Chapter 157
Six hours had passed.
“…Mm.”
It doesn't hurt.
No, to be precise, it does ache, but it's not enough to kill me.
Just a moderate fatigue, like the day after a strenuous workout?
I got up and stretched.
Crack.
“I feel refreshed.”
Has the penalty weakened compared to when it lasted 12 hours?
I could turn my head easily.
Chirp, chirp.
Chirp.
I could hear sparrows outside the window.
Judging by the angle of sunlight coming through the gap in the curtains, it was still broad daylight.
‘Definitely.’
Burning those points had been worth it.
Not only had the 12-hour penalty been reduced to 6 hours, but the pain itself seemed to have lessened too.
It was revolutionary.
I no longer had to lie around like a corpse for half a day after possessing someone.
“This really makes life worth living.”
I sat on the edge of the bed and, before properly returning to work, habitually summoned the blue window in midair.
I was curious about what people thought of that clump of dust.
[Dead Medical Scholar Gallery]
================
125.188<< If you think this guy deserves to claim a fixed username, upvote lol
Author: Surgical Room Ghost 3
He seems to specialize in burn surgery.
At this point, shouldn't we let him claim a fixed username?
If you agree, upvote.
================
The view count was exploding.
Looks like the interest in our newbie(?) was pretty intense.
[Comments]
God of the Scalpel: I don't think he's quite there yet, yeah... He only knew basic stuff.
ㄴ BoneFreak88: That's a little harsh.
ㄴ Let's Talk About the Good Old Days: Are you still sulking because you've possessed someone too many times and they didn't let you do it this time??? That's pathetic, man.
Let's Talk About the Good Old Days: But why hasn't 125.188 written a review? Did he even possess someone? The rule is that you get all hyped up and post afterward.
Anonymous (39.7): I'm jealous. I want to possess someone too.
Yeah.
Your lies don't work on me.
ㄴ HellJoseonSlave1: 125.188 = God of the Scalpel. I guarantee it.
Posted.
A reply appeared in less than a second.
ㄴ God of the Scalpel: W-w-w-what the fuck are you talking about, Hell Slave!!!!!!!!!! No, that's not me!!!
ㄴ HellJoseonSlave1: Your way of talking is practically a fingerprint. What are you trying to hide?
ㄴ BoneFreak88: LMAOOOO The Scalpel God got busted immediately.
ㄴ Let's Talk About the Good Old Days: Ah, this is fucking hilarious lmao.
Thus I got to watch God of the Scalpel's trolling while logged out get exposed to the whole world and publicly mocked.
As expected, other people's misfortune is my happiness.
But something else piqued my curiosity.
What determined whether an account had an ID and a fixed username or no ID and an anonymous username?
Why did people like that 39.7 keep using anonymous accounts?
Was there a class divide even after death... no, a status divide?
I wrote a new post.
[Dead Medical Scholar Gallery]
================
So what's the criterion for making an anonymous account versus a fixed-username account?
Author: HellJoseonSlave1
Is it kind of a gallery rule or something?
Does the administrator promote you?
================
[Comments]
Descendant of Hippocrates: We are free spirits, so everyone can claim a fixed username!
Surgical Room Ghost 3: Anyone can claim a fixed username in the first place. There are no system restrictions. You have one too.
? Then what is it?
If there are no restrictions, why doesn't everyone make one?
ㄴ HellJoseonSlave1: Then why are there people who use anonymous accounts? Is it just personal preference? For the anonymity?
ㄴ God of the Scalpel: When we make a fixed-username account, we check their achievements and knowledge, and if they seem even a little unimpressive, we dogpile them nonstop.
ㄴ Let's Talk About the Good Old Days: Yeah. That's why.
ㄴ BoneFreak88: So if they're worried about that, they just lurk anonymously.
Ah.
“Fuck.”
What was this terrifying gallery's self-policing mechanism?
It wasn't the system stopping them; the users themselves weeded out anyone without the skills.
I shook my head and put on my white coat.
“Let's go.”
Rrrrrk.
When I opened the on-call room door and stepped out, the afternoon ER unfolded before me.
The earlier madhouse was gone, replaced by a peaceful scene where, as if nothing had happened, patients who had drunk too much and fallen down, and patients with stomachaches, lay in beds.
“Oh, Dr. Han! You're up?”
Baek Eun-seo, who had been at the station, sprang to her feet and greeted me.
“Yeah, I'm up. How's the situation?”
“Peaceful! Very good.”
“Where are the others?”
“Well, Seong-jeong was told to leave by the department chief, so he went, and everyone who was off but got called in, including Dr. Lee Minjae, ate lunch and went back.”
“Really?”
So everyone had left.
I sat at my station and turned on the computer.
“No other critical patients came in after that, right?”
“No. Jeong-hun and I, along with Professor Kim Seong-chan, who was on staff, held down the fort! There weren't any major problems! One myocardial infarction patient came in, but they took the patient upstairs right away to open the artery.”
“Well, of course, with a professor here.”
Yaaawn.
I scrolled through the chart list while yawning.
“Oh, and!”
Baek Eun-seo clapped as if she had just remembered something.
“Dr. Jin Seon-woo from Trauma Surgery says thank you. He told me to be sure to pass it on.”
“Huh? Why?”
“He said he got help in the resuscitation room earlier and wanted me to tell you.”
“I see....”
I chuckled.
Why was this guy so grateful over something so minor?
I suppose it was worth being grateful for, since it involved a person's life?
No, I don't know.
I brushed it off and tapped away at the keyboard.
Actually, there was something else I was curious about.
That rebar patient from earlier.
What had happened to the patient?
“The medical record number for that rebar-impaled patient was....”
Tap.
When I hit Enter, the patient's information popped up.
[TICU (Trauma Intensive Care Unit)]
“Ah, there it is. TICU, huh? The patient made it out alive.”
“The rebar patient? I heard the first surgery went smoothly. They said it was a massive operation.”
Hmm.
I opened the operative report.
[Op Name : Exploratory Thoracotomy & Laparotomy…]
Reading it, I saw that it had been a near-miraculous operation.
The lower lobe of the lung had been almost shredded, yet they saved it, repaired the ruptured diaphragm, and dealt with the injuries to the intra-abdominal organs.
This was outside anything I could evaluate.
But an expert would know better.
[Dead Medical Scholar Gallery]
==================
@God of the Scalpel @God of the Scalpel Emergency! Emergency!
Author: HellJoseonSlave1
Was this done well?
Give me an evaluation.
(Photo)
==================
An alert went off as soon as I uploaded it.
Did this guy live in the gallery?
[Comments]
God of the Scalpel: Giving up on suturing the lung and switching straight to a wedge resection (*wedge resection)
was a stroke of genius that bought them time.
God of the Scalpel: The CS surgeon in particular was godlike. Looking at how they caught the pulmonary artery in this mess, the surgeon has great hands. How'd they do that;
ㄴ HellJoseonSlave1: Is it really that good?
ㄴ God of the Scalpel: At this level, about half as good as me. Very impressive.
‘This fucking narcissist is so full of himself.’
I raised the corners of my mouth and closed the window.
As I sorted through the backlog of charts, clicking my mouse, a completely random question occurred to me.
‘There really aren't that many people in the gallery.’
If the Dead Medical Scholar Gallery system was, as its name suggested, a community where dead doctors gathered,
then there should be hundreds of millions of gallery members accumulated throughout history, so why did it feel like there were so few posts?
‘...Have they attained enlightenment?’
I can't stand not knowing something I'm curious about.
[Dead Medical Scholar Gallery]
==================
I have a question
Author: HellJoseonSlave1
The Dead Gallery must have been around for quite a long time.
Then there should be mountains of gallery users accumulated throughout history, so why does it feel like there are so few posts? Did they all go get reincarnated? Go to hell?
==================
As soon as the post was registered, the ghosts came rushing in.
[Comments]
God of the Scalpel: Typical newbie.
Let's Talk About the Good Old Days: Think of this as the main server. The system requires you to keep updating your knowledge to stay connected to the latest gallery. Anyone who doesn't study and falls behind gets dropped all the way to the bottom.
Ah.
I understood instantly.
Medicine isn't stagnant water.
New guidelines and new drugs come out every year, and surgical techniques once believed to be standard sometimes become obsolete.
But could a doctor who stopped studying after death remain in a place where the latest knowledge was discussed?
‘So even after death, you have to study? This really is hell.’
Descendant of Hippocrates: Living human! Press the Related Galleries tab in the menu! Countless foolish souls are trapped there!
‘Related Galleries?’
I narrowed my eyes and clicked the small arrow in the corner of the interface.
The hidden menu unfolded in a long cascade.
“Whoa....”
It really was there.
‘Now I'm curious.’
A period that looked just the right amount of dated.
Yet one where I felt the foundations of modern medicine had been established.
[Dead Medical Scholar Gallery (~2005)]
“This is it.”
Click.
As the screen changed with a loading indicator, the interface design became subtly more dated.
I clicked the popular post at the very top.
[Dead Medical Scholar Gallery (~2005)]
==================
What's this rumor about the CPR guidelines changing?
Author: ER Lingerer
It's ABC no matter what. CAB is supposedly the latest? Securing the airway first is the most basic principle in medicine, so does it make sense to tell us to start with chest compressions?
There are so many people with no fundamentals, honestly.
Medicine is all about fundamentals.
==================
[Comments]
Ahaehae: If the airway's blocked, try pressing the chest all day and see if they live. You have to squeeze the Ambu bag first.
Anesthesiologists Are the Best: Endotracheal intubation comes first.
ABC, my ass.
You're saying we should delay chest compressions to secure the airway first?
After the guidelines were overhauled in 2010, it was proven that chest compressions were the most important thing.
Even if oxygen gets in a little late, you have to pump blood to the brain first for the patient to survive.
‘This place is terrifying.’
I hurriedly hit the back button, but my hand slipped and I ended up clicking another post.
[Dead Medical Scholar Gallery (~2005)]
==================
Question about fluids for a shock patient.
Author: TraumaCareKIN
What do you think is the most important initial treatment for a trauma patient?
==================
[Comments]
Missing My Residency Days: You have to give fluids first. About 3 liters is the basic amount.
ㄴ BoingBoing: You need to raise the blood pressure as much as possible. I think you should get it up to around 120. Keep giving fluids until you restore normal blood pressure.
God of Medicine: Anyone saying you should give blood first is talking nonsense! You need to give fluids to maintain the pressure!
“Aaaaaaagh!”
My eyes!
My brain!
I clutched my head.
This was torture.
They were pouring three liters of normal saline into a patient with traumatic shock?
Raising the blood pressure to 120?
Excessive fluid administration causes dilutional coagulopathy.
It means the blood gets too thin to clot, so the bleeding can't be stopped.
On top of that, if you forcibly raise the blood pressure, the clot that had barely formed can burst, and the blood will start gushing again.
The modern trend is permissive hypotension.
The standard is to keep the blood pressure low enough to keep the patient alive and give blood instead of fluids.
But over there...
‘They're trying to use water in place of blood.’
Are they planning to turn the patient's blood vessels into a water tank?
That may have been the best treatment—and the correct answer—at the time.
“...I can't look at this.”
I quietly closed the ~2005 Dead Gallery window, which was still actively receiving new posts.
Is this what the curse of knowledge feels like?
I turned my head and called out to Baek Eun-seo, who was watching the computer intently from the corner of the station.
“Eun-seo.”
“Yes? Yes, Doctor!”
Baek Eun-seo sprang to her feet.
“Where's the eye-washing set?”
“Huh? The eye irrigation set?”
Baek Eun-seo's eyes went round.
“Why do you suddenly need that?”
“Something extremely old-fashioned invaded my retinas.”
“...What?”
“Bring me just a liter of normal saline. I need to wash my eyes out completely.”
“????”
Baek Eun-seo stared at me with a baffled expression.
Ghosts of the past.
Please don't come out of there.
‘Everyone in the Dead Gallery, thank you so much for keeping yourselves regularly updated.’
It was a moment when I once again realized how precious our veteran members were.