Chapter 1789

Karina spent most of her first day in the office tidying up, yet not a single patient appointment came through.
She wasn’t discouraged, reassuring herself that it was only her first day. Work would surely pick up over time.
As the clock approached the end of her shift, she began gathering her things to leave, when the door suddenly swung open. A nurse burst in, her face pale with urgency.
“Dr. Norman, do you have a moment? We have a patient with severe burns!”
Karina hesitated. “But I’m not a surgeon…”
Her expertise was in internal medicine, specializing in cardiology and cellular studies. While she had some understanding of surgical procedures, it wasn’t her area of proficiency.
The nurse hadn’t expected this response but quickly added, “The patient is a young child, and it’s an emergency. Two of the surgeons have already left for the day, and the others are tied up with critical cases.”
Hearing how dire the situation was, Karina frowned and stood up. “Take me to the patient.”
Following the nurse, Karina made her way to the emergency area.
Before she even reached the room, she could hear a mother’s anguished cries echoing down the hall.
As Karina approached, the woman spotted her white coat and rushed over as though clinging to her last hope.
“Doctor, please, save my daughter!”
“Tell me what happened,” Karina said calmly, trying to get a clear picture of the situation.
The mother fought to steady her voice, taking a shaky breath. “I left the house for just a moment. I thought I’d be quick and didn’t turn off the gas. When I came back, the house was on fire. My daughter… she was inside. She’s been pulled out, but her burns are severe, and no doctor has taken her case yet.”
Karina hurried to check on the girl.
The child’s condition was grim. Her burns were far worse than Karina had anticipated. Large areas of her skin were damaged to the point where extensive grafting would be necessary.
Karina hesitated. She could handle internal surgeries, but this type of complex burn treatment was outside her expertise.
Before she could decide, the mother broke down in desperation.
“Doctor! You’re a doctor. You can’t just let her die!”
Karina’s hesitation was genuine. “I’m
a doctor, but my specialty is internal medicine, not surgery. Burn surgeries require a specialist. I have someone call a surgeon immediately-”
But the mother wasn’t willing to listen. She didn’t care about the difference between specialties. She only knew her daughter’s life was hanging by a thread. Grasping Onto Karina like a lifeline, she refused to let go.
*
UA
The nurse stepped in, speaking quietly to Karina, “Dr. Norman, I’ll try to find someone, but… by the time we do, it might be too late.”
Karina took a deep breath, her mind racing. “No need. Take her to the operating room. I’ll do it.”
Determined, Karina donned her scrubs and went through a rapid sterilization process before entering the sterile operating room.
But before beginning the procedure, she requested a phone and quickly called Wilfred.
Fortunately, Wilfred was available and picked up immediately.
Karina explained the situation as succinctly as she could.
Wilfred’s voice was steady and reassuring. “Switch to a video call and point the phone at the patient. I’ll guide you.”
That one sentence filled Karina with an overwhelming sense of security. It was as though she had been given a steady anchor in stormy waters.
With Wilfred’s calm and precise
guidance, Karina performed the surgery. Each of her movements was exact, her focus unwavering As she worked, it felt as though she was absorbing every piece of knowledge Wilfred imparted like a sponge.
When the surgery was complete, the outcome was far better than she had dared to hope. The girl was safely transferred to a recovery ward.
*
The child’s mother came to thank Karina, her eyes brimming with tears that streamed down her face.
“Dr. Norman, I don’t know how to thank you. Without you, I don’t even want to think about what would have happened.”
Karina gave her a gentle smile. “I’m just glad your daughter is safe now. That’s all that matters.”
The mother’s gratitude was boundless, and for Karina, that alone made all the stress and uncertainty of the day worthwhile.