Hwang Jiman slumped over the table and muttered.
"For fifteen years... urgh... that's all I thought about. Director..."
Taeho quietly watched him.
Hwang Jiman suddenly jerked his head up and looked at Taeho.
"I... hic... I r-really want to become a proper doctor. I mean it. Urgh... a d-doctor who satisfies patients."
Hwang Jiman spoke with a desperate expression.
"Please help me."
"How can I help you?"
"What I'm doing wrong, how I can get better... urgh... please tell me."
"Are you asking me to observe you?"
"Yes! Even the smallest thing is fine... hic... please teach me."
Hwang Jiman's eyes were moist.
He meant it.
"Please..."
Taeho thought for a moment, then nodded.
"Very well. I'll observe you briefly tomorrow."
"Really?"
Hwang Jiman wiped his tears and smiled brightly.
"Yes. But there is a condition."
"I'll do anything... hic!"
"Don't put too much pressure on yourself. You're already a good doctor."
Hwang Jiman nodded and smiled.
"Thank you... hic... I, I'm truly grateful."
Thirty minutes later, Taeho supported Hwang Jiman, who had nearly lost consciousness.
"Dr. Hwang, please get up."
"Urgh... do I have to go home?"
"Yes. The taxi is here."
Taeho supported the bearishly enormous Hwang Jiman, seated him in the back of the taxi, and said to the driver.
"I'm sorry. Please see this person home safely."
"Yes, understood."
"And if he vomits, please use this bag..."
Taeho handed over a plastic bag.
Hwang Jiman rolled down the window and spoke one last time.
"Director... hic... please come tomorrow."
"Yes, I promised."
"Thank you... truly..."
As the taxi departed, Taeho watched it leave for a long time.
***
The next morning, Hwang Jiman came to work with his face swollen from a hangover.
"Ugh... my head..."
"Doctor, are you all right?"
Nurse I asked worriedly.
"Yes... but has the Director arrived?"
"Not yet?"
"Ah..."
Hwang Jiman's expression turned anxious. He didn't usually drink well, but yesterday he had chicken for the first time in a while and ended up drinking more than he thought.
'Could last night have been a dream?'
Come to think of it, he had never heard of a hospital director personally observing consultations and offering help because a hired doctor couldn't treat patients properly.
Just as Hwang Jiman let out a deep sigh, the examination room door opened.
"Dr. Hwang, are you ready?"
Taeho entered, smiling.
"Director!"
Hwang Jiman looked relieved.
"You remember last night's promise, right?"
"Yes... thank you."
"Shall we begin, then?"
Taeho placed a chair to one side and spoke.
The first patient came in. It was a three-year-old boy and his young mother.
"Hello."
Hwang Jiman greeted them and opened the chart.
"Uh, what symptoms brought you in today?"
"He's had a fever for three days that won't go down."
The mother answered with a worried expression. The child's face was flushed red as he fussed.
"Hmm..."
Once again, Hwang Jiman habitually stammered.
Taeho watched quietly from the side and activated his Bio Vision.
Aurora-like lights began to appear across the child's entire body.
An intense orange light rippled from the child's hypothalamus. It was a reaction caused by the 39.2°C high fever, but he saw no red warning lights indicating brain damage. Also, the heartbeat was faster than usual but maintained a regular golden hue. There was no gray light indicating signs of dehydration or shock.
Looking at the lungs, the entirety of both lungs glowed with a pale green. Deep red or brown shadows indicating pneumonia or bronchitis were nowhere to be seen. Only the greenish light of a simple upper respiratory infection appeared faintly around the nose and throat.
'Fortunately, it's just a simple cold for the child. It looks serious because of the high fever, but it's not dangerous.'
Taeho made his diagnosis while observing Hwang Jiman's examination.
Hwang Jiman took out his stethoscope and placed it on the child's chest.
"Little one, can you take a deep breath? Hoo~"
Hwang Jiman spoke to the child in a friendly manner and carefully listened to the lung sounds. He systematically auscultated a total of twelve spots—the front, sides, and back of the chest.
"No crackles or wheezing... C-clean."
Hwang Jiman muttered and moved on to the next step.
He palpated the neck lymph nodes and pressed the abdomen to check for hepatosplenomegaly or abdominal pain. He also looked carefully inside the ears with an otoscope.
"The neck lymph nodes are slightly swollen but within the normal range. The e-ears are clean too..."
The mother asked anxiously.
"Doctor, I'm so worried because his fever is so high. It's over thirty-nine degrees..."
Hwang Jiman checked the thermometer again and assessed the child's overall condition. The child was alert, and there was no neck stiffness.
Hwang Jiman finished the examination and began his explanation.
"Um... the auscultation results are, ah, no major issues... that is..."
"Could it be pneumonia or some other dangerous illness?"
"Ah, yes. It's p-pneumonia, no. Um... it appears to be a simple cold."
Hwang Jiman stammered nervously.
Taeho watched from behind.
Hwang Jiman's medical competence was beyond doubt. He simply had a problem with communication. The anxiety stemming from his lack of confidence was transferring even to the patients and guardians.
If only he could interact with a bit more confidence.
But fixing such an attitude and manner of speech was difficult in a short time.
What should he do?
While Taeho was mulling it over, the consultation ended.
After the baby's mother left, Taeho spoke quietly.
"What did you think, Dr. Hwang?"
"I was still so n-nervous that the words wouldn't come out properly."
"From my observation, your medical judgment was perfect. The diagnosis was accurate, and the treatment direction was correct. I would have made the same decision."
When Taeho spoke clearly, Hwang Jiman smiled awkwardly and nodded.
A relieved expression.
"Th-then what is the problem?"
"How about first figuring out what the patient's guardian is really curious about?"
"Huh? What they're curious about?"
"Yes. Ask what they're most curious about first, and answer that. Try it with the next patient. Ask what they're most worried about. And if you get stuck, ask again."
"Ah, there's a method like that..."
"If you know what the guardian wants, you can tailor your explanation to it, so satisfaction will increase."
Hwang Jiman recalled Taeho's advice and greeted the next patient.
"Hello. What is your biggest concern today?"
This time, he asked about the mother's concerns first.
Given the chance to speak, the child's mother began firing away like a machine gun.
"My child keeps saying his stomach hurts since yesterday. At first I thought it was just indigestion? But he tossed and turned all night saying it hurt. I wonder if it could be appendicitis... I looked it up online and it said children can get appendicitis too. And he seems to have a bit of a fever, ah, and he hasn't vomited but keeps having cold sweats. Since the child is in pain, my husband kept calling from work because he was so worried. Even before we came here..."
Hwang Jiman nodded and listened to the end, words that a typical doctor would have cut off midway.
"So you're most worried about appendicitis."
"Yes, exactly! I'm so worried about whether he'll need surgery."
The mother continued speaking anxiously.
"And he says it hurts when I press his right side—isn't that a symptom of appendicitis? When I was young..."
Hwang Jiman grasped the exact point and focused on the examination. He palpated McBurney's point tenderness, rebound tenderness, muscular guarding, and other characteristic signs of appendicitis one by one.
After the examination, Hwang Jiman explained briefly and clearly.
"I-it's not appendicitis. It's indigestion."
"Really?"
The mother asked in surprise.
"Yes."
"Ah, what a relief! Then what should I do? What medicine should he take, and what foods should I give him? And what if he says it hurts again?"
Questions poured out of the mother in rapid succession along with her relief.
Hwang Jiman answered each question briefly and clearly.
"I'll prescribe a digestive medicine. P-please give him porridge or gruel."
"Ah, so it was that simple! What a relief. Doctor, but is there a way to prevent it?"
As the mother kept asking, Hwang Jiman smiled.
"Chew thoroughly, and just d-don't overeat."
"Yes, I understand! Thank you so much, Doctor."
The mother greeted him brightly with a smile.
After the consultation ended, Taeho asked.
"How was it?"
"D-definitely different. When I cut my words short, they seem more satisfied."
Hwang Jiman said in wonder.
"And when I answer s-simply, it sounds more confident, I think."
"That's right. Sometimes speaking less makes you look more professional."
Taeho said encouragingly.
"Patients often want clear answers more than complicated explanations."
"Th-thank you, Director."
"It's just a small tip. Since Dr. Hwang is so skilled, you'll see results quickly."
"Yes. I'll do my best."
Hwang Jiman nodded with an expression of gained confidence.
A few days later, Taeho came to see Hwang Jiman again. Not a single complaint had come in during that time.
Babies and guardians sat in a row in the waiting room.
'Looks like the pediatrics department is stabilizing now.'
Just as Taeho was about to turn around with a pleased heart.
"Do Yeseo, please come in!"
Guided by the nurse, a mother headed to the examination room with a girl who looked about four years old.
The mother was in her mid-thirties with a very sharp expression.
Distinct wounds from atopic dermatitis were visible on the girl's arms and legs.
As Taeho passed in front of the nurses' station, he heard the nurses whispering.
"Ah, that mother came all the way here."
"Who?"
"Do Yeseo's mother. There was a huge fuss at Miso Dream last time."
"Miso Dream Dermatology? Ah, you said you have a friend there. What happened?"
"That mother filed complaints with the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Gangwon Provincial Office, saying the atopic treatment wasn't effective, and even lodged a petition with the National Petition Portal. She said the medical staff's attitude was insincere..."
"Gasp, really? Is it the same person?"
"Yeah, it's Do Yeseo's mother for sure. And come to find out, she went to all the pediatric clinics in Gangneung too. But since the atopic treatment didn't work, she's now come to Samcheok. My friend said she'd probably come to your hospital soon too and told me to be careful. But of all people, Dr. Hwang Jiman is the one in charge. Will he be okay?"
Having heard the nurses' worried voices, Taeho turned around.
"Nurses."
"Oh my, Director."
"Our voices were too loud, weren't we? We're sorry."
"That's not it... Shall we make a bet?"
"Huh?"
***
Do Yeseo's mother seated her child in the chair and swept her sharp gaze over Hwang Jiman.
"Hello."
Hwang Jiman greeted her as usual, but he already looked overwhelmed by the mother's imposing presence.
Yeseo's mother let out a sigh and spoke.
"This is our Yeseo's eleventh doctor. All the previous doctors were incompetent. These days, they hand out medical licenses to just about anyone..."
A hostile atmosphere from the very start.
Hwang Jiman was momentarily flustered.
"Um... What... That is. Today..."
When Hwang Jiman stammered, the mother's expression grew even fiercer.
"Ugh, how frustrating. What kind of doctor can't even speak properly? Our Yeseo has been suffering from atopic dermatitis for six months. She scratches all night so she can't sleep, and the whole family is exhausted!"
Her voice grew louder.
"But all the doctors say the exact same thing. Apply steroids, apply moisturizers—I've already tried all of that!"
Yeseo's mother continued to vent aggressively.
"So you're just like all the other doctors too...?"
At that moment, Hwang Jiman sprang up from his seat.
Yeseo's mother stopped speaking and looked up at the bear-like Hwang Jiman.