Chapter 5: A Talented Man

Words : 1577 Updated : Mar 13th, 2025

"If you were the attending physician, how would you handle this?" Pablo cast a questioning glance at Walter. "The patient is lucky; the hand veered to the right. If it had veered left, it would have hit major arteries, with unimaginable consequences. The scans reveal the right lung is injured, and the organ is bleeding. Surgery is urgently needed." Pablo's eyes flashed with approval as he instructed Gina to prepare the operating room. "You will assist Gina with this surgery!" Walter managed to get into surgery on his first day of internship, causing the resident doctors around him to look at him enviously. To advance from a resident doctor to a higher level, one must accumulate enough surgical experience. It was similar to pilots, who must pass technical exams and log a certain number of flight miles. Walter understood that getting into surgery on his first day wasn't just luck; his actions during the high-speed train emergency had earned him significant points. "Who is this guy? I've never seen him before." "He's a newly reported intern." "An intern participating in surgery on the first day? Must have some backing." "Ah, don't be jealous. This surgery is quite peculiar, with many variables; it's not easy to complete it." "Are you ready?" Under the lights, Pablo's expression became more serious, and his gaze was as piercing as a blade. Gina felt a knot of uncertainty in her stomach: a female patient with a spatula lodged in her esophagus. It was not only her first encounter with such a case but also Pablo's. Walter, however, was not overthinking it, focusing instead on the entire treatment process. The key was the first step: how to remove the spatula. The human esophagus was elastic, and the spatula handle exceeded the esophagus's width, tightly wrapping around it. Removing the handle couldn't be done carelessly; too little force wouldn't extract it, while too much could cause secondary injury. It required a certain level of skill. Gina tried several tools, but the spatula handle seemed rooted, not budging an inch. Meanwhile, Walter stepped forward to wipe the sweat off Gina's forehead. As she prepared to apply more force, an ear-piercing alarm sounded. Beep! Beep! Beep! The instrument data indicated a trend toward worsening bleeding. Gina quickly stopped, at a loss for what to do. Pablo realized Gina could no longer proceed. "Gina, step down!" Pablo paused briefly before turning to Walter. "You give it a try!" Everyone in the operating room was taken aback. No one expected Pablo to let an intern attempt to remove the spatula. Walter was also surprised that Pablo would make an exception for him. "This guy doesn't have backing; he must have offended Mr. Shayle, and now Mr. Shayle is giving him a hard time!" "I'm just an intern; there are many things I don't understand. If I do something wrong, please correct me promptly." Having learned from the previous emergency rescue, Walter knew that while performing surgery, he couldn't let others see him as a reckless novice. Standing at the center of the operating table, Walter could feel the complex gazes around him—skepticism, envy, and more. Walter remained calm and focused. He didn't rush to touch the spatula but instead used the pad of his index finger to trace the handle's trajectory. Using the elasticity of the skin and muscles, he indirectly analyzed the internal condition of the esophagus. His finger stopped at the abdomen. At a spot four inches from the navel, he suddenly applied pressure. The patient, reacting instinctively through the nervous system, attempted to vomit. In that critical moment, Walter acted swiftly, extracting the spatula. Even Pablo was startled. In the previous second, Walter's demeanor had made everyone think he lacked confidence. Who would have thought he would be so bold the next second? "That was reckless! Isn't this brute force?" "Not a fitting analogy; more like a stubborn fool forcibly pulling out the spatula!" With the spatula removed, a torrent of blood erupted from the patient's mouth. "That's a significant amount of bleeding." "Alas, as expected, the patient's condition has worsened." "He's just an inexperienced intern. If unsure how to handle it, better to admit it rather than force it." Everyone thought Walter had made a mistake, seemingly exacerbating the patient's condition. However, the instruments showed that the patient's vital signs were normal. "No way. Is it really resolved just like that?" "Was it just a fluke?" "There are no coincidences on the operating table, only skill! This intern is truly capable; no wonder Mr. Shayle dared to enlist his help." Pablo inserted an endoscope into the esophagus to examine the situation. He noticed something. Walter's seemingly rough action had hidden intricacies. The pressure point was on the circular muscles of the digestive tract wall. The digestive tract had a sharp response when these muscles were pressed, exhibiting a physiological contraction-expansion reflex. In the moment of expansion, Walter extracted the spatula with a reaction interval of only 0.8 seconds. He needed to complete the precise extraction within this time frame, which was highly challenging. As for the blood spurt, it was caused by the spatula handle piercing the esophagus, leading to lung damage and internal bleeding. It was unrelated to Walter's extraction. Pablo's furrowed brows relaxed; the most critical step of removing the spatula was complete. Even if he had done it himself, it would have taken four to five hours. Unexpectedly, Walter completed it in just a few moves. Walter would have almost received full marks if he were to be scored. Though Pablo's brow remained furrowed, his heart was jubilant. The man mused, "The emergency department had gained a treasure!" "Mr. Shayle, the spatula has been removed! However, the patient's condition is concerning. The esophageal mucosa is severely damaged, with a wound 7 inches long. A resection surgery is needed as soon as possible," Walter cautioned softly. Seeing Gina standing there momentarily stunned, Pablo clapped his hands to alert his assistant. "What are you standing there for? Quickly notify the patient's family and prepare the pre-surgery paperwork." Gina responded with an "Oh" as she snapped back to reality. As a firsthand witness, she understood the difficulty of removing the spatula. She hadn't expected that an intern on his first day could extract it perfectly, leaving her with a profound sense of inadequacy. Gina approached the patient's family to explain the situation and have them sign the necessary paperwork. Walter naturally participated in the esophageal resection surgery. Just like that, he achieved a remarkable transformation from a rookie on the first day.

Chapter 5: A Talented Man

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