Chapter 149: I Must See the Patient (1)

When Woo Changyun, or rather Woo Hayoon, shared her plan, Shin Hyun-tae and Lee Hyunjong nodded with expressions indicating they had expected this. They believed it would allow them to resolve everything at once. However, this strategy required time, so they dispersed to carry out their respective tasks.

Approximately five days later, Suhyuk’s cell phone rang fiercely.

“Hey, Dahoon. What’s up?”

Suhyuk was completing his rounds in the hospital rooms and writing prescriptions. He discreetly glanced at his watch, noting it was only 3 PM. This meant the outpatient clinic was still open.

“Oh… There’s an admission order from Professor Seo Hyoseok’s outpatient clinic.”

“Admitted to the hospital? That person?”

Something unusual must have occurred. The patient who Seo Hyoseok disliked intensely was now admitted?

“Yes. For now, he wants you and your upperclassman to see him and transfer him to an appropriate department…”

“Oh.”

As expected, the only plan for admission involved transferring departments. Only Professor Seo Hyoseok could create such chaos in this world.

Regardless, Suhyuk couldn’t afford to make similar mistakes just because Seo Hyoseok did so. Unlike Seo Hyoseok, Suhyuk didn’t come from wealth or connections yet aimed to become a professor. His sole reliance had to be his skills.

“I’ll take a look first. Where is the patient?”

“Ah, I am currently with the patient in their hospital room. There were no available rooms in Internal Medicine today, so they are in the annex building.”

“Annex Building? Which floor?”

“The seventh floor.”

“Oh, the seventh floor.”

The seventh floor was for ENT (Ear, Nose and Throat) patients. Among them, mainly patients with nose or ear problems were admitted. Usually, Internal Medicine patients weren’t hospitalized here unless there was a shortage of rooms. It seemed like this hospital had run out of available rooms.

“[Despite all these issues, patients continue to flock here.]”

‘These days, large hospitals everywhere seem chaotic.’

“[Yes, I’ve heard that too.]”

This wasn’t a recent phenomenon. Over several years, the trend of patients preferring large hospitals had steadily increased. If it were due to people with serious illnesses seeking treatment, it would be understandable. However, the primary reason behind this shift was individuals insisting on visiting large hospitals even for minor ailments.

As a result, not only were critical patients being pushed back, but also the roles of neighborhood hospitals were becoming increasingly diminished.

‘Let’s go first.’

[Yes.]

However, this was not yet Suhyuk’s problem to ponder. It wasn’t an issue that could be resolved through contemplation either, especially since Suhyuk was merely a resident at present. His immediate task was to attend to patients.

‘There hasn’t been much movement yet?’

Naturally, they discussed Seo Hyoseok on their way. They were currently located in the main building, and it was quite a distance to reach the annex building. Baruda hadn’t heard any significant updates about the patient yet, so he focused on answering Suhyuk’s questions.

[No. Well… During rounds or when passing by, there hasn’t been much change in his expression. Oh.]

‘Ah, whatever.’

“[Should we be cautious around Hah Yunhan?]”

‘Ah, that. Well… I suppose so.’

It was common for people who were overly aggressive towards the weak to be submissive towards those stronger than them. Seo Hyoseok exemplified this typical behavior of small-minded individuals.

‘Anyway, it seems he is unaware?’

“Yes. It appears he hasn’t noticed at all. Maybe his influence doesn’t reach her?”

‘I see. She has connections in electronics.’

“Indeed, lucky coincidence. The person he treated just happened to be Executive Director Kim Da-hyun.”

‘It’s not luck; it’s due to her skills.’

“Well, even if you say so…”

Baruda recalled how Shin Hyun-tae had recently helped him contact Executive Director Kim Da-hyun. Upon discharge from the hospital, she immediately returned to work, which might explain the energetic tone in her voice.

I could sense her unique confidence as a highly skilled professional. Initially, she seemed hesitant, thinking it might be related to research funding. However, when I explained that it was a request for transparency and gratitude regarding the process, she enthusiastically welcomed it with open arms. She even promised to handle the matter discreetly. After all, these were not just words from anyone but Kim Da-hyun herself, who is rewriting history.

‘I trust she will take care of it.’

[Indeed, considering her impressive career.]

[Ah, there’s the elevator.]

Despite limping with his staff, Suhyuk had reached the annex building’s elevator. To be precise, its doors were about to close.

“W-wait!”

With him dressed in a gown and using a staff, almost no one could ignore his plea.

“Phew, thank you.”

Thanks to this, Suhyuk easily entered the elevator as it reopened. When he looked for who pressed the open button, it was none other than Ha-yeon.

“Huh?”

“Oh, are you visiting An Dae-hoon too?”

“Yes, I received a call earlier. And you?”

“I’m going for EKG and ABGA tests.”

This meant she was performing typical intern duties. It wasn’t unusual for an intern like Ha-yeon to handle such tasks, but it was odd that she would be attending to patients in the annex building.

“Ahh… Wait? But there should already be interns assigned to the hospital rooms, right?”

“It’s fine; I’ll take care of An Dae-hoon’s patient myself. Anyway, I’ll specialize in Internal Medicine eventually.”

“Don’t overdo it. You’ll end up getting sick, and remember, even if residents fall ill, they can’t skip work.”

“I know.”

Hearing Suhyuk’s words, Ha-yeon recalled a colleague who had worked while hooked up to an IV not too long ago. Depending on one’s perspective, it could be seen as quite tragic, but this was common in university hospitals. If even one resident doctor took time off, it would lead to disastrous consequences due to their heavy workload. Unless seriously ill, they couldn’t afford to skip work.

“So please take care of yourself.”

“I’m fine, upperclassman. I’m really healthy and consistently exercise.”

“Exercise? As an intern?”

“Yes. Even if it’s just for 10 or 20 minutes a day before bed.”

Suhyuk briefly reflected on his own intern days upon hearing Ha-yeon’s statement. Actually, he didn’t need to go back that far; reflecting on just this year sufficed.

He just needed to look back at this year.

[Suhyuk, you are much better than I expected. Have you been exercising for 10 or 20 minutes daily?]

‘Do you consider holding onto my staff as exercise?’

[Is that what doctors should say? To engage in aerobic exercises, you need to sweat minimally.]

‘Then it’s zero minutes. Doesn’t it seem too pathetic?’

[I wouldn’t go as far as saying pathetic, but Suhyuk is quite strict with himself.]

‘No, no.’

In truth, he had never exercised throughout his life. Moreover, his eating habits were not particularly healthy either. Suddenly, doubts about living a long life overwhelmed him.

This unease soon spread to Baruda as well.

[This won’t do. You must start exercising. What would happen if you die after all the effort I’ve put into making you capable?]

‘You said you were checking on me?’

[I was just saying that. It’s not perfect.]

‘No, you bastard. I trusted you completely. What do you mean it isn’t perfect?’

[Why are you so angry? Anyway, we’re here. Wake up now.]

‘Hmph.’

Suhyuk wanted to continue being angry, but when he raised his head, as Baruda mentioned, they were indeed in front of the hospital room. Moreover, An Dae-hoon rushed out from inside.

“D-Doctor!”

His reaction was like a reunion with a long-lost family member, but Suhyuk remained unimpressed.

“Uh, don’t get too close. Seriously.”

It simply annoyed him.

“Please come inside quickly.”

Contrary to Suhyuk’s expectations, An Dae-hoon did not dawdle but hurriedly pulled him inside.

“Huh? A patient from the outpatient clinic? Urgent?”

“Yes, urgent. No…it is strange.”

“Strange? What does Professor Seo suspect?”

“It just says ‘strange’ on the chart.”

“Huh?”

The professor noted something as ‘strange’ about the patient’s future condition? Wasn’t this excessive even for Seo Hyoseok? Suhyuk questioned An Dae-hoon again, but the response remained unchanged.

“Yes, it states ‘strange’…”

“Wow…”

“In any case, there really is something odd. Please take a look.”

“Alright, alright.”

The strangest thing was Seo Hyoseok’s reaction, but An Dae-hoon wasn’t one to exaggerate easily either. Suhyuk raised his eyebrows but decided to enter the room nonetheless.

As soon as he saw the patient, he understood why they found it peculiar.

Age… 25 years old. But…

[His skin looks incredibly saggy.]

It wasn’t just saggy; the skin appeared stretched and drooping. It wasn’t due to obesity. Rather, the elasticity of the skin seemed abnormally altered.

So…what could be causing this? Is it the main symptom?

[I don’t think so.]

Following Baruda’s words, Suhyuk turned to glance at the chart An Dae-hoon was holding. It mentioned that for several years, the patient had been experiencing blood in her stool as a primary symptom.

Suhyuk initially thought it was related to skin issues, but now he read about blood in the stool. He felt blindsided already.

“Ah, hello.”

At that moment, the patient greeted him. Suhyuk was taken aback; never did he imagine becoming a doctor and receiving greetings from patients first. Feeling self-conscious, he bowed his head.

“Yes, hello. I’m Lee Suhyuk. Alongside Dr. An Dae-hoon, we will be taking care of you today.”

“Oh, okay.”

“And your name is Hong Yeonsu?”

“Yes.”

“You’re 25 years old, correct?”

“Ah, yes.”

After naturally greeting her, Suhyuk started confirming the information he already knew. Female, 25 years old, blood in stool for four years, and skin irritation prior to that, etc.

Firstly, the basic step in diagnosis was obtaining a medical history through questioning. The more skilled the doctor, the more information they could gather during this process.

‘She has abdominal pain accompanied by blood in her stools.’

“[Additionally, you have a tendency to bleed easily. From a young age, your nose often bled, and you bruise quickly.]”

‘Should I consider the blood in her stools as part of the bleeding tendency?’

“[I’m not sure about that, but your skin… It seems quite unrelated to what we’ve discussed so far.]”

It could be due to entirely separate issues, but surprisingly, it might also stem from the same cause. Only one thing was certain: there wasn’t enough evidence yet to confirm anything definitively.

Surprisingly, both symptoms could be caused by the same reason. It was certain that one of these two explanations was correct. However, currently, there was nothing conclusive.

“Firstly, I will perform an EKG and arterial examination… Then, let’s proceed with the remaining tests.”

“Uh… By any chance, doctor?”

“Yes.”

“I… Do you know what my diagnosis is? No one has explained it to me yet…I am really scared.”

Although her sagging skin made her appear older, based on her voice and manner of speaking, she was undoubtedly a young patient at 25 years old - younger than Suhyuk, An Dae-hoon, or Ha-yoon. Yet, here she was admitted to a university hospital.

Feeling apologetic once again, Suhyuk started explaining.

“Ah, I’m sorry. First, we need to check for bleeding tendencies and…”

[A colonoscopy. You should perform a colonoscopy.]

“I believe a colonoscopy will help us find some clues. Ah, of course, along with basic blood tests.”

[Good. That seems appropriate.]

Suhyuk was following Baruda’s advice. Although it wasn’t entirely satisfactory, the patient still expressed gratitude. It was because this conversation seemed more reasonable than anything heard during their hospitalization process.

“Yes, thank you.”

“Well…I’ll see you after conducting the tests.”

“Okay.”

Suhyuk left the room behind Ha-yoon, who needed to conduct the examination. He couldn’t stop pondering about the potential results of the test.