Chapter 92: Multidisciplinary Approach (I)

“You’re truly, truly amazing.” Hank murmured with genuine admiration as he chewed his food at the cafeteria located on the third floor of the hospital.

Based on his appearance, one might expect him to eat only meat, but Hank was actually consuming a salad.

“No, I just explained the established protocol,” Suhyuk replied quietly while watching Hank devour lettuce, tomatoes, and cheese. He shook his head.

Despite his lean physique, Suhyuk was eating a thick, greasy homemade burger, which seemed rather incongruous.

“This is the taste I’ve been craving. Mmm, burgers are quintessentially American.”

While Suhyuk’s preference for this type of cuisine was partly due to his own tastes, it could largely be attributed to Baruda’s influence, who insisted on fatty foods to ensure Suhyuk’s health as the sole input-output channeler.

Despite Suhyuk being the sole input-output device, Hank’s insistence on eating greasy food contradicted his concerns about maintaining Suhyuk’s health.

“It is impressive to know all these protocols. In the Hematology-Oncology Department… Among them, I am responsible for solid tumors, and its chemotherapy protocol keeps changing. The residents can’t keep up.”

Hank pointed at Steve, who was munching on a sandwich in one corner like a cat with cream.

In truth, Steve wasn’t lacking significantly. Residents didn’t solely focus on the Hematology-Oncology Department. Their training aimed not to specialize but rather to become general internists equipped with comprehensive knowledge and skills across internal medicine disciplines.

“However…Doctor Lee seems to be doing this. Are you aiming for the Hematology-Oncology Department?”

It was difficult to expect residents to possess up-to-date or advanced knowledge, especially those like Hank, who specialized in hematology-oncology. Cancer remained a field with numerous unsolved challenges compared to other diseases, making it particularly challenging even for hematologist-oncologists.

Despite these difficulties, Suhyuk had consistently displayed impressive knowledge throughout today’s outpatient clinic. Naturally, Hank couldn’t help but suspect that Suhyuk might be aspiring towards the Hematology-Oncology Department.

“Oh, no, not at all. I haven’t decided on my specific sub-specialty yet.”

“Ah, right. Of course… Wait? You haven’t decided?”

“No, I have not determined my focus yet.”

“But… how do you know so much about cancer treatments?”

Hank looked incredulous. Suhyuk had effortlessly recited various types of cancers, their characteristics, potential complications from treatment, and methods to manage those complications. Hank, who had been a specialist in Hematology-Oncology for over ten years, was astonished by Suhyuk’s accuracy despite this not being his chosen field. He was so taken aback that he didn’t even notice when some cheese fell from his mouth.

“I just…consider it a courtesy towards my patients. That’s why I studied diligently. In Internal Medicine, the more you study, the better chance you have at saving lives.”

“Wow…” It was an exceptional response.

An internal medicine doctor can save patients based on their knowledge.

Hank chuckled and shook his head before turning back to Steve. Until this morning, he had considered Steve a decent resident, but now he seemed inadequate. It was baffling.

[Hah, his acting skills are truly impressive.]

Hank wasn’t the only one impressed by Suhyuk’s response; Baru, residing within Suhyuk’s mind, was even more astonished.

[A physician can save patients according to their knowledge. Wow… Where did you read that?]

‘It just came to me.’

[Like a personal motto?]

‘No, I was thinking about how to give a cool answer, and it popped into my head immediately.’

[Oh…]

Bardu genuinely expressed his admiration for Suhyuk.

Although Suhyuk’s expression was merely replicating one that Suhyuk had worn before…

‘D-Don’t do that.’

While Suhyuk felt disconcerted by seeing his own face mirrored back at him, Baruda continued to express admiration unabashedly.

[Suhyuk, you are a genius.]

Genius? I wouldn’t say ‘genius,’ but I am quite intelligent.

[A genius actor…]

‘Actor’? Bullshit. You’re making it sound like I’m pretending. Don’t forget, I genuinely cared for patients! Remember those nights when I attended to others’ patients as well?

[Isn’t that something any doctor should do?]

Ummm… No, never mind.

Suhyuk shook his head, remembering that Baruda was programmed artificial intelligence.

When did this tin can attend medical school or meet fellow doctors? If it had experienced these things, it wouldn’t have spoken so shamelessly. In reality, there were many more doctors who didn’t follow such ideals.

“Ah, let’s not argue about this…”

While Suhyuk was debating with Baruda over trivial matters, Hank finished his large salad quickly and efficiently.

He then forcefully patted Suhyuk on the shoulder. Each pat felt like someone hitting him with their full strength due to Hank’s incredible strength.

“Ack.”

“What are you doing this afternoon, Dr. Lee?”

Of course, Hank had no intention of causing pain to Suhyuk. He simply looked at Suhyuk with a bright expression on his face. However, even this smile felt quite intimidating and frightening.

“I…I don’t know.”

“Oh right. You’re a trainee. Steve, you should know since it’s your responsibility.”

Suhyuk quickly shook his head, and Hank turned towards Steve. Steve had been quietly eating while being ignored earlier, so he finished his meal long ago.

“Well…”

“What? Don’t you know? Are you serious?” Hank cocked his head at the unexpected response from Steve.

Even if another professor acted like this, it would be terrifying.

Hank’s reputation was unparalleled even within the United States. Naturally, Steve started to feel uneasy around him.

“No, during the first week of a trainee, we don’t schedule afternoon appointments.”

“Why?”

“Due to jet lag issues…and they need guidance on navigating the hospital. Some trainees get lost easily. In the afternoons… Hmm. I planned for Christian to give Suhyuk a tour.”

“Doctor Lee requires a guided tour?” Hank didn’t see any value in such tours. If it were anyone other than Suhyuk, he wouldn’t have cared whether they received a tour or spent their time lounging around. However, Suhyuk was exceptionally talented.

In the past ten years of teaching residents and trainees, Hank had never encountered someone as impressive as Suhyuk. It was already sad that Suhyuk would be here for only one month, so wasting any time was unacceptable.

“I have digitized the maps. At least, you won’t get lost.”

‘Good. What kind of guidance is needed anyway? Are you crazy? We’re in the United States.’

“Exactly.”

‘Well… it seems like previous trainees mostly enjoyed their free time…’

Suhyuk shared this sentiment. Since he was in the United States, he had no intention of merely passing the time idly. Taehwa Medical Center was undoubtedly a good hospital with potential for growth, but being in America opened up even more possibilities.

This was the United States, after all - the country leading medical advancements worldwide in both name and reality. They needed to determine within this month whether it was worth staying here or if they could succeed elsewhere.

“No, sir. It’s fine. I roughly studied the layout yesterday.”

“Oh? Is that so?”

“Then…then you don’t have any scheduled plans for today?”

“Well now. You’re taking things easy.” Hank glanced at Steve with concern, as if worried about his hospital’s reputation.

At that moment, Steve bowed deeply. Fortunately, Hank didn’t reprimand him further.

Traditionally, trainees were often seen as burdens that hospitals had to endure for a set period of time before sending them back. It was different with long-term trainees who stayed over a year, but short-term trainees rarely seemed interested in learning anything from their experiences.

For some reason…I want to show him something.

However, Hank didn’t feel this way about Suhyuk. The thought of hearing “The Iowa State University Hospital isn’t much” from Suhyuk’s mouth would genuinely hurt his pride.

“Well then, attend the interdisciplinary conference this afternoon.”

“I-interdisciplinary?” Steve’s eyes widened at Hank’s suggestion.

Hank stared at Steve with disapproval.

“Why? Is there a problem?”

“I-Issue… For outpatient clinics, we can obtain consent from patients for trainees to observe, but not for multidisciplinary conferences…right?”

Suhyuk looked perplexed by this nonsense.

“What do you mean?”

Baruda shared the same sentiment. In Korea, it would have been considered normal for trainees to attend multidisciplinary conferences.

‘Wait… Does that mean they need individual consent for each case?’

“It seems so.”

Suhyuk briefly recalled his student days. Even then, he had observed outpatient clinics and assisted in surgeries just as before.

However, he had never obtained permission from patients for such observations. The United States was known as a litigious society, and most doctors avoided any potential issues by not seeking consent.

“Can’t we just get their consent?”

“No… For interdisciplinary patients?”

“Yes. I’ll handle it myself. Add Dr. Lee to the list of attendees.”

“Uh… Manager An…”

“Steve, I am the head of the Hematology-Oncology Department. Can’t I decide who attends the multidisciplinary meetings that I oversee?”

“Oh… No, you can. Um, I’ll include him.”

“Good.”

Hank sent Steve ahead to the conference room before turning his attention back to Suhyuk.

“I will make a call first, and then you can join me at the conference on the fifth floor of the Internal Medicine ward. By the way, I heard Korea is also implementing multidisciplinary approaches these days?”

A multidisciplinary approach meant gathering doctors from various departments to discuss diagnosis, surgery, and chemotherapy for a single cancer patient. While not all hospitals in South Korea practiced this method, it had been actively implemented in medical centers like Taehwa Hospital for quite some time.

“Yes.”

“Nevertheless, Taehwa Hospital is renowned, but there may still be differences.”

Hank recalled that recently, Korea has produced several excellent research papers, and numerous hospitals were achieving commendable treatment outcomes. However, disparities persisted due to fundamentally different healthcare systems.

“I sincerely hope so.”

‘In other words…’

Suhyuk also hoped for this outcome. Honestly, based on his observations of the outpatient clinic, he couldn’t see any significant improvements over Taehwa Medical Center. Although Hank spent more time with each patient, it wasn’t drastically longer than Taejin’s consultations. Moreover, their conclusions were quite similar. Suhyuk’s initial expectations began to diminish somewhat.

“Yes, Professor.”

Regardless, Suhyuk headed towards the conference room, hoping for some differences.

Baruda had memorized the map as mentioned earlier, so there were no difficulties navigating to the conference room.

‘Wow.’

“It’s… different than expected?” Suhyuk exclaimed after entering and seeing the list displayed on the screen along with allocated times.

‘There are eight names?’

“Each professor has 30 minutes… It totals four hours.”

‘Don’t they have patients to see? No regular duties?’

“This is…part of their regular duties? Otherwise, it would be impossible for all these department heads to gather at this time.’

‘Ahh…’