"Hah, isn't this my group of interns?"
A female doctor in her thirties, with an average appearance and a bright smile, looked at the four of them. "Let me guess—you're Adam, you're Bianca, you're Chris, and you must be Stu, right?"
"That's right, that's right."
Adam and the other two nodded with a smile. The last one, a chubby white guy, had an ingratiating grin on his face, looking both comical and slightly creepy.
"I'm Stu Fowler. It's an honor to learn under you, Dr. Sheeran. Your smile is like the warmest sunshine, truly heartwarming. May I call you Sheeran?"
Dr. Sheeran Hiran's smile grew even sweeter. "We're all colleagues here. I just started three years ahead of you. From now on, we're friends—let's get along and improve together."
"That's fantastic, Sheeran!"
Stu cheered sincerely.
Adam and the others exchanged glances, looking at each other speechlessly.
Where did this guy come from? He was stealing the spotlight like crazy.
"Dr. Hiran, please assign us our tasks," Adam reminded her.
Sheeran glanced at Adam and smiled. "I've heard you love to learn, Adam. Here's the trauma department's handbook, a list of doctors' contact numbers, and your pagers. The nurses will call you whenever you're needed, and you must respond immediately. It's best if you run—sometimes, a few seconds can mean the difference between life and death for a patient. The sooner you arrive, the greater their chances."
Beep beep. Beep beep. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ NoveIꜰire.net
"Speak of the devil—follow me."
Sheeran's pager went off. She glanced at it and immediately started running.
The four interns quickly followed.
A medical helicopter slowly descended.
"What's the patient's condition?"
As soon as it landed, Sheeran stepped forward.
"Brian Tucker, 38 years old. Cardiac arrest. He's undergone CPR but remains unconscious…"
The paramedic quickly reported the situation.
"I know him—he was scheduled for a coronary bypass surgery with Dr. Green this Friday."
As she guided the others to wheel the stretcher into the building, she observed the patient. "Adam, go notify Dr. Green."
Adam responded and immediately ran downstairs.
Chris, the bald one, and Stu, the chubby one, were stunned by Adam's speed.
Adam rushed to the nurse's station and had the nurse page Leonard.
Leonard arrived swiftly.
Upon hearing the name, Leonard took the case seriously and hurried to the patient's room with Adam—Brian was part of his patient group.
The Complex and Interesting U.S. Healthcare System
The U.S. healthcare system is both complex and fascinating.
The relationship between hospitals and doctors is somewhat like that between department stores and brand counters or platforms and online writers—it's a partnership.
Doctors provide medical expertise, while hospitals supply facilities, equipment, residents, nurses, and other support staff. The two parties collaborate to generate revenue.
Of course, this only applies to attending physicians who have obtained independent medical practice licenses—doctors like Leonard.
Interns like Adam and residents like Sheeran, though they work under Leonard, are actually employed by the hospital and assigned to attending physicians.
Once residents complete their training and pass the attending physician's licensing exam, they typically have two options:
Stay at the hospital as a salaried attending physician. Hospitals employ a limited number of full-time attending physicians to ensure coverage when partnered doctors are unavailable. Since these partnerships aren't exclusive, a doctor might choose to work at another hospital when needed. Newly licensed doctors often lack their own patient base, so staying at a hospital allows them to build one before eventually opening their own practice. Open their own practice either inside or outside a hospital. If they have established a solid reputation and a patient base, they can rent office space in a hospital or elsewhere and operate independently. Leonard, for instance, rents a room in the hospital and runs his own practice. Over the years, he has built a loyal patient group, making him a business partner rather than an employee of the hospital. This setup means his income is significantly higher than that of a salaried doctor.
Because of this, doctors like Leonard strive to provide the best service to every patient in order to maintain and expand their patient base.
"Adam, you'll be the primary doctor responsible for this patient's bed."
After stabilizing the patient, Sheeran began assigning tasks.
"Bianca, you handle the rounds."
"Chris, write the report."
"What about me?" Stu asked eagerly.
"Stu, the rectal exam unit is backed up with patients—you can go help."
Sheeran smiled sweetly.
Stu's face instantly darkened.
Adam found it amusing.
He understood exactly why he was assigned this case—since the patient was scheduled for a coronary bypass surgery on Friday, as the primary doctor responsible, Leonard could justifiably allow him to assist in the procedure.
Participating in an open-heart surgery right off the bat? That was something to brag about.
Six Hours Later – Hospital Cafeteria
Adam's group of four sat together with Meredith's group of four at a table.
The fierce blonde model-like woman, Elizabeth Stevenson—nicknamed Liz—was covering her nose, looking like she was trying hard not to vomit.
"This shift is like a marathon. You better eat something, or you won't last," said George O'Malley, a chubby intern with a slightly effeminate demeanor.
"I can't. I just can't."
Liz shook her head, looking miserable.
"What happened?" Adam asked curiously.
"Try doing 17 rectal exams in a row and see if you can eat afterward."
Liz looked devastated.
Adam's group immediately turned to look at the chubby Stu.
"You were doing rectal exams too?"
Stu, still stuffing his face with greasy food, looked up, his eyes shining. "Of course! I did 23!"
Liz immediately covered her mouth and ran off.
Stu remained unfazed. Watching Liz's figure as she ran, he grinned in a particularly sleazy way. "Heh heh heh… Who knew Liz and I had such a strong connection?"
Everyone else averted their eyes in discomfort.
"You guys hear about the attending physicians picking the best interns for a surgery on the first shift?" Christina chimed in, changing the subject. "I wonder which one of us will get chosen."
"With four of us, our chances are pretty good," Adam said with a smile. "Now we just have to see who gets picked first."
"Your group will definitely pick you," Christina shot him a glance.
Adam shook his head. "Each attending has their own style. I heard your attending, Dr. Preston Burke, likes to 'kill the chicken to scare the monkey'—he picks the weakest intern or the one he finds most annoying and absolutely crushes them to make an example of them."
George, mid-bite, immediately spat out his food, his face turning pale.
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