Chapter 97 – Big Shot (4)

The first surgery in the afternoon was a stent angioplasty, a relatively simple operation that needed to be done while the holiday schedule of the other neurosurgery professors was being adjusted.

While the guiding catheter was being pushed into the patient’s blood vessel, Choi Hoo asked Dowook.

“Have you decided on where to go for your fellowship training?”

“No, not yet.”

“I’m going to Rochester this Lunar New Year’s. If you haven’t decided yet, why don’t you go there? I can put in a request with the person in charge over there.”

Dowook, who’d been preparing to inflate the balloon once it was positioned in the blood vessel, turned to look at Choi Hoo at the unexpected suggestion.

Because he was properly able to show his skills to the professors from famous hospitals during Tom Brand’s case, he could choose any one of those hospitals to go to. Since he didn’t have a lot of information about the unfamiliar place called Rochester University, he couldn’t help but ask.

“If I go there, can I learn something that can help me perform surgery even with a short visit?”

Choi Hoo nodded as he pushed the stent into the blocked blood vessel.

“The Rochester University of Medicine has a department that makes the world’s best medical models. Talented surgeons from all around the world gather to help produce such models. They also provide free models to the participants.”

“So the reason you’re going to the US this Lunar New Year’s is…….”

“That’s right. I received news that they will be creating a new model.”

All kinds of models that filled Choi Hoo’s office. This was how he was able to get such expensive models without any support from the hospital.

But something else gained Dowook’s interest.

The talented surgeons from all over the world gathered there.

The possibility that he could feel the senses of surgeons from hospitals all around the world in just a month. During a free training period at that.

“I’ll leave it to you.”

“Ok. You’ll probably be able to take part the next time they create a new model.”

After the surgery, which lasted about two and a half hours, Dowook walked out and was surprised to see Son Jae-geol waiting outside the entrance of the rosette.

“What are you doing here?”

“Park Dowook. What did you say that…….”

“Why?”

“A press conference is being held in the auditorium. It was called by one of Ko Yoon-ah’s sponsors due to her health problems. They’re creating a fuss and asking for the hospital to come out and give a statement.”

“How did the tests go? What did Prof. Lee say was the cause?”

Son Jae-geol replied with a sigh.

“We’re waiting for the results of the spinal cord puncture, but they said it looks like acute transverse myelitis. I sent the diagnosis to the Australian hospital, and they said it isn’t possible. They’re saying that they’re right. I don’t know if they’re just covering up their mistake but things are getting crazy.”

“What about Ko Yoon-ah?”

“In the clinic’s waiting area with her father. Her coach and mentor are dealing with the reporters.”

“Ok.”

Dowook answered placidly. Son Jae-geol asked worriedly.

“What are you planning?”

“What plan? We have to diagnose the disease accurately first. I’ve experienced something like this a few times and the one who wins is the person who has the most accurate evidence.”

“Huh? What did you experience?”

“Things happened. I’m going to the clinic first, so ask the lab to hurry with the spinal puncture analysis.”

-What do you think about the allegation that Ko Yoon-ah deliberately hid her illness and took the entrance exam to Korea National Sport University?

Prof. Moon Hyung Taek, who’d been sitting in front and answering the reporters’ questions, shook his head and replied.

“She is a tennis prodigy who had received a confirmation for admission several years ago. Since she achieved first place in the Korean rankings three years ago, she has not dropped. What reason does she have to cheat?”

-Is it true that she ignored the diagnosis of Melbourne Hospital and tried to create a fake diagnosis at Myeong Sae Hospital?

-There are rumors among the sponsors that Ko Yoon-ah ignored the content of the contracts to keep her sponsorship. Please say something about this.

Prof. Moon frowned at the series of provocative questions that came flying.

Outside the auditorium, News Seoul reporter Yoon Jin-hyo shook his head while watching the scene inside.

There could only be one reason why some reporters were asking such aggressive questions. The influence of the sponsors, especially Juno Sports, which was a large clothing company.

When the news of the diagnosis from the Australian hospital made headlines, the company tried to break the contract without losing money.

Normally, he would have sided with Juno Sports and joined those asking aggressive questions, but he didn’t do so after checking the name of the doctor.

Park Dowook.

If he used normal logic and joined in when this doctor was involved, he would only get hurt in the process.

During the academy bus incident, and the LT communications underground fire. How many times did he suffer with the dean of Hansung Hospital, who he wasn’t in contact with anymore?

“What are you doing out here?”

The marketing manager of Juno Sports approached Yoon Jin-hyo, who was leaning on a wall outside the auditorium. The marketing manager glanced at the name tag hanging from his neck and continued with a crooked smile.

“You’re from News Seoul. I’m sure you’ve received instructions. Are you trying to get money without doing anything? We at Juno Sports can’t accept that.”

“I’m waiting.”

“Waiting for what?”

“The one who will bring a twist to this catharsis communication. Articles about him are really good at gaining view counts.”

Yoon Jin-hyo pointed to the podium with a sly smile when the marketing manager looked at him in bewilderment.

“He’s here.”

Park Dowook appeared on the podium.

Dowook could gauge how interested the public was in this case when he saw nearly 200 reporters in the auditorium.

The auditorium which quieted down for a moment when he came up on the podium was soon filled with noise once more.

-About the alleged cheating in the university entrance exam…!

-The reason for hiding her illness…!

-The reason for tricking sponsors and making a profit…!

Perhaps because he had experienced being questioned by several people at once numerous times, but the provocative words were very clear to Dowook.

Dowook turned and spoke quietly to Prof. Moon and Ko Yoon-ah’s coach who both looked flustered.

“I will be answering all questions from here on.”

Pulling the mic closer, Dowook first introduced himself.

“I am the neurosurgeon who helped in Athlete Ko Yoon-ah’s diagnosis.”

-Where is Ko Yoon-ah?

“She had a spinal puncture done so she must be in a relaxed state.”

Seeing a reporter raise his hand the moment he finished talking, Dowook waved his hand asking him to wait and continued.

“As far as I know, everyone here is wondering about the difference in the diagnosis given by Melbourne Hospital and Myeong Sae Hospital. I will take care of this part first before I answer any questions.”

Dowook sent a signal to Son Jae-geol who stood below the podium.

The projector screen behind the podium turned on and two video call screens appeared.

Turning on the laptop on the table in the auditorium, Dowook appeared on through the camera. The other screens connected and three people appeared.

“This is the Melbourne Hospital’s Sport Medical Team. They are Rehabilitation, Neurology and Orthopedic doctors. Hello, doctors.”

At Dowook’s greeting, a slightly delayed response came from the people on the screen.

All the reporters had a bewildered expression on their faces. They didn’t think that those who had a different opinion would be summoned like this.

“We have to speak in English so is there anyone here who needs a translator?”

A few hands went up in the air.

“There’s quite a few. Ok. It would take some time to do this on the spot so…”

“I’ll translate.”

Prof. Moon who was beside him turned on his mic. After nodding in thanks, Dowook turned to the Melbourne Hospital doctors.

『I am Dr. Park Dowook. I believe everyone has checked the referral we at Myeong Sae Hospital has sent over. Do you still believe that Athlete Ko Yoon-ah has stress-induced fibromyalgia?』

At the question, the middle-aged doctor in the middle answered.

『I’m Keryl Logan, a Neurologist. Myeong Sae Hospital’s diagnosis of acute transverse myelitis is ridiculously absurd. We can only say that the patient’s symptoms were forced to match a rare case.』

A reasonable objection since the diagnosis was made using his special sense from the start. However, there was no reason to force his process of diagnosis to match the logic of normal doctors.

To lay the groundwork for this debate, Dowook looked through the spinal cord tests on the public medical site with cases from all over the world and found unexpected facts on the Melbourne Hospital server which he’d gone into for information exchange.

『If Ko Yoon-ah is not the only example, will you admit it?』

Dowook typed something in his laptop and brought up the related charts.

『Athlete Ron Sagan. Athlete Anna Schmiedlová. I believe both these athletes also suffer from the same illness.』

『What do you mean? Aren’t they all patients who received treatment from our hospital? They didn’t even receive the same diagnosis at Athlete Ko Yoona-ah.』

『That’s correct. The illnesses are different. Athlete Ron Sagan had fever and dermatitis. Athlete Anna Schmiedlová was sore throat and arthritis.』

『Are you joking right now?』

『Uh, there are 200 reporters in front of me so it would be terrible if I’m playing a joke.』

Lifting the laptop slightly, he turned it around to show the situation inside the auditorium, surprising the doctors on the screen.

『Both Ron and Anna participated in the Australian Open and visited Melbourne Hospital during the same period as Ko Yoon-ah. In addition, the symptoms were alleviated by a wide range of common antibiotics. Ko Yoon-ah didn’t get a prescription of antibiotics because she was misdiagnosed with fibromyalgia.』

『If you keep talking nonsense, we’ll pretend this collaboration didn’t happen.』

『I’m not so sure about that. If I were you, I would immediately contact these athletes and apologize. Otherwise, they might sue Melbourne Hospital.』

『What…….』

『Have you heard of Lyme Disease? Ko Yoon-ah’s case of acute transverse myelitis was caused by the Borrelia bacteria from deer mites. We’ve already confirmed it through tests.』

Once these words were interpreted and the Melbourne doctors hesitated, there was a commotion among the reporters..

『The three I’ve mentioned did not show normal signs of the disease because as athletes, they are healthier than most, so the disease reacted differently. According to Ko Yoon-ah’s father, all the participants who participated in rounds 32 and up stayed in the same hotel. Please check the quarantine status of this hotel. There may be additional patients.』

The faces of the three doctors on the screen turned dark in an instant.

『Such tricky symptoms are bound to be difficult to diagnose. Each person and illness have a different symptom. Melbourne Hospital didn’t seem to wish to listen to Myeong Sae Hospital when we are just trying to correct errors that have occurred. I’ll ask you one last time. Do you still think that Ko Yoon-ah has stress-induced fibromyalgia?』

『W-we will check one more time and call you.』

『What more do you want to check? It’s not an infection but caused by stress. This diagnosis? Dr. Logan, is that truly the case?』

The three doctors urgently talked to each other as they looked at the test results provided by Myeong Sae Hospital. Dr. Logan spoke as their representative.

『We apologize.』

Doctors who had their heads bowed.

『I don’t think there’s anything more that we need to talk about. By the way, you don’t have to contact Mr. Sagan and Ms. Schmiedlová. Our international medical department sent the diagnosis to the Tennis Association and they replied by saying that they would like to get re-examined at our hospital.』

『What? Dr. Park! Isn’t that too much…….』

『Have a nice day.』

Click.

Hanging up the call, Dowook turned to the reporters in the auditorium.

“Now. Questions?”

None of the reporters were able to raise their hands so the auditorium fell into silence.

That night.

Marketing Manager Shin Jung Cheol checked the flower basket he was holding one more time and stood in the hall of the VIP ward.

While waiting for his visiting request to be confirmed by those inside, he checked the news on his phone.

【Melbourne Hospital Acknowledges Diagnostic Errors About Ko Yoon-ah. Raises a White Flag To Myeong Sae Hospital】

【Australian Open Requires Special Quarantine from all Sponsored Hotels. Serard Hotel, where all athletes stayed at, scolded by the Australian Media!】

【The World Tennis Association Posts an Apology to Ko Yoon-ah and Other Victims 】

【Australian Open Women’s Singles Winner Vinesa Murgu. “The one who pushed me the most was Ko Yoon-ah.” Looking forward to once again facing the Korean Queen of Tennis in the French Open in June】

While reading the articles, the door of Room 2001 opened and an unknown man in his late-30s walked out.

“A visiting request? Who are you?”

“I’m Shin Jung-cheol from Juno Sports. I wanted to visit Ko Yoon-ah. She didn’t answer any of my calls so I came to visit.”

“Oh my, it seems you didn’t receive the news.”

“What news?”

The man let out a small sigh.

“Ko Yoon-ah will be managed by our ‘Starpiece’ from now on. All of her existing sponsorship contracts are being sorted out so expect our lawyers to contact you soon.”

Handing a business card to Shin Jung-cheol, the man added.

“Oh, and Ms. Ko asked that all visitors from her sponsors be rejected.”

The man turned around and disappeared down the hall.

Looking at the words ‘Director Gong Do Yoon’ written on the business card, Shin Jung-cheol had a blank look on his face.

Starpiece was a famous label that was under KG Entertainment. Yoon Yi Seol, Park Jong Ho, Oh Sora and even Han Jung-woo, a legend in the entertainment industry, belonged to the agency. This meant that such a large company acknowledged Ko Yoon-ah’s star quality.

Walking out with the flower basket in his hand, Shin Jung-cheol’s legs almost gave out.

Standing in front of the elevator with a stiff face, Shin Jung-cheol met the representatives from other sponsors with fruit baskets and bouquets in their hands.

“Huh? What are you doing here, Manager Shin?”

What else? He was regretting the fact that he didn’t realize a star before he let the opportunity slip from his hands.

Without a word, Shin Jung-cheol patted the Dongshin Distributor’s public relations manager on the shoulder and got on the elevator.

Clack.

The flower basket in his hand fell to the floor.

Dowook stood up after confirming that Ko Yoon-ah was slightly feverish after the prescribed antibiotic treatment. Seeing how worried Ko Yoon-ah’s father, Ko Seok-ho, looked, Dowook spoke to him in a calm tone.

“A normal immune response is taking place. The bacteria that caused her illness will be killed, so let’s wait a few days and check again.”

“Thank you, doctor.”

Ko Yoon-ah, who’d had her eyes closed, opened her eyes and looked at Dowook, who was about to leave the room.

“Doctor.”

“Yes?”

“By any chance….”

Ko Yoon-ah’s teary eyes looked at Dowook then at Prof. Moon, her coach and her father, who were sitting around a table in the room.

“……It’s nothing. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

Ko Yoon-ah’s gaze did not stray from Dowook who left the room with a smile.

A man talking on the phone rushed to Dowook as he came out of the room.

“Dr. Park Dowook.”

Gong Do Yoon. He’d heard a while ago that he was a director sent by KG Entertainment.

“Ms. Lim would like to talk to you for a moment.”

“Right now?”

Dowook took the phone and put it to his ear.

-I don’t know how to thank you. I had been wondering how I could get in contact with Athlete Ko Yoon-ah and you just introduced us.

“Prof. Moon said that it would help athletes if they received professional management. So I thought it would be worth it to ask you at the very least.”

-Since you gave me an unexpected gift, I figured, I will also give you a gift. So I delayed my return to Korea by a day.

“What…”

-It means that tomorrow, our Semdeok will be all by herself. If you have time, you can make use of So Yool for a whole day. I’ll turn the other way whatever you do.

Words that could make anyone misunderstand. Dowook quickly replied with a blush.

“I will decide after I hear her opinion on the matter.”

-Oh my. What is this honest reply?

“If there’s nothing else…”

Returning the phone to Kong DoYoon, Dowook disappeared down the hall.