TV
Seok-gyu Han vs. Gyeong-young Lee, highest 13.1%
In the 6th episode of the SBS Friday-Saturday drama 'Romantic Doctor Teacher Kim 3', which aired on the 13th, a confrontation between Master Kim (played by Han Seok-gyu) and Cha Jin-man (played by Lee Kyung-young) was depicted over a severely traumatized patient with a high probability of death during surgery. The clash of values between Sabu Kim, who says that saving people's lives is what a doctor should do, and Jinman Cha, who talks about the reality of being a doctor who takes risks, conveyed a heavy message.
Accordingly, the 6th episode of 'Romantic Doctor Teacher Kim 3' recorded a viewership rating of 12.0% nationwide, 11.3% in the metropolitan area, and an instantaneous peak rating of 13.1%. The 2049 viewership rating, which is a key indicator of channel competitiveness and topicality, was 4.8%. (Based on Nielsen Korea)
On this day, Bae Yu-rim (played by Ji So-young) was brought to Doldam Hospital as a traffic accident patient. Bae Yu-rim, who had underlying diseases such as asthma, pulmonary fibrosis, and pulmonary arterial hypertension, had only a 1-20% chance of survival even after surgery, and was a patient at high risk of table death. Seo Woo-jin (played by Ahn Hyo-seop) tried to perform the surgery with even a little hope, but Cha Jin-man stopped him, telling him to give up on the patient who had no hope.
Master Kim, who heard this news, held the hand of the despairing guardian and said he would do the best he could. Cha Jin-man, who opposed this, said, “You only see the patient and not the doctor?” and told of the records of doctors at Doldam Hospital who were investigated at the police station when a surgery went wrong. Most of them were Seo Woo Jin. Cha Jin-man was angry, saying, “You said he was your favorite student, so why are you making the doctor take on such a risk?” Master Kim made it clear that saving lives is a doctor's calling, saying, "Because that's what a doctor does."
The bad relationship between Cha Jin-man and the patient's family was revealed. Bae Yu-rim, who had an underlying disease, was a victim of a humidifier, and 12 years ago, Cha Jin-man submitted a statement regarding the humidifier compensation lawsuit. This was the reason why the guardian burst into anger upon hearing Cha Jin-man’s name. Unlike Sabu Kim, who sympathizes with the patient's pain, Jinman Cha said he was only conveying his medical opinion and expressed his discomfort towards those who doubt and criticize the expert's opinion.
But a problem arose. Although Sabu Kim and Seo Woo Jin did their best to complete the surgery, the possibility that Bae Yu-rim's accident was a suicide attempt emerged. In that case, according to principle, it would not be possible to receive lung donation. Cha Jin-man relayed the enormous surgical costs and the useless results of the surgery that the patient's family had to bear, and told Teacher Kim, "The moment your hope goes astray, only this harsh reality remains."
Master Kim was worried that his firm belief in saving the patient might be causing difficulties for his students. The sight of Seo Woo-jin performing surgery hastily and Jeong In-soo (played by Yoon Na-mu) shedding tears of guilt for missing the patient were caught in the eye. Master Kim's heart became even heavier when he heard from Jeong In-soo's daughter Byul-i (played by Jo Eun-sol) that Jeong In-soo was separating from his wife.
Meanwhile, the situation turned around with the testimony of Byeol-i, a witness to Bae Yu-rim's accident. Bae Yu-rim was unable to move due to the pain of shortness of breath while crossing the crosswalk, which led to the accident. Just like that, the light of hope was lit again. Master Kim said to Cha Jin-man, "Like you said, I only know one thing. That's why I look reckless in some people's eyes and dangerous in others' eyes. But I was okay with it. One way or another. But I honestly don't know if that's okay for other guys, too." It was shown. At the same time, he asked Cha Jin-man to show him the answer and entrusted him with Bae Yu-rim's surgery, giving him the opportunity to solve the problem from 12 years ago.
At the end of the broadcast, Cha Jin-man was shown performing the surgery on Doldamz and Bae Yu-rim, including Cha Eun-jae (played by Lee Sung-kyung) and Seo Woo-jin. However, Cha Jin-man did not offer an apology to the patient's guardian because he did not consider what happened 12 years ago, when he expressed his opinion as a doctor, to be a mistake. At the same time, he promised that, as a doctor, he would not have any prejudice or personal feelings mixed in with this surgery.
The scene of Master Kim watching Cha Jin-man's surgery decorated the ending, leaving a deep impression. The appearance of Master Kim looking back on the beliefs he believed to be correct raised various topics. Although Cha Jin-man stood in opposition to Master Kim, he added interest as a three-dimensional character with different beliefs from Master Kim.
Kang Min-kyung, Ten Asia reporter kkk39@tenasia.co.kr
