The reason why people are crazy about Kim Ji-won's 'Doctor Skills over rank, patients over organization

Nationwide viewership rating of 18.5%, beyond the exciting counterattack of a genius doctor in the controversy over medical reality that ignited with box office success... Ask about the expertise of experts and the authority of the organization

The first thing that must be protected in a hospital is the patient's life. However, the drama begins the moment this obvious principle collides with the organization's interests. That is what viewers are waiting for. That moment when everyone is watching and someone says let's save the patient first.

The SBS Friday-Saturday drama 'Doctor According to Nielsen Korea, episode 4, which aired on the 17th, recorded an audience rating of 18.5% based on households nationwide and the highest viewer rating per minute of 20.8%. The national viewership rating rose 3.4 percentage points from the third episode, breaking its own record.

The work is the story of Gye Soo-jeong, a freelance surgeon with genius surgical skills, who confronts the absurdity of hospital organization. He is a person who proves himself through his skills rather than conforming to the organization. If you read this success simply as the success of an 'exhilarating medical drama,' you miss an important question. Why do we give our hearts to people who challenge the authority of the organization?

[A scene in the SBS drama 'Doctor Source = SBS official website.]

Ask about the legitimacy of your actions, not the authority of the gown.

The conflict between 'Doctor Positions are given by the organization, but making appropriate judgments is a separate issue. A high position does not guarantee the right choice, and following the rules does not always mean upholding the duties of one's job.

Gyesujeong digs into that gap. We push through action the principle that the patient in front of us is more important than the hierarchy within the organization. The scene in which a cleaning service employee collapses and undergoes a difficult surgery shows the doctor putting life before the patient's status.

Surgical techniques are not the only things viewers applaud. It is an attitude of making the right judgment and accepting responsibility. Expertise goes beyond the amount of knowledge and extends to the question of who that knowledge is used for.

This question goes beyond hospitals as well. Are there any organizations that look at relationships before skills and reporting systems before problem solving? Aren't people who speak of principles treated as people who break the mood? 'Doctor

Between the criticism that it is 'different from reality' and the feeling that it is 'like reality'

Along with the box office success, controversy surrounding the depiction of medical settings continues. Some medical circles pointed out that the surgical scenes and depictions of medical personnel distort reality. On the other hand, viewers responded that the same standard of realism should be applied to works that sympathize with the organizational conflict in the work or depict positive thoughts.

[Surgery scene in the SBS drama 'Doctor Source = SBS official website.]

Here it is necessary to distinguish between two types of reality. One is the technical reality of whether the surgical process and hospital operation correspond to reality. Another is the reality of the relationship in terms of how convincingly the way the organization suppresses individual judgment is depicted.

Despite the medically inaccurate scenes, the emotions of organizational life can be accurately reached. However, viewer empathy does not erase medical errors. Expert verification and viewer appreciation do not invalidate each other.

In 『Poetics』, Aristotle focused on stories that could happen based on probability and necessity rather than records of what actually happened. It emphasizes the universality that goes beyond individual events and penetrates human actions and choices.

The power of drama is not limited to replicating reality. The goal is to make the character's choices and results understandable. Of course, creative freedom is not a license to generalize about a specific occupational group without basis.

What happens to an organization without geniuses?

Gye Soo-jeong removes complicated interests and makes the right choice with overwhelming ability. At that moment, the viewer escapes the frustration of the organization for a moment.

But after the exhilaration, questions remain. What happens to an organization without geniuses? If extraordinary ability is required every time to keep the principles, what can ordinary members do in the face of unfair instructions?

In that respect, the cheers for 'Doctor X' go beyond praise for a hero. It can be read as a wish for an organization where people who make the right judgment are not disadvantaged and where people do not lose their positions if they raise issues.

High viewership ratings do not justify all depictions of a work, nor do arguments about realism deny all value of a work. The important question is why we place such high expectations on experts who do not care about the organization.

Patients are not the only ones placed on the operating table at Gyesujeong. There are also boundaries between ability, status, work ethics, and organizational loyalty.

A good organization is not a place waiting for heroes. It is a place where even ordinary members can adhere to principles. There are questions that the exhilaration of 'Doctor X' will leave in reality.