"Doctor X: Mafia in White" [SBS]
"Doctor X: Mafia in White" [SBS]

Nam Goong-in, an emergency medicine specialist and writer who served as an on-set medical consultant for the SBS drama series "Doctor X: Mafia in White," has spoken out about criticism over the show's medical accuracy.

Nam wrote on his Threads account Sunday that the premiere of "Doctor X" marked the first time he had worked as an on-set consultant for a drama series. "I came to realize that the drama scenes I used to watch without much thought were the product of countless people's collaboration, endless patience and a kind of obsessive madness," he wrote.

He also described the grueling conditions of an outdoor shoot for the opening scene of the first episode. "They sprayed water on the road in Sewoon Sangga at 3 a.m. on a bitterly cold winter day with no one around — I wondered if everyone had lost their minds," he wrote, adding that he hoped the show would be a huge hit given how hard everyone had worked.

When a user asked, "You were the medical consultant, right?", Nam confirmed he was the on-set consultant and offered a candid explanation. "If there are any medically incorrect scenes, you can assume the consultant fought with the production team and lost," he said.

Since the show's premiere Friday, viewers online have flagged several medical scenes as inconsistent with real clinical practice — including the handling of an inguinal hernia patient sent for emergency surgery, the anesthesiology procedures shown for a critically ill patient with no measurable blood pressure, and a scene in which defibrillation is administered at 300 joules to a patient in cardiac arrest. Some viewers also felt the surgical scenes fell short compared to other medical dramas.

Others took issue with the show's premise itself. One user who identified themselves as a practicing emergency medicine specialist expressed concern that the title and setting — centered on a "white mafia" within the medical establishment — could deepen negative public perceptions of doctors at a time when the healthcare sector is already under strain.

The production team had earlier addressed such concerns, stating that the drama is a work of fiction and that some scenes have been adapted or directed differently from actual medical practice and relevant regulations for dramatic effect.

"Doctor X: Mafia in White" is a remake of a Japanese TV Asahi drama of the same name. The medical noir follows freelance surgeon Gye Su-jeong (played by Kim Ji-won), who uses her extraordinary surgical skills to expose corruption at a university hospital. The cast also includes Lee Jung-eun, Son Hyun-joo and Kim Woo-seok. The series is also available on Netflix.

The show opened to an 11.4 percent viewership rating among nationwide households, according to Nielsen Korea, and climbed to 14.9 percent by its second episode. It marks Kim Ji-won's return to television nearly two years after the tvN drama series "Queen of Tears."


dbsdn1110@heraldcorp.com