Chapter 125
“First off, the contents are a bit harsh. Don't be too shocked—just read it slowly.”
The legal team manager said in a dry voice.
“There’s also talk of sending it to the Korea Medical Dispute Mediation and Arbitration Agency, but looking at the fact that they hired a lawyer and sent a content-certified letter first.... Read it first.”
I unfolded the paper with trembling hands.
The black, bold letters on the white A4 sheet stabbed into my eyes like blades.
[Sender : Kim Jaeyu, Managing Attorney, Hwanyu Law Firm]
[Recipient : Han Hyeonjae, Emergency Medical Center Staff, Cheongjin University Hospital]
[Subject : Claim for Damages and Request for Explanation Regarding the Patient’s Death Due to Medical Negligence]
My heart started pounding like crazy.
I swallowed hard and read through the body.
‘Wishing you continued prosperity....’
Prosperity, my ass.
‘Item 3 states that when the deceased came in, you failed to take immediate transfer measures or proper emergency treatment and unnecessarily kept the deceased in the ER....’
“...Ha.”
A hollow breath slipped out of my mouth.
Kept?
Unnecessarily?
Me?
I accepted the patient because they asked me to.
I didn’t accept the patient because I wanted to.
‘Item 4 states that due to your delayed transfer and misjudgment, the deceased missed the golden time for surgery and died.’
Golden time.
That damn golden time.
What golden time is left for a patient who already arrived after everything had ruptured and bled dry?
Am I a god?
Ah, right. I’d be a lesser version of one, at best.
Because the God of the Scalpel does show up from time to time.
But that bastard isn’t a real god either.
‘Let’s see.... Before pursuing civil and criminal liability against you and your hospital, please prepare a clear explanation and a reasonable compensation proposal within one week, either in writing or in person....’
And if there is no sincere response within the deadline, or if you continue to evade responsibility, they will immediately proceed with a criminal complaint for occupational negligence resulting in death and with civil litigation.
“What is this?”
I stared blankly at the legal team manager.
“It means they’re going to sue.”
The manager answered matter-of-factly as he pushed his glasses up.
“Basically, they’re asking us to send a response, and if we don’t answer, they’ll file a complaint right away. After that, once they request a review of the medical records and send it to the arbitration agency and all that, it’ll take quite a while. They’re coming down hard.”
“No, the other parts make sense—no, why would I even say they make sense? Anyway, the delay? The improper treatment?”
“Calm down, doctor.”
As my voice rose without me noticing, the manager waved his hand.
“For now, the law firm’s framing it as: the patient died in the ER and didn’t get surgery, so the doctor dragged things out during that process. They already came this morning and copied all the medical records and materials. A lawyer came as their representative....”
My mind went blank.
What the hell is the point of documentaries and all that shit if this is how it goes?
Professor Cheon, who had been watching from the side, spoke cautiously with a sympathetic expression.
“First, don’t be too scared.”
Professor Cheon patted my shoulder.
“After going over the materials and a few other things from the last M&M conference, the medical judgment itself seems reasonable. Right? The REBOA procedure was appropriate, and the acceptance process is all on record, so there’s no problem there.”
Professor Cheon kept trying to reassure me.
“So, legally speaking, it’ll be hard for them to get a guilty verdict.... Our legal team thinks so too....”
I couldn’t hear any of it.
I was just a little dazed.
What had shocked me so much?
Well.
Could this be a dream?
If I slapped my face hard enough, would I wake up right away?
“Hyeonjae. Hyeonjae? Pull yourself together first.”
When Professor Cheon waved a hand in front of my eyes, I finally looked straight ahead.
“Ah... yes.”
I forced myself to get a grip.
“From here on out is what matters. The hospital will respond too, but you need to steel yourself as well.”
After hesitating, Professor Cheon brought up the thing he least wanted to say.
“If, after meeting and giving an explanation or submitting the response documents, we still can’t reach a proper settlement, you’ll probably end up facing a police investigation....”
“An investigation?”
I asked in return.
“For now, yes.”
Professor Cheon let out a short breath.
“We all know you’re really innocent, and the chart also makes it obvious, but once a complaint is filed, from the investigative agency’s point of view, they have to summon the accused and question them. That’s criminal procedure.”
“No, why?”
Resentment rose all the way up my throat.
“Not every good deed leads to a good result. But that doesn’t mean all good deeds are given immunity. That’s true outside medicine too. In the end, the world runs on principles.”
“Ha....”
“You just have to take it for now. Once a complaint is filed, there’s no avoiding it. It’d be great if you could reach a settlement before that, or if the lawyers could talk them into withdrawing the complaint, but that law firm is pretty aggressive, so it won’t be easy.”
Hearing that, the legal team manager raised his head again.
“We’ll defend you as much as we can, but if you receive a notice to appear as a witness or as a suspect, you have to show up. If you don’t, they might even get a warrant.”
I leaned weakly back in my chair.
The ceiling spun.
The comments I’d seen under that documentary earlier flashed through my mind.
Top doctor?
Cool?
It’s all bullshit.
“Fuck....”
A curse escaped my lips before I knew it.
The sharp corner of the content-certified letter stabbed into my palm because I had gripped the paper’s edge wrong.
It didn’t hurt.
My heart hurt so much that I couldn’t even feel the pain in my fingertips.
***
Trudge, trudge.
After parting with the legal team manager, I headed back to the station.
My steps felt heavy.
The corridor was still crowded with patients and guardians, and the nurses were running around busily, but time seemed to pass only around me, as though I were moving through molasses.
The noise sounded muffled, like I was hearing it underwater.
I was holding the crumpled content-certified letter in my hand, and my head was a complete mess from all the words I’d just read.
“Hyeonjae. Why the long face?”
Lee Minjae, who was drinking coffee, noticed me and called out.
“Uh... it’s nothing much....”
I tried to force the corners of my mouth up, but my facial muscles wouldn’t cooperate.
“That’s clearly not a ‘nothing’ face, though? Why are you looking so dead? Did the professor get on your nerves again?”
Lee Minjae laughed.
“No, seriously, it’s not that....”
I tried to pass by with a tired shake of my head.
Then Lee Minjae’s gaze changed.
“Tsk....”
Lee Minjae stepped in front of me.
“This bastard’s expression really isn’t normal. What the hell is wrong with you?”
“It’s just....”
“Say it. Did you screw up? Or is it family stuff?”
At that relentless questioning, I eventually opened my mouth.
It was something he’d find out anyway.
And he was the one person who would understand this situation better than anyone.
“You know that rAAA patient from the M&M conference.”
“Right? The one where you shoved in REBOA and caused all that chaos.”
Lee Minjae nodded.
“A content-certified letter came in.”
“Huh?”
Lee Minjae’s eyebrows twitched.
“I just got back from the legal team. The bereaved family hired a lawyer and sent a content-certified letter. They said they’ll file civil and criminal suits if there’s no explanation.”
I let out a long sigh and added.
“They’re saying they’ll pursue criminal charges for professional negligence resulting in death over delayed transfer and inadequate emergency treatment.”
Silence fell.
Lee Minjae stared into space for a moment and took a sip of coffee.
Then he patted my shoulder.
“I see. Hyeonjae.”
“Yeah.”
“I’ve got one hanging over me too. A criminal complaint.”
“What? Criminal?”
“Yeah. Defamation and insult charges.”
“Doctor, don’t tell me that’s the same parent I know....?”
The incident from around last winter came to mind.
Insult my ass.
That crazy case where a parent got hit with both insult and defamation charges, then got t-bagged as they were carted off in a police car.
But this wasn’t a lawsuit for being a doctor, was it?
“Yeah! Quick on the uptake, huh? That’s what it was. I’m still going back and forth to court.”
Lee Minjae laughed.
“I’ve also had a case before where I got charged with negligent bodily injury for breaking someone’s rib while doing CPR, but that got dismissed at the prosecution stage for lack of grounds.”
“Hmm....”
Lee Minjae gripped my shoulder tightly.
“Hyeonjae.”
“Yeah.”
“You’re screwed, that’s true.”
Mm, that’s what I like about him.
This guy really is brutally honest.
“Still, a guilty verdict probably won’t come down. I don’t know the law that well, but I can at least say that for sure. You weren’t drinking and treating patients or anything, and looking at the chart, it was flawless. The judge isn’t stupid either.”
“Yes.”
“So get your head straight. And the bereaved family isn’t doing this because they truly hate or despise you, either. You know that, right?”
Lee Minjae’s voice softened a little.
“When someone suffers a loss that huge, they need someone to direct their anger at. You just happened to be the one holding the patient at the end.”
“Yeah. I know that in my head. But still....”
My chest hurt, and there was nothing I could do about it.
“So, uh... don’t get too scared.”
Lee Minjae thought for a moment and suggested one option.
“I’ve got one high school friend who's a lawyer. Want me to introduce you? He doesn’t specialize in medical lawsuits, but he wins a lot. His personality’s pretty similar to mine too. Basically a copy-paste job. I think you’d like him.”
“Mm....”
A lawyer with a personality similar to Lee Minjae.
Wouldn’t that mean he’d be cursing out the judge or grabbing opposing counsel by the collar in court?
I didn’t exactly want to hire another lunatic as my lawyer....
“No. I’m fine. The hospital legal team said they’d support me too.”
“All right. If you need anything, just say so.”
Lee Minjae gave my back a few hearty pats and went into the station.
“It’ll be fine. Don’t freak out!”
I nodded as I watched Lee Minjae’s back.
‘Yeah. It’ll be fine.’
I tried to comfort myself and reviewed, one by one, the judgments I’d made.
First refusal.
The vascular surgery and thoracic surgery ORs were full.
Couldn’t accept.
Reasonable.
Accepting a patient when there’s no surgeon to operate is murder.
Second acceptance.
All the other hospitals had refused.
The patient was on the verge of shock.
He looked like he’d die on the road.
So I accepted him.
To try to save him.
To at least do initial treatment and transfer him.
And then the REBOA procedure, transfusion, and CPR.
All of it was textbook, no—more than textbook, it was the best treatment I could possibly have given.
Yeah.
Medically, there was no problem.
Legally, too, it should be defensible.
But.
‘You failed to take immediate transfer measures or proper emergency treatment when the deceased came in....’
The wording in the content-certified letter.
Because I accepted the patient, he stayed in the ER, and during that time he couldn’t get surgery and died.
What if I’d refused him to the very end?
‘Sorry, we can’t either. You have to find a hospital that can operate, no matter what. Force your way through.’
If I had turned him away like that.
So then, if—really, if—there had been a hospital nearby that could perform surgery, would that patient have lived?
‘Second acceptance. Ha....’
My chest tightened.
I stared blankly at the ER’s closed automatic doors.
Was opening that door really the right choice?
‘Should I not have accepted him?’
For the first time, I felt a deep sense of doubt about my own decision.