Original subtitles

DOCTOR X: MAFIA IN WHITE

"However, the patient died two months after the surgery."

"The cause of death remains unknown."

"When asked by a reporter about filing a malpractice suit,

the bereaved family declined to comment."

"The surgeon's name was not revealed."

"But the pseudonym in the chart was

Doctor X."

DOCTOR X: MAFIA IN WHITE

Dr. Gye, are you okay?

Are you okay?

EPISODE 3

So…

Are you saying Dr. Gye is Doctor X?

Look at the photo description here.

It says, "the surgical team."

There is one Asian person wearing a white coat.

Why is it so blurry?

Dr. Bae.

This is just a rumor.

You believe this?

What we're trying to say is

there's a problem with the procedure.

If Dr. Gye followed this procedure,

the chances of our patient ending up like this in two months…

That's all the more reason we can't let her go.

If things go wrong, someone has to take the fall.

The primary surgeon

was you, Dr. Do, after all.

Her contract

doesn't specify any department.

Director, does that mean…

Let's call Dr. Gye in here.

Oh, the thing is…

She hasn't come to work yet.

We just got to work, Ms. Jang.

Good morning.

You're greeting her in English?

-Ohayo. -Look at you.

-What else? -Ciao!

I'm memorizing morning greetings to prevent dementia.

-You're so silly. -Hey, move.

-I need to go. -Why?

Su-jeong hasn't gone in to work.

-She's not answering either. -What?

She must be at home then. Where else could she be?

She's obviously not home. Let's look for her too.

Hold on.

Hey, you punk!

What are you doing? Why aren't you at work yet?

Jo Won-jin? Who's that?

Why are you answering Su-jeong's… Oh my.

Dr. Jo.

Of course, I know you. You're the attending anesthesiologist.

Dr. Gye is in the ER?

So she did make it to work.

Things could have been worse.

Yes, and we performed a transfusion quickly.

Dr. Gye.

Dr. Gye?

I'm sorry.

-What exactly did he think I said? -Dr. Gye?

What? Is he a doctor too?

He's an intern, despite looking like a clueless fool.

Dr. Park Tae-gyeong.

Dr. Jo.

Please save Dr. Gye.

Please save her.

Dr. Park.

I think you misunderstood what I said over the phone.

No, I understood.

I can give her a transfusion. I have healthy blood.

You definitely misunderstood.

The future of Korean medicine is bright and promising.

-Dr. Gye is lying down here. -Here?

-She's… -Hey.

Dr. Gye.

It's me, Tae-gyeong.

Oh no.

Sir, please save Dr. Gye.

Please save her!

I'm the one who needs saving.

-Which department? -Not anesthesiology.

Thankfully.

Dr. Gye, please wake up!

You're the one who needs to wake up.

Do something about him before he performs CPR.

What are you doing?

How did you even become an intern?

Hello, sir.

Gosh, not again.

1 HOUR AGO

Is the blood ready?

Not yet. There's been a blood shortage.

-Blood type? -It's AB.

Does anyone have any? Damn it.

-Someone get some AB here! -I'm type AB.

I'll take her.

She has a few abrasions.

-She cried herself to sleep. -Got it.

You're bleeding too.

Oh, it's not mine. Let's do this.

-Please prepare for a transfusion. -Yes, Doctor.

Dr. Gye, did you eat breakfast?

A lot.

What are you doing?

We're losing blood faster than we're losing time.

She said something that cool?

No way.

It sure doesn't look like it.

Am I the only one who hears her snoring?

Sometimes…

when Dr. Gye speaks normally, there's this strange vibe.

I know what you mean.

You noticed it too. So did I. Wow.

"Wow," my foot. Be quiet.

Cut it out, everyone. We've got a patient here.

"Patient"?

What kind of patient sleeps like this?

Anyone lying in an ER bed is my patient.

And there are other patients too.

She stopped at an accident scene,

helped with the rescue, and even donated blood.

Dr. Gye is insanely cool, isn't she?

And I'm the one who's insanely exhausted.

Seriously, what on earth…

She fulfilled her duty as a doctor, so I don't get why no one is praising her.

I'll just leave that thought and head to the OR.

Well, duty equals money to her.

How much will she charge this time?

Has the accident been sorted out?

Yes. Luckily, there were no fatalities.

Other than the patient who needed a transfusion,

no one else was seriously injured.

Good work.

Director Bu, it's time for the conference.

You're leaving?

Just like that?

So you only came here to check on a member of your staff.

Hey, come on.

It's been a million years since any of you came down to the ER.

The new director graced us with his presence,

so I was genuinely touched.

I had high hopes, and you're just taking off?

That sounds a lot like sarcasm.

Sorry, I haven't slept in two days.

And yes, that was sarcasm.

You're not the only one. I barely made it home last night myself.

Most cases should be handled here.

That's what emergency medicine is for.

I see.

The sole reason emergency medicine exists is to handle most cases, is it?

Is that why nobody was around that day?

-What are you talking about? -That's what you're saying.

That we didn't handle things better, and that's why Mr. Seo…

That's enough.

-Let's handle the ER's request right now. -Yes, sir.

Hospitals are always short-staffed.

For now, I temporarily assigned a new doctor here.

What? Just like that?

When are they starting?

They're already here.

What?

You mean that snorer…

Hey. You're staying with her.

Who are you again?

I'm an intern.

I've just been assigned to Dr. Gye.

The two of you?

At around 8:20 a.m. this morning in Seonam, Gyeonggi Province…

That must be it.

…a school bus carrying students collided with a box truck.

There were no fatalities,

but five people were seriously injured, and many others sustained minor injuries.

Su-jeong won't get in trouble, will she?

Surely not.

-She did her duty as a doctor. -In other news,

the first anniversary is approaching for the late Seo Jin-yeong,

an EMT with emergency medicine at Guseo University Seonam Medical Center.

Mr. Seo's family had filed a lawsuit to hold the hospital accountable,

and the court delivered its verdict today.

The court ruled in favor of GUMC in the first trial.

The court emphasized that the hospital made every effort to save Mr. Seo,

and while the bereaved might have perceived

some shortcomings in the process,

those issues were due to Mr. Seo's medical condition

rather than any failure in the hospital's response.

Director.

We won. Isn't that enough?

His family filed an appeal.

Of course, they did.

Granted, this happened while Director Kim was in charge,

but public sentiment is actually worse now that we've won.

We need to find a way--

Excuse me.

-I didn't have time to throw anything out. -I see.

Wait.

Oh goodness.

Thank you.

On top of this, everyone's constantly away on business trips and seminars,

and the med school quota issue is coming up again.

If people go on strike again,

I'll be the first one to do it.

Doctors complain about staff shortages, yet they're never available…

That's why we can't fire Dr. Gye.

So just stop.

Where did you even find someone like her?

The hospital's been in an uproar these days

because of her?

Dr. Kim.

Dr. Gye isn't a pain in the neck like the rumors say.

Is she my superior or my subordinate?

What? I'm not quite sure…

Fine, then answer this.

Do I need to wait on her or teach her?

I haven't been around her long, but I know one thing.

You'll need to do both.

Both? Then she's a pain in the neck.

I'm hungry.

Dr. Gye, are you okay?

I brought your white coat.

How long have you been awake?

-A while. -Since when?

"What? Is he a doctor too?"

"He's an intern, despite looking like a clueless fool."

You've been awake for some time.

-Wait, was that about me? -Why didn't you get up?

-Do I look like a clueless fool? -Too bothersome.

What was bothersome?

The clueless fool, the rage-smile,

and the suck-ups in surgery.

Dr. Jo is "rage-smile"? Awesome.

Can you tell me where your next rotation is?

Why, sir?

I'm not sure about emergency medicine…

Thanks so much. Good choice. Great. Excellent.

You can wake someone who's sleeping,

but not someone pretending to be asleep.

It's even harder to teach someone who pretends to know everything.

You'd be better off with someone like him who doesn't know anything.

She's basically passing you off.

I didn't see it at first, but now she seems like…

A nutjob, right?

You have a knack for whispering so everyone can hear.

It's a good technique. Excellent for raising low BP.

Really? I'll have to try it out.

From what I heard earlier,

you're the one with high blood pressure, raising your voice like that.

I'm Kim Seong-jin.

I'm Gye Su-jeong.

I'm Park Tae-gyeong.

…those issues were due to Mr. Seo's medical condition

-rather than any failure… -Hello, sir.

-Hello. -Hello.

Hey, it's fine. Just watch it.

There's no need to be secretive about it.

All that testifying and questioning…

It's been tough, but we made it past the hardest part.

It might not be over yet since they're appealing.

By the way, Dr. Kim Seong-jin is the same as ever.

What if he testifies in their favor?

There's nothing for him to say.

Which is probably why

Dr. Kim feels so bothered by it.

-Why won't you check your messages? -What?

This won't work.

I can't open an OR in their condition.

Why not? I need to operate right now.

No. We need to evaluate them more.

-Hello. -Hey.

I'm sorry about earlier.

And thank you for calling me.

Why are you by yourself?

Dr. Gye is working in the ER now.

What? Why?

Is staffing a joke to you?

What are you doing?

The director assigned her there because they're short-staffed.

How does having a talent like that there help general surgery?

All right, precious intern.

You came to get your things, right?

Let's go. Have a nice day.

Even kids don't bully like this. What's wrong with you?

Hey, it's none of your business.

Just give me an OR already.

Who'll take the blame if the patient dies in surgery?

You know I don't allow high-risk surgeries.

Find someone else.

Someone else? Like who?

I'm busy, but to help the future of Korean medicine,

I'll give you two minutes.

Dr. Kim mentioned Mr. Seo earlier.

Is that the person on the news who died from an SAH last year during his shift?

Yeah. What else?

Did he really die because there was nobody available to perform a craniotomy?

Yeah, but you're only half right.

Then were Dr. Kim or Dr. Bae,

-who performed the endovascular coiling-- -No.

ENDOVASCULAR COILING: A TREATMENT THAT DOESN'T REQUIRE CRANIOTOMY

They did everything they could.

Dr. Kim wasn't even on shift that day.

He was up all night and was heading home

-when he saw Mr. Seo passed out. -Mr. Seo?

He was slumped over the ER desk,

-so everyone thought he had fallen asleep. -Mr. Seo?

Things had been hectic because of a major car accident that night.

Help! Over here!

Mr. Seo!

Mr. Seo!

Dr. Bae.

Are we just going to let Mr. Seo go like this?

We have ten neurosurgeons,

but no one to clip an aneurysm?

His intracranial pressure is too high.

We should do a craniotomy and clip it,

-but it's already-- -Then page someone.

Neither of them is here.

Are you serious? Neither one?

Forget it. Dr. Bae…

Let's try coiling first.

We have no time to lose. I'll work on getting him transferred.

-Look… -Hey, Bae Heung-gon!

Please, I'm begging you.

Mr. Seo has worked here for ten years.

The hospital he works for should at least try something to save him.

It's only proper, and it's the right thing to do.

ANGIOGRAPHY SUITE 3

I can't get to it.

Endovascular coiling won't work.

-Then let's call the attendings again-- -One's in Germany for training.

The other is in Naju for his mother-in-law's funeral.

Then I'll get him transferred.

Dr. Nam at Junggyeong University Hospital said they'd take him.

I said it's no use. His ICP is too high.

He was finally transferred, but the patient died.

His ICP was too high, so even if we'd operated on him here,

there was a low chance of success.

That's what you got wrong, and it's the crux of the lawsuit.

I'm heading in.

You said there was a low chance of success.

Are you saying he was meant to die no matter what?

A doctor shouldn't say that.

Then what should one say?

"I couldn't save him. I'll go to jail."

Or maybe "I'm sorry"?

Doctors are human too. We have limits.

But if there'd been one more doctor who could do a craniotomy,

they could've gone all in and--

What are you, Hippocrates?

Nobody's impressed by an aneurysm clipping anymore.

Spending four hours looking through a tiny microscope

and digging around a bloody brain?

Fine, let's say we pushed through and pulled off the surgery.

You know what sucks?

The clip could slip at any second.

Who'd take the blame if the aneurysm ruptured

and killed or disabled the patient for life?

Do you know how many malpractice suits come with this surgery?

And clipping costs a fortune.

It's a major six-person team surgery, but reimbursement rates are trash.

Listen.

Spare me the lecture on what doctors can or can't say,

and learn craniotomy yourself.

You do it.

I'm going to learn coiling from Dr. Bae,

a non-surgical procedure with lower risk, fewer staff, and better money.

That's it for me.

I'll only work within my limits.

So does saying this mean

I'm not a real doctor?

Huh?

Answer me.

If you hit people like this,

they could end up dead or disabled for life.

That's what Eung-gu said.

When a cerebral aneurysm occurs,

one-third of patients die instantly.

Another third die en route.

Only the remaining third

make it to the hospital alive.

Mr. Seo beat the one-third odds of instant death

and was lucky enough to be in the hospital.

Are you ignoring these odds?

Maybe you're okay operating on those odds and letting a patient die--

Dr. Ma, what are you doing?

Get inside and prep.

Aren't you supposed to get double board-certified like Dr. Bae?

You won't survive a second residency like this.

Given your current skills…

you'll see a pile of lawsuits even if you play it safe.

Get in there and learn, resident.

Go inside.

Dr. Gye.

It feels like I'm putting out fires you've been starting.

It's my imagination, right?

No, it's the truth.

Also, I didn't start this fire.

I'm the one who started it.

I crossed the line with Dr. Ma.

I'm sorry.

Don't provoke anyone entering my OR 30 minutes before surgery.

It'll distract them.

We're 31 minutes and 20 seconds away.

Dr. Gye, please stop.

You two are a chaotic duo.

You can't even observe the surgery because of me.

It's not your fault.

I'm waiting for a surprise visit.

You get surprise visits?

That's unexpected.

Oh, here.

You usually get these when you donate blood.

I wish I could do it every day.

Don't you dare do it every day!

I'll draw your blood and spinal fluid too!

What are you doing? Who are you?

Ms. Jang.

Ms. Jang?

The lady you live with?

The one who uses you for free labor?

I'm tired from giving blood and working today.

Make me a good meal at home.

Things would've gone fine without you. Why get in the way?

I said keep to yourself for a bit.

Dr. Gye was amazing today.

She shouldn't be amazing!

You need to focus on doing big cases and making a lot of money.

Besides, why are you working in the ER?

You can't operate now, and you won't make money.

Just keep to yourself until you get back to general surgery…

Oh my goodness.

Good heavens.

I can't believe I spoke like that in front of you.

-I'm sorry, Doctor. -It's okay.

I'm an intern. My name is Park Tae-gyeong.

I see.

Hello.

I'm the head of the country's first-ever locum tenens agency.

My name is Jang Hui-suk.

You could say I'm Dr. Gye Su-jeong's agent.

Oh, you might become

one of our future clients or locums in the future,

so please take this, sir.

DIRECTOR JANG HUI-SUK

Oh, you don't have to call me "sir."

Of course, I do.

You're pursuing a demanding path of study.

Goodness, I'm getting thirsty.

Go get something for me and Dr. Park.

-I'll go, ma'am. -No, no. Please sit down.

Go on.

I can tell by looking at you

that there are other doctors in your family.

How did you know that?

Ma'am?

Ma'am?

Me?

Yes. Can I borrow some tissue from you?

Wiping something sticky with tissue will make a big mess.

Use this instead.

Here, take it.

It really works better. Thank you.

I haven't seen you before. Which department do you work in?

I go here and there.

I do something like contract work.

I do contract work too. Contract cleaning.

I go here and there too.

You're my senior then.

Goodness, your senior?

Excuse me then.

Are you okay?

Oh, I'm okay.

Have you felt this pain before?

Something new hurts every day, you know.

It's okay.

Thank you. I appreciate it.

I think a part of Dr. Kim feels like

he's responsible for what happened.

There was a huge uproar

when CCTV footage was released, showing Mr. Seo slumped in the ER alone.

I saw it too.

It made me think that even if I collapsed in a hospital,

no one would know.

In a hospital, of all places.

-That's why people were so upset. -Right.

But how did that get leaked to the public?

Someone posted on the message board.

Goodness.

So they tried to hunt down the whistleblower

by calling in all the EMTs and nurses and questioning them.

Everyone but the doctors, right?

They never found the person,

but apparently the Korean Health and Medical Workers' Union even protested.

Must have been traumatic for the hospital, right?

Oh my. I just used a medical term in front of a doctor.

What are you doing?

Are you drinking that or not?

This young gentleman's parent turned their plastic surgery clinic in Busan

into a regional hub hospital.

Pay attention to the great doctor's son.

She couldn't get it on the first try.

Not the can or the wet wipe.

I like this time of day.

Everyone quietly writes up what happened during work,

gives each other notice, and gets ready to leave.

-Who's leaving? -This doctor here.

If you have any questions, ask her now.

It's almost time.

So, how did you know

it was acid reflux and not chest pain?

Ms. Ha Mi-ju, 61 years old.

She's complaining of extreme chest pain,

but her test results came back fine.

You came in with the same symptoms at dawn the other day.

The pain woke her up at night. It's especially bad at night.

Okay. Let me listen to your chest again.

Ms. Ha?

Did you eat before coming here?

No.

Then Ms. Ha,

do you usually drink a lot of coffee or eat greasy food?

Yes.

Let me apply pressure to your abdomen.

-Does that hurt? -Yes, it does.

I could tell from her awkward hand placement

and the radius of her hand gesture when signaling pain.

What a cool description.

Can I write that in the report?

What do you think?

I spent a long time somewhere I didn't know the language well,

so I had to focus on behavior and attitude during examinations.

Why do you think Ms. Ha described her symptoms wrong?

It happens. That's why doctors need to ask the right questions.

I missed a lot of signs

because my mind was all over the place today.

Not many people are good at describing…

their own pain.

I suppose so.

After watching people fight over consults and get mad about criticism,

I'm not sure what to make of this heartwarming scene.

On that note, let's order a late-night snack…

Goodbye.

Wait, you're really clocking out?

Dr. Park, did she just go home?

Yes.

Get it together.

It's gone cold.

Dr. Gye, are you okay?

I brought your white coat.

How long have you been awake?

GYE SU-JEONG

It looked smudged.

I'll make her a new one.

GYE SU-JEONG

Based on what I've seen so far,

it'll be a while before Dr. Gye gets a proper white coat.

I'll have to make some more.

(UNKNOWN)

You skipped a meal again, right?

Thank you.

I heard the paramedics talk among themselves

that the GUMC ER in Gyeonggi Province accepts all patients.

That there's a good doctor working here.

So stop getting angry and threatening to quit.

Just hang in there.

I want my kid to visit me at work, meet a good doctor like you,

and decide she wants to become one.

Eat before the noodles get soggy.

Hello, ma'am.

I work at the same hospital as Mr. Seo Jin-yeong…

GUSEO UNIVERSITY SEONAM MEDICAL CENTER

We're seeing the same thing, right?

Yes.

It's the same sight we saw yesterday.

Dr. Gye.

Dr. Gye Su-jeong.

Are you pretending to be asleep, or am I unable to wake you?

I think she's really asleep.

Why sleep here and not in the on-call room?

And didn't she leave work on the dot yesterday?

Dr. Gye.

Dr. Gye!

Did you sleep well?

These uncomfortable hospital beds are somehow great for deep sleep.

Are you kidding me?

Do we need empty beds right now?

This is where patients get treated or wait to get treated, okay?

You're lucky we don't have an incoming rush--

So there's no rush of patients.

Didn't you go home yesterday?

I went home and came in early.

Are you looking for someone?

The morning shift hasn't started yet.

In that case…

"In that case"?

Huh?

Hello, Dr. Jo.

Pulled an all-nighter?

Pick something.

It's okay. I'm fine.

Are you picking up groceries?

Now I'm awake.

Did you talk to Dr. Ma?

No.

Did the procedure go well that day?

Dr. Bae is a good teacher, so yes.

That's a relief.

I was afraid he was too angry to focus.

He is short-tempered, but he knows when to focus.

You're an outcast intern, aren't you?

Me?

No, not at all. I have a lot of friends.

What friends?

From high school.

You know how busy interns are.

The interns in my department meet up and eat together.

I see.

I'm focusing on my studies…

I guess I shouldn't tell lies.

Are you worried about Dr. Gye because she's an outcast too?

That's not true. Dr. Gye and I aren't outcasts.

You don't perform surgery alone. It's a team effort.

You need to know how to fit in and get along.

Sometimes, you need to hold back

and just smile even when you're pissed.

Right, "rage-smile."

How'd you know I have low BP?

You've got a gift for spiking it.

This is really good. Try a bite.

Hey, I took pity on you and your clueless fool vibe.

Me? A clueless fool? No way.

Dr. Jo, I have a question.

This hospital has ten neurosurgeons on staff.

Even if doctors who can do a craniotomy are rare…

I mean, we've got so many hospital beds.

Why not bring in more neurosurgeons?

It comes down to money.

You think there are more patients with appendicitis or brain bleeds?

Both are cheap, right?

Then they'll choose the easier surgery. They're getting peanuts anyway.

They're focused on money-making surgeries.

A hospital near GUMC has less than 1,000 beds,

but they have more doctors who can treat brain bleeds.

GUMC absolutely pales in comparison.

So that's why

-you assigned Su-jeong there? -Of course.

Hospitals obsessed with money always crash and burn.

They're bound to screw up.

-I have a nose for that stuff. -Oh, sure.

If your nose is so amazing,

why can't you sniff out a flat tire?

Because screw-ups like that smell like crap. Downright nasty.

Is it on my face?

Damn it.

You know how many doctors nationwide can do aneurysm clipping?

Barely over 130.

And most are in their sixties.

Hardly anyone wants to teach it or learn it anymore.

They're on the brink of extinction.

But in some cases, aneurysm clipping is the only option.

What then?

Ma'am?

Ma'am, are you okay?

Can you get up?

Ma'am, are you…

Mr. Seo, are you okay?

Mr. Seo?

Then you'd better pray one of those 130

is at the hospital you're taken to.

I need some help here!

Help me examine this patient!

ENERGY DRINK

-How long until Dr. Hwang gets here? -About 40 to 50 minutes.

He's at a Seoul Medical Association meeting, but the traffic…

And Dr. Jang? The Ulsan conference ended yesterday morning.

He used the opportunity to go on a family trip.

He's on his way, but…

Is he trying to be Father of the Year?

It's an SAH secondary to a ruptured aneurysm.

How about coiling?

It's too difficult for now.

She's conscious.

She's complaining of pain and convulsing, but she's conscious.

-Transfer her now. -No.

We must treat her here no matter what.

Ms. Lee, look around. There's no one available.

Then we'll wait for them.

What? What are you talking about?

Let's say we transferred another staff member who collapsed here.

If she dies,

all hell will break loose.

But she'll die if she waits here.

I don't know much about medicine.

But what I do know is that the closest hospital

where we can transfer her for aneurysm clipping

is Daeseok Hospital, which is 50 minutes away.

What do you mean?

Dr. Nam at Junggyeong is 20 minutes away.

Dr. Nam went into private practice.

-They quit because it was too hard. -Damn it.

If we factor in morning traffic, it'll take an hour even for an ambulance.

It's the same amount of time to do either!

This is a race against time. Get her ready for transfer.

Our hospital can't handle it.

We have someone who can operate.

Who is it?

Director Bu Seung-gwon.

I've reviewed a lot of your surgical cases and related materials.

I'm begging you.

The director isn't prepared to perform surgery--

Since when do doctors need to be prepared for surgery?

I haven't operated in a very long time.

I'll assist you, sir.

You've done this surgery almost 300 times.

-What are you doing? -First,

-let's review the materials-- -No.

You're the only one, sir.

The only person in a 30-minute radius who can do this surgery

is you, Director Bu.

Listen up.

We're transferring this patient.

-Prep an ambulance and call Daeseok. -Yes, sir.

You can't do that now!

The surgery has begun.

I paged Dr. Jo from Anesthesia and secured an OR.

Who the hell is operating?

Dr. Gye, sir.

-What? -What?

Craniotomy and aneurysm neck clipping.

Let's begin.

But Dr. Gye isn't board-certified in neurosurgery.

Doctor X…

Dr. Do, we can't allow this.

We must stop this surgery right now, sir.

They can't do this. Damn it.

Vitals are stable.

Lidocaine.

LIDOCAINE: LOCAL ANESTHETIC

Scalpel.

Raney clip.

Sorry.

I'm only calling to ask for a favor.

You're going to have to send the email out ASAP.

I know. I should've had something ready.

Well, you know how it is.

Some people just won't buy it

even when it's right there, staring them in the face.

Oh, great. I owe you big.

Who gave her permission to operate?

She doesn't need permission.

If the patient is sick, you operate.

Does she know how to perform this surgery?

Director, is she doing it correctly?

Yes.

She's doing it perfectly.

Jeez…

This is insane.

She's obsessed with surgeries when she's not even board-certified.

Dr. Do, you can't stop the surgery.

-Huh? -What the hell are you doing?

Dr. Gye said she knows how to perform it.

She can do it.

How the hell do you know?

I just do.

If I can see it, surely you do too.

You've seen what she can do.

And you're watching right now.

You little…

Whether we transfer or wait, the patient will miss the golden hour.

If either choice comes with a risk,

and there's a doctor who's capable and willing,

we need to take a chance.

Have all of you lost it?

You think a doctor who isn't board-certified in neuro can do this?

Hey, Gye Su…

What the heck?

Why isn't this working?

-I'm sorry, sir. -Hey!

Are you serious?

-Come here! -I'm sorry!

I'll go and tell her myself.

Good morning, Director.

I brought

Dr. Gye's neurosurgery board certificate.

-What? -Neurosurgery?

Neurosurgery? No way.

Is that real?

You still can't let her, sir.

Periosteal elevator.

PERIOSTEAL ELEVATOR: USED TO SEPARATE THE PERIOSTEUM COVERING THE BONE

-Let go, you punk! -Hey!

What do you think you're doing?

-You're fired, Park. -What?

How dare you cut communication with the OR?

-Wait a minute! -Give that to me!

-Hey, stop! -You think this place belongs to you?

-Just wait a second! -Get over here!

Clipping. Fishhook, please.

If we fail,

this patient will die at the workplace she cleaned every day.

Her touch is everywhere in this hospital.

Let's…

give it our all.

-Yes, ma'am. -Yes, ma'am.

Burr hole trephination.

BURR HOLE TREPHINATION: SURGICAL PROCEDURE TO DRILL A SMALL HOLE IN THE SKULL

Dr. Gye already knew.

She knew the patient would collapse.

Huh? What are you talking about?

She was sleeping in the ER at dawn.

I think she was waiting for this patient.

Director.

I don't trust that certificate. Let's go down there.

Dr. Park.

You're really going to pay for this.

Understand?

That's what I thought too, at first.

But when I look at the monitor,

I get what Dr. Park meant.

Who on earth is that doctor?

Clip.

She found the neck already?

This quickly?

That's impossible.

Clipping.

Clipping successful.

Bipolar forceps.

Dr. Gye Su-jeong!

Dr. Gye, today's lunch menu is braised short ribs!

I'll save a seat for you!

Great job!

Goodness.

OPERATION TIME, TIME, ANESTHESIA TIME

Good job, everyone.

-Good job. -Good job.

What are the odds of her bleeding or collapsing again?

The surgery went perfectly.

I haven't seen one like this in a while.

Does that mean

this will actually work in our hospital's favor?

Yes.

I believe so.

Let's talk outside.

THIS SEAT IS RESERVED! WILL BE OCCUPIED SHORTLY

THIS SEAT IS RESERVED THANK YOU FOR YOUR UNDERSTANDING

RESERVED SEAT THIS SEAT HAS BEEN SAVED

I was at the Medical Association Emergency Response Committee.

Why didn't you come right back after the conference?

I tacked on a few vacation days to my business trip.

You're the one who suddenly went to the Medical Association.

How could I not go? It was the Emergency Response Committee!

Everyone's out to get doctors right now.

Of course, I had to go!

That's enough.

We didn't gather to play the blame game.

Dr. Jo.

I didn't expect this from you.

You'll open an OR to just anyone, huh?

Is this reverse discrimination? You only open ORs for women?

Even if you were a woman, I wouldn't have said yes to that chart.

What?

Dr. Jo, even if it was an emergency surgery,

we were in a conference.

What's the point of a conference that just wastes time?

Wow, there's no sense of discipline or order anymore.

You're all lax

and talking back to your seniors.

Director, you should've waited for us.

Then the patient would've died!

What?

That patient was lucky.

She collapsed in a hospital and was conscious.

And there was an excellent doctor nearby.

-Maybe if Mr. Seo-- -Dr. Kim.

That's enough. Why bring that up?

It was you, wasn't it?

The anonymous whistleblower.

He was a longtime co-worker, and the ER is a war zone.

I'm sure you shared strong camaraderie.

We left out doctors on purpose.

The EMTs and nurses had more damaging stories they could leak,

so we preemptively scared everyone with the internal investigation.

That's right.

I wrote the post.

Dr. Kim.

How could you?

Do you know what I went through?

Everyone around me lost their minds over it!

Director, we must bring Dr. Kim before the ethics committee.

Dr. Jang and I suffered greatly back then.

Why did you write it?

Mr. Seo…

had a one-year-old daughter.

She no longer has a father.

Yes, I wrote it.

They said it was nobody's fault.

They blamed his illness, his destiny, and his fate.

They said he would've died anyway.

Every doctor kept talking crap like that.

That's why I got angry and wrote it.

How could you say that in front of the director?

Since I'm not allowed to talk about it, I had to write about it at least!

His ICP was so high, the contrast wouldn't flow,

so we couldn't even coil him.

Performing a craniotomy right then wouldn't have helped.

You know that.

Are you saying the hospital has no responsibility at all?

You're just going to talk about reimbursement rates?

Are we seriously reducing this to Mr. Seo's fate?

Are you saying we're at fault then?

How were we to know he was going to get that sick?

Do we have to live in this hospital around the clock?

Is that what we should do?

Doctors are people too!

Look…

Who called Dr. Gye here?

Hey, Dr. Gye.

We'll talk to you separately, so leave.

You're not the only one.

Patients are people too.

What?

Did she just…

Did you speak informally to me?

So?

Do you make an effort to be a doctor?

Sir?

Or are you just a person?

Then when do you step up as a doctor?

Only when you clock in?

Or when you're at the hospital?

Or just sometimes?

How dare you…

How old are you? Just how long have you been practicing?

Watch what you say, please.

Dr. Gye.

Apologize to everyone here.

Ms. Yeo Jeong-sun

works a two-shift schedule.

Today was her day off.

But a co-worker's daughter injured her back,

so she came in as a favor to her co-worker.

Ms. Yeo

was also in charge of cleaning this office.

It's a good thing she came to work then.

Imagine if she'd been outside or at home.

See? She was meant to live.

You shouldn't be saying things like that!

She didn't come because she was ill. She was ill, but still came to work!

And luckily for her, she collapsed in a hospital.

So that's why the trash can is full.

They should've sent a replacement. How irresponsible.

Dr. Jang!

What?

What are you doing?

Dr. Gye!

Stop making a scene and apologize now!

Hey, are you that confident in yourself?

This industry is a lot smaller than you think.

Your career can be over in a heartbeat.

Why the hell did you hire her, Ms. Lee?

I guarantee that within the next few days,

it'll rupture, or another issue will occur.

I'll bet my white coat on this!

I will too.

Let's see what happens. How confident are you now?

You think she would've pulled it off?

Can you guarantee she didn't fail?

Are you confident?

Can you guarantee it won't rupture or cause any other issue?

Please give us an OR, Dr. Jo. We're counting on you.

I can't let her into an OR. She's not board-certified in neuro.

-Absolutely not. -What if I am?

What did you say?

You know I'll pull it off.

-There's no time. We have to-- -I'm reporting this to Director Bu.

You said so yourself.

In cases like this,

you need to pray one of those 130 is at that hospital.

Dr. Jo, that one out of 130 is right here.

She's right in front of us.

Please, Dr. Jo.

That patient is one of the hospital's cleaning staff.

She's probably cleaned the very phone you're holding.

Park Tae-gyeong.

Listen carefully.

What matters more is

what kind of doctor that one-in-130 actually is.

Is it someone who just knows how to do it?

Or someone who can perform the surgery with precision every step of the way?

I…

don't ever fail.

Get ready to lose your white coats.

Where are you going? Stop right there!

You give me shit if I stay, and give me shit if I leave…

"Give you shit"?

Did I hear that right?

Director, fire her right now.

She's toxic to the hospital and undermines discipline.

We need to ban her from medicine!

Enough!

Don't you have any shame?

You hold people accountable over a damn trash can.

But when a life is on the line, why won't any of you…

Why on earth…

does no one…

You haven't gone in yet?

No, the meeting is taking longer than expected.

I'm sorry.

-About what? -"About what?"

Do I have a lot to be sorry for?

Do you mean in the observation gallery?

No, I'm talking about in front of the OR

when I lost my temper and poked you in the chest.

Oh, that?

You know,

you have a way of pushing people's buttons.

I was wrong too.

I crossed the line, and I'm sorry.

I got ahead of myself.

It was hard to accept

that the organization I chose delivered an outcome that--

Forget it.

Look.

It's not that

I don't understand you…

But you're just an intern,

so finish your monthly rotation and go.

A lot of interns do a surgery rotation

so they can act all dedicated, but they end up going somewhere else.

I'm done watching that happen.

You won't choose general surgery anyway.

There you are.

Why are you by yourself? Where's the intern?

Why did you come alone?

Then what should I do?

What kind of doctor should I be?

Can I even be a doctor?

Tell Park Tae-gyeong or whatever to get in here now!

This is all because of that damn intern…

Never mind being a doctor. I'm dead meat.

Thank you for taking the time to join us.

I'm Bu Seung-gwon,

the new director at Guseo University Seonam Medical Center.

I requested a press conference and not an inauguration ceremony

because today marks the first anniversary

of the passing of Mr. Seo Jin-yeong, who died while on duty last year.

As you may have recently heard,

we had another similar incident at our hospital.

While on the job, one of our cleaning staff

collapsed from a cerebral hemorrhage.

And our medical staff

did everything in their power to treat her.

In the wake of this incident,

I intend to do what the former director did not.

Mr. Seo Jin-yeong's death

exposed the deep flaws in our medical system.

Absurd reimbursement rates,

chronic staffing shortages, and insufficient budgets.

Yes, that's right.

All of this is true.

However,

it's also not the whole story.

Before all that,

a fundamental trust must exist for everyone at our hospital.

All staff members should be able to trust that

if they get injured or collapse during their shift,

they'll get the proper care they need

to make it home safely at the end of the day.

This hospital…

broke that trust.

So, for the first time,

to the late Mr. Seo's family, to the public that we've disappointed,

and to all members of our hospital family,

I offer my deepest apologies.

I'll take questions now.

This is strange.

Kim Seong-jin didn't write that post.

You did.

I assume it was out of guilt

and a sense of responsibility.

You begged me for that footage,

saying things would change if we exposed it.

You asked me to trust you.

So, has anything changed?

Let's just wait and see.

This is just the start.

The newly appointed director at Guseo University Seonam Medical Center

is taking an unusual approach to the death of EMT Seo Jin-yeong.

Director Bu Seung-gwon bowed and apologized

for the previous leadership's mistakes

and stated he would cooperate fully with the bereaved family's appeal.

He also expressed his desire to speak directly with the family.

Hospital officials say

Director Bu Seung-gwon requested a press conference

to state his position rather than hold an inauguration ceremony.

Are you saying this is a new contract?

As you can see,

as a cerebrovascular neurosurgeon,

Dr. Gye possesses exceptional surgical skills.

And she's already stepped in to cover the hospital's staffing shortage.

Oh, I sent you a separate invoice for that.

You're basically asking for more money, right?

I believe this incident proves that she's worth it.

And the other terms remain the same?

No, there's one more.

What is it?

I don't work in a department I didn't choose.

How dare you? You're just a locum.

You go where you're told.

You're not on great terms with the current administration.

And people are talking about another strike.

What if a staffing shortage hits, and there's a major accident?

Goodness, just thinking about it gives me chills.

Who's going to fill that gap then?

Are you saying Dr. Gye will fill it?

Of course not. Money will fill the gap.

Even if this place is hanging by a thread,

it still belongs to a foundation that brings in a net profit

of tens of billions of won per year.

Shouldn't you open your wallet for this?

Let's go over the terms and the rates.

First, the employment terms.

-"Working past regular hours--" -Excuse me.

Escort him in.

He's here.

This is an important moment. What's going on?

It's been a long time, sir.

How have you been?

You look good.

Take a seat.

Please say hello. This is…

I'm Na Dae-il.

I'm joining general surgery starting today.

Nice to meet you.

The contract will be put on hold.

MEDICAL SERVICE RATE SHEET

DOCTOR X: MAFIA IN WHITE

DOCTOR X: MAFIA IN WHITE

Is Dr. Na doing a fine job or what?

Shoulders back.

You're Gye Su-jeong.

Page the OR.

Why did you go into someone else's OR and cause trouble?

I heard something happened between you and Dr. Na.

That bastard's hands reek.

So? What about the surgery?

It's almost scary how people are connected.

I'm curious to know what you see ahead of you.

I only focus on what's ahead?

You seemed like a god.

Or a monster.

Subtitle translation by: Jenny Kim