-jin’s inferior vena cava and superior vena cava.
Drurr.
With the heart-lung machine running, the surgery came to a close.
‘I never thought I’d see you on the operating table.’
Yasada looked down at Song Myeong-jin and made a confused expression.
Song Myeong-jin was full of motivation when he went down to the branch.
Because I have always loved teaching people under me.
“As for me, I enjoy watching my juniors grow these days. Do you know why that is?”
“I don’t know because I haven’t been inside your head.”
“Heh heh… That sounds dull… The more skilled doctors there are, the more patients will recover to normal. Maybe it’s time for us to step down.”
“Are you not confident in surgery?”
“That’s not true. I guess I just want to think about the future a little more.”
Suddenly, the conversation I had with Song Myeong-jin came to mind.
‘You can’t die. If you want to see the future you wanted.’
A radiance emanated from Yasada’s sunken eyes.
“From now on, we will begin pulmonary artery rupture surgery and pulmonary artery reconstruction.”
“….”
“Joel, what are you doing!”
Yasada’s yelling continued.
The second assistant, who had to work under the surgery, did not move.
“Joel, what are you doing?”
“S-sorry.”
Joel belatedly started disinfecting.
However, Joel’s hand moving the forceps was shaking. A look of fear was evident in both eyes.
“Are you kidding me? Are you trying to help me with the surgery? Or are you saying I’m going to interfere with it!”
“Well… that’s actually…”
Joel continued with a frightened expression.
“I… I can’t do it. I don’t know about anything else, but I will never be able to do this surgery.”
“….”
“Just thinking about cutting into the Head Chief’s body makes my mind go blank. I remember the time when you taught me how to kill, and my hands stop responding.”
“You fool! This man is not the Head Chief Song you know. He is a patient dying from a car accident.”
“But I…”
“Get out of here! I don’t need you.”
Joel dropped his head and left the rosette at Yasada’s yelling.
“Mr. Choi is coming in second. Ask the intern waiting in the operating room to come back.”
“All right.”
After many twists and turns, the surgery resumed.
With the heart-lung machine running, Song Myeong-jin’s chest was opened through median sternotomy.
Soon the left lung appeared.
Part of the left lung was bruised blue and small blood vessels had burst and bleeding. Part of the rib pierced the lung, and chest wall damage and diaphragm rupture were observed.
“The chest tube was intubated properly. Did you do it?”
“yes.”
“Good job. If I hadn’t taken care of the hemothorax, Dr. Song would have already died. Scalpel.”
Yasada held the scalpel handed to him by the disinfection nurse.
Then the first assistant suctioned the blood from the area to be treated and began disinfecting it.
The first treatment that follows is a lung resection.
Song Myeong-jin’s lung damage was so severe that there was no other way than to cut out the affected area.
Suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu
Yasada carefully cut out the lung.
Because there were bronchial tubes and blood vessels nearby, I had to be careful with my hand movements.
Empty!
Under calm treatment, the ruptured lung fell to the ground.
‘After all, time is the issue.’
Yasada glanced at the clock on the wall and thought of a process that could shorten the surgical process.
If the surgery takes longer, Song Myeong-jin will not be able to endure it.
He has already had one surgery at a general surgery clinic and must undergo a thoracic surgery followed by a neurosurgery surgery.
“Olive. Mr. Choi.”
“yes!”
“From now on, come to your senses and follow me. I’ll show you everything I have.”
Yasada’s eyes shone fiercely.
* * *
Surgery observation room.
Smith, who had just finished the surgery, and Lucas were staring at the monitor.
“Yasada is venomous.”
“That thing. It’s almost at the level of a runaway?”
The two people clicked their tongues as they watched Yasada’s treatment. To
add a little bit of exaggeration, Yasada was performing treatment so quickly that his hands were not visible. At first glance, it looks like a child imitating a doctor by moving his hands as he pleases. He looks like he’s making a fuss.
The only difference from the kids is that he performs surgery on patients.
The treatment is perfect.
“Well, I understand. The person who is closest to Dr. Song is Yasada.”
Smith nodded and continued.
“I’m sorry by the way. “I ended up handing you the heaviest burden.”
“It’s okay. You and Yasada shortened the surgery time a lot. At this level, it’s actually a blessing.”
“Yes. “I only trust you.”
Smith put his hand on Lucas’ shoulder.
Just then, the heart-lung machine disconnected the heart-lung machine.
The thoracic surgery part, which should have taken four hours, was completed in just an hour.
“Now it’s my turn.”
“Good luck.”
“I’m sorry, but I don’t need luck. “I don’t believe in luck or God. The only thing I believe in is my own two hands.”
Tap-tap-tap.
Lucas cracked his neck and headed toward the operating room.
