Chapter 9: The Genius Lee Suhyuk (3)

The two people ahead of Suhyuk looked at him with confusion on their faces after hearing his words. It was because parrot disease was quite unfamiliar to them.

Parrot disease is caused by birds such as parrots infecting humans, leading to respiratory problems. If not properly treated, it could even result in death. However, many doctors go through their entire careers without encountering a single case.

‘Is this… correct?’

Even Suhyuk himself wasn’t entirely confident about mentioning this condition.

[Baruda is 99% certain.]

Baruda’s opinion differed due to its computational abilities. It had analyzed not only each patient’s information but also epidemiological relationships. As a result, parrot disease emerged as the most likely diagnosis.

‘Yes… Well, I have to trust it. What other choice do I have?’

Suhyuk couldn’t think of any alternative diagnosis either.

As Suhyuk silently nodded, Baruda continued.

[I recommend starting treatment with tetracycline-class antibiotics.]

‘Doxycycline?’

[Yes.]

‘It makes sense. But…’

Suhyuk didn’t have the authority to change antibiotics at will. Antibiotics can significantly impact a patient’s prognosis.

‘I need to get permission.’

This was evident from parrot disease alone. Before the development of doxycycline, the mortality rate fluctuated between 15-20%. However, now with timely and accurate diagnosis, the mortality rate could be reduced to less than 1%.

Despite these advancements, misdiagnoses leading to inappropriate antibiotic use still caused ongoing fatalities. No sane healthcare system would entrust such critical decisions to a first-year doctor.

Despite this knowledge, there were still continuous deaths due to misdiagnosis and inappropriate use of antibiotics. No sane medical system would entrust such important medication to a first year resident.

‘Hmm…’

In principle, a first year resident should consult with a second year resident.

‘Ah, I don’t want to…’

The second year resident currently assigned to Suhyuk was Hwang Sunwoo. He was the one who called Suhyuk an idiot earlier and kicked Ji-sang’s shin for being too friendly.

However, if he changed the prescription without permission, it could be career suicide whether his decision was correct or not. This is just how hospitals operated.

Riiing

Suhyuk reluctantly decided to call Hwang Sunwoo.

“Hey, Suhyuk.”

Surprisingly, Sunwoo sounded quite welcoming over the phone.

Did they get their asses handed to them by Shaggy?

As Suhyuk thought about Shaggy, he recited the lines he had prepared beforehand.

“Yes, Dr. Hwang. I’m calling because there is a patient whose case needs to be reported. Do you have some time now?” This was the optimal tone Suhyuk had developed after being burned by various residents during his internship days.

“Go ahead. Who’s the patient?”

Maybe it was due to this, or maybe he really was crazy, but Hwang Sunwoo’s voice remained smooth and calm.

Suhyuk wondered if someone had slipped him a sedative as he continued speaking.

“It’s about Kim Jinchul, a 49 year old male patient. I suspect parrot disease, so we need to change his antibiotics.”

“Parrot…?”

Unfortunately, Hwang Sunwoo was a second-year resident who didn’t bother with studying much. Of course, being a second-year Internal Medicine resident meant having a busy schedule, but usually, residents studied at least enough to cover the patients they were assigned.

This fellow only studied what was thrown at him during rounds by professors.

“Yes, sir.”

“Hmm.”

Naturally, he had no idea about parrot disease, which was quite obscure.

‘This fucking bastard…’

Aren’t people who refuse to learn despite their ignorance the most annoying?

Normally, Sunwoo would have hung up and ordered Lee Suhyuk to come upstairs himself, but…Lee Suhyuk wasn’t just any first year resident. He held double sponsorship from both the director and manager of the hospital. Moreover, earlier, Chief Kim had warned that Suhyuk shouldn’t be bothered under penalty of death. Thus, Dr. Hwang didn’t have many options available to him in this situation.

‘The department head should still be here.’

It was already past nine o’clock, but for someone aiming to become the manager of Internal Medicine at Taehwa Medical Center, they practically lived at the hospital instead of their own home.

“I-I’m sorry, Suhyuk. I’m currently at the intensive care unit. Could you please notify Manager Shin for me? He should be at the hospital, so just call him on his office number.”

“Oh…”

A first-year resident having to notify a manager…Suhyuk couldn’t help but think what a piece of shit this guy was.

However, as someone lower down the hierarchy, he had no choice but to comply.

‘Plus, if I handle this smartly, it might benefit me.’

“You truly have impure intentions.”

‘Shut up.’

With that thought, he hung up and called Manager Shin Hyun-tae.

Vrrr.

As predicted by Hwang Sunwoo, Manager Shin Hyun-tae was indeed present at the hospital. However, instead of being in his research lab, he was in the director’s office attending an emergency meeting regarding Suhyuk’s situation.

“I told the media that I have recovered and started my duties as a physician again. Also, I asked them not to visit me since it would interfere with treating patients.”

“You did well, senior. The media can be such a pain…”

“Well, Baruda is out of commission for now. We need to work quietly and stealthily on this project.”

“Did you do something similar when working on the electronic device?”

“They were the most aggressive competitors. They want to sell their creation worldwide.”

“Hmm.” Manager Shin Hyun-tae nodded briefly, then remembered what had occurred during rounds earlier today. “By the way, she seems quite smart. It’s my first time meeting a first-year resident who knows about Weil’s Syndrome.”

“She might be smart, but she is also a troll. From what I saw, she kept looking at odd things.”

“Nope, I’m telling you my hunch is right.”

“Hyung, come on. There is a five-year difference between our academic years.”

“We’re now aging together. Plus, I repeated three times. Our age gap isn’t significant.”

“You keep insisting to be treated equally. Hey, answer your phone. Who could it be at this time?”

“Huh?” Following Lee Hyunjong’s words, Department Head Shin searched his gown pocket.

Indeed, there was a fierce vibration. The number displayed was unknown, but it was from within the hospital, meaning he had to take the call.

“This is Dr. Shin Hyun-tae of Internal Medicine.”

“Greetings, professor! It’s first year resident Lee Suhyuk.”

A mere first-year resident calling the department head of Internal Medicine? If not for their strict hierarchy, such a situation would have been unusual.

Suhyuk’s voice resonated loudly enough to fill the director’s office through the phone receiver.

“Hey, hey. You Troll again? It is late at night, and you’re shouting on the phone. If I tell you to come here momentarily, don’t show up immediately. Do you understand?”

The director shook his head while subtly moving back.

However, Department Head Shin couldn’t ignore it as he had received a call.

“Yes, wh…what happened?”

“I am calling because there is a patient requiring notification. Are you available now?”

“Hmm, yes. Go ahead.”

Indeed, the phrase crafted from being repeatedly harassed by others proved effective. Manager Shin pointed towards the phone with his finger, indicating ‘look at this,’ and implying that he wasn’t a troll after all.

“Patient Kim Jinchul, age 49, male. I suspect parrot disease and would like to inquire if it is okay to change his current antibiotic treatment from amoxicillin to tetracycline.”

“Parrot disease…?” Department Head Shin raised an eyebrow just as Hwang Sunwoo had done earlier. It wasn’t because he didn’t know what the disease was; rather, he was curious why Suhyuk suddenly brought it up.

“Yes, professor.”

“What led you to this conclusion?”

In Internal Medicine, ‘why’ held immense importance. Even if the diagnosis were incorrect, the department tended to overlook it if the reasoning behind it was plausible.

Alright, here goes nothing.

Suhyuk understood this well. Taking a deep breath, he continued:

“The patient experienced difficulty breathing along with coughing. Upon initial examination, we observed increased shadows in the lower left lung field, and blood tests indicated signs of bacterial infection, suggesting bacterial pneumonia.”

“Keep going.” Shin Hyun-tae nodded and pointed towards the phone again.

Suhyuk’s confident voice filled up the director’s office, and without realizing it, the director had moved closer to listen more intently.

“At the same time, his fever was unresponsive to antibiotics such as amoxicillin. This means this strain of bacteria wasn’t acquired from our community.”

“Hmm.”

There was a reason why they started with antibiotics like amoxicillin first. If these didn’t work, Suhyuk’s conclusion made sense.

“In addition, the guardian of the patient, Oh Jin-kyung, age 49, showed similar symptoms around the same timeframe. She was examined today at the emergency room, and her results were identical.”

“Huh? How did you know that?”

“I went to separately interview the patients and heard their guardian coughing.”

“Hmm… And?”

“However, Kim Se-hee, who was exposed when both patients started showing symptoms, has not exhibited any signs of illness or abnormalities on her tests.”

“Aha.”

A well-written note is as entertaining for internal medicine doctors as a well-crafted detective drama. The joy lies in piecing together scattered clues leading to a single diagnosis. This is what makes practicing internal medicine so fulfilling.

Manager Shin Hyun-tae now wore a smile and nodded approvingly.

“So, what were your thoughts?”

“I judged it to be a zoonotic disease possibility. In fact, patients Kim Jinchul and Oh Jin-kyung had pet parrots at home. If it is parrot disease, primary contacts like Kim Jinchul and Oh Jin-kyung would be infected, while secondary contact, Ms. Kim Se-hee, would not show symptoms. Based on this, I diagnosed it as parrot disease.”

“Wait a moment.”

“Yes, Dr. Choi.”

Department Head Shin covered his phone with his hand and looked back at the director.

His expression clearly asked, ‘Wasn’t I right?’, and the director couldn’t deny it. He hadn’t encountered such a high-level notification from a first-year resident, let alone a third-year or even a fellow recently.

“Isn’t he amazing? His logic is solid, isn’t it?”

“It’s just coincidence.” However, the director’s evaluation of Suhyuk remained unchanged.

“I think we can entrust him with next week’s case discussion.”

“Don’t say such nonsense. Are you crazy?”

The Taehwa Hospital Case Discussion was attended not only by doctors from Taehwa but also those from other hospitals. It could be considered as a small academic conference. As such, it was unprecedented for a first-year fellow to present at such an event. Even if they managed to deliver their presentation, they would likely crumble under intense questioning.

Thus, Director Lee Hyunjong’s words made sense in this context.

“What’s the problem? His patient assessment is perfect, and his reasoning is solid.”

“No, I won’t allow it. One mistake, and it’ll be embarrassing.”

“Hmm…”

“It’s a firm no.”

“Understood… Why so serious?” Department Head Shin removed his hand covering his face and continued, “Fine. Let’s switch the medication to tetracycline.”

“Yes, Dr. Choi. Thank you.”

“Um…”

“Yes, sir?”

“No, I just wanted to commend you on your work. You’re on call tomorrow, right? If there’s anything urgent, don’t hesitate to call me. It’s okay.”

“Oh… Yes, thank you, Dr. Choi.”