Adventure (3)
Early morning.
Choi Ki-seok was taking a shower in the bathroom.
While drying off with a towel, he looked closely at his reflection in the mirror.
The past four years of experiencing all kinds of twists and turns were clearly visible on my face. The jaw became sharper than before, and an unknown poison emanated from the eyes.
At the beginning of residency, there was no sign of greenness anywhere.
Now he has changed to the point where he can be trusted by patients just based on his appearance.
After leaving the bathroom, Choi Ki-seok put on a robe and left the dormitory.
Since I was not a resident, I did not have to go to work early, but it was difficult to break the ingrained habit.
‘You’ve finally come this far.’
A smile appeared on his lips as he looked at the status window.
Occupation and specialty: Thoracic Surgery Fellow (Pediatric Cardiac Surgery/Pulmonary Esophageal Surgery/Pediatric Thoracic Surgery)
Physical strength: 8/12
Diagnostic power: 9/10
Surgical treatment: 12/14
Medical treatment: 8/10
Reputation: 9
Political power: 9
Charisma: 9
All figures related to medical care have reached their peak.
Among them, the most encouraging part is by far the surgical treatment.
The other soldiers’ kill limit was 10, but Choi Ki-seok had already reached 12.
It means transcending human limitations.
In the past, when he was training at Uijin University, Hana Kang once called him a super intern, but now he has literally become a super doctor.
It was the wind that raised me.
There was a poet who said that, but Choi Ki-seok was raised by a patient of eight percent.
Many patients flock to MHC due to its reputation.
Through his diverse clinical experience, he became the second thoracic surgeon to achieve a triple board.
“Professor, are you here?”
The intern I ran into in the hallway waved happily. Ki-Seok Choi, who had completed the fellow course, held the title of professor and was participating in outpatient treatment and surgery.
“You came out early today again.”
“When I lay still, my body started to itch. “Did anything happen all night?”
“yes. It was eerily quiet. “For some reason, there was no call to the emergency room.”
“You were lucky. effort.”
Choi Ki-seok said hello to the intern and then walked around the hospital room.
Using the eyes of Hippocrates, I toured the adult ward and then moved to the pediatric ward.
Then, my footsteps stopped in front of a hospital room.
Choi Ki-seok looked at the child in front of the hospital room door because he did not want to wake the child and his parents who were sleeping soundly.
The child’s name is Karl.
The child was a 3-month-old newborn suffering from hypoplastic left heart syndrome.
Hypoplastic left heart syndrome is a complex disease in which several abnormalities such as mitral valve stenosis, left ventricular hypoplasia, and aortic valve obstruction occur simultaneously.
As various symptoms overlap, the difficulty of surgery rises exponentially, and the first step in surgery to solve this problem is Norwood surgery.
Coincidentally, the patient he will be operating on this afternoon is Carol.
‘Difficult breathing and cyanosis have worsened. ‘The surgery time may need to be brought forward.’
As I was watching Carol for a while, someone placed a hand on her shoulder.
The moment I turned my head, a finger poked my cheek.
Thanks to this, I was able to be sure who the person behind me was without having to see their face.
“Are you kidding me this morning?”
“I’m kidding because it’s morning. “It’s hard to see each other when we go to outpatient clinics.”
“yes yes. “I will take care of it.”
Ki-Seok Choi spoke playfully and made eye contact with Charles.
He wasn’t the only one who had grown over the past four years.
Charles also achieved remarkable growth through suturing practice and reading papers. Currently, he has completed his fellowship in adult cardiac surgery and was receiving outpatient treatment as such.
The main areas of treatment are coronary artery disease, aortic disease, and heart valve disease.
“Is that the patient? “Is there a patient undergoing Norwood surgery today?”
“that’s right.”
“No matter what, you will have to suffer a bit. Cutting open a newborn’s heart and sewing it up… Ugh. It’s scary to even think about it. “If you mess up even once, isn’t that what happens?”
Charles pretended to slit his throat with his finger.
“what. “Is there any surgery in the world that isn’t difficult?”
“But it is also true that the level of difficulty varies greatly from surgery to surgery. By the way, are you really going to go out?”
“huh.”
“Think again. You are already a star thoracic surgeon and also a major shareholder of Mayjo. “Going to MHC is no different from kicking my luck.”
Charles worked hard to persuade Choi Ki-seok.
From his perspective, he could not understand Choi Ki-seok’s choice to leave HC even after thinking about it hundreds of times.
“If you had said you were going back to Korea, I would have understood a little, but you said you applied to NSF… why are you putting yourself through such hardships?”
“It’s a new challenge. I wanted to train in an environment I had never experienced before. “It’s a short-term mission of three months anyway.”
“Have you already made up your mind? “Is there no way to turn back?”
Choi Ki-seok calmly nodded in response to Charles’ question.
“Your life is your choice, so I have nothing to say, but I’m still sad. “I thought we’d keep going together.”
“We’re just not in the same place, but the work we do is the same. “In terms of taking care of patients.”
“yes yes. “I will take care of it.”
Charles returned exactly what Choi Ki-seok had said.
The two people who had been talking in front of the hospital room soon moved to the lounge and continued talking.
That’s how the morning of my last day at MHC went.
* * *
In front of G Rosette at noon that day.
Choi Ki-seok gathered the staff together and was holding a briefing just before Carol’s surgery. The original surgery time was 3 PM, but the patient’s condition worsened, so the schedule was postponed.
“The patient is Karl, a 3-month-old newborn. “After visiting the hospital for cyanosis and receiving an echocardiogram, aortic valve occlusion, aortic stenosis, and tricuspid valve regurgitation were discovered, leading to a diagnosis of hypoplastic left heart syndrome.”
“….”
“There are three main surgical procedures today. One is to correct the deformity of the ascending aorta and atrial septum, the second is to widen the stenosis of the aortic duct, and the last is to plasticize the tricuspid valve. Anyone have any questions?”
As soon as he finished speaking, resident Guillaume, the third assistant, raised his hand.
“professor. “Does the patient really need Norwood surgery?”
At Guillaume’s question, the other staff members frowned and stared at him.
Some even snorted as if it was pitiful.
Who is the surgeon?
Isn’t Choi Ki-seok the second person in the world to achieve triple board thoracic surgery?
However, Guillaume’s question denied the surgery itself.
“What do you mean?”
“In my short opinion, Carol’s heart condition is so serious that it is difficult to keep your eyes open. “If this is the case, wouldn’t heart transplantation be more effective than Norwood surgery?”
“That’s a good question.”
Choi Ki-seok praised Guillaume with a smile.
“There are two main treatment methods for hypoplastic left heart syndrome. One is the Norwood surgery followed by the Fontan surgery, and the other is the heart transplant surgery you mentioned. Guillaume This time I will ask. “So why did I choose Norwood surgery instead of a heart transplant?”
“Umm… that.”
“Just think about it.”
“So…”
“The hint is after the surgery.”
Guillaume snapped his fingers as if he understood what he said.
“ah! Now I understand. “There is a high probability of transplant rejection and the problem of having to take immunosuppressants for life.”
“You’re right. Growing up on immunosuppressants from a newborn age is too harsh. If you take immunosuppressants, you will feel drowsy. “I have always been like that.”
“Isn’t the professor an exception?”
“I’m just holding on.”
Choi Ki-seok continued calmly.
“Considering the patient’s future, I think Norwood surgery is better. In Karl’s case, the Norwood surgery is more difficult than a heart transplant, but it is the doctor’s job to endure it.”
“As expected, you are a professor.”
“I will do my best for today’s surgery.”
The staff seemed impressed by Choi Ki-seok’s words and shot lasers from their eyes.
“ruler. “Let’s put it all together and start with the scrub.”
Gourd. Gourd. Gourd. Gourd.
Ki-seok Choi reviewed the surgical procedure while rubbing his hands and forearms with a brush dipped in povidone solution.
Over the past four years, I have undergone Norwood surgery nearly twenty times.
At first, he worked as an assistant to Kwon Il-soo, but at some point, he started performing the work himself. However, of all the Norwood patients I had ever experienced, Carol’s condition was by far the worst.
It’s surprising that even he, who surpasses the abilities of ordinary surgeons, would find the surgery burdensome.
‘There is no failure. I will definitely save it.’
Choi Ki-seok brainwashed himself when he joined Rosette.
Soon, the staff members were busy preparing for the surgery.
The entire process, including connecting the time-out patient monitoring device and setting up the surgical tools, flowed as naturally as water.
“Dr. Choi. I’m sorry. “The previously scheduled surgery took longer than expected.”
Anesthetist Lewis joined late.
“I should apologize. “I was the one who made the surgery schedule.”
“As it is late, we will manage vitals more thoroughly.”
Lewis prepared for anesthesia with an anesthesiologist at the patient’s bedside. Then, without realizing it, I glanced at Choi Ki-seok.
Even four years ago, I thought of him only as a resident with great potential. But now he has grown into a huge tree that is difficult to overcome.
If you were to choose the hottest thoracic surgeon in the world, anyone would choose Ki-Seok Choi without hesitation.
As Choi Ki-seok when he was green and Choi Ki-seok now overlapped, a smile suddenly escaped from between his lips.
They say you can’t catch the flowing river and time, and that’s really true.
Amid the hectic movement, preparations for the surgery and general anesthesia were finally completed.
Tdu-duk-duk.
Choi Ki-seok lightly bent his neck and looked down at Carol.
The baby, who was only three weeks old, was under anesthesia and did not move at all.
The child doesn’t know anything.
What disease you have and how critical your situation is.
All the child could do was cry loudly and let his parents know that he was sick.
He was particularly heartbroken when operating on pediatric patients.
“From now on, we will be performing Norwood surgery for hypoplastic left heart syndrome.”
At his words, the staff busily started disinfecting and dusting.
Since only aces were specifically selected, the preprocessing was dazzlingly fast.
Suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu
A scalpel emitting sharp light cut the patient’s skin.
The subsequent mid-bone thoracotomy was completed successfully, and when the retractor was opened to the left and right, the heart, the surgical site, was revealed.
thud. thud. thud.
My small heart was beating weakly.
It looked as if he was crying out for urgent treatment.
“Please inject cardioplegia. “I will connect you to a heart-lung machine.”
Jonathan, the first assistant, inserted the cannula into the femoral artery and right atrium, and the heart-lung machine was activated.
Soon, my heart fell into a peaceful sleep, just like Carol had fallen into anesthesia.
“First, check the heart condition. As everyone knows, the test results and the results of checking the surgical site after a thoracotomy may differ.”
“yes!”
In the blood-drying atmosphere, the staff’s eyes were fixed on Carol’s heart. It examines conditions such as aortic valve obstruction, aortic stenosis, and tricuspid valve regurgitation.
‘It’s not that easy?’
Choi Ki-seok’s eyes narrowed after he finished identifying the surgical site.
