episode_0114

Episode 114. The Father of Orthopedics (3)

****

I looked at Elise.

Princess Elise. She came to my hospital dressed plainly, but her characteristically arrogant gaze did not change.

“I did receive it… … . First, let me tell you about the patient’s symptoms. I’ll give you a week’s worth of medicine, so take it and drink plenty of water. Arsenic can be excreted through urine.”

There is no antidote for arsenic, but there is a drug called DMPS that helps with excretion. As a side note, it is also effective for heavy metal and mercury poisoning.

Elise took the vial.

“Is this it?”

“Take two tablets a day.”

“Thank you.”

The treatment is over for now.

There was no nerve damage as I had feared, and just in case, I gave the patient some medicine to treat arsenic poisoning. Elise clapped her hands.

“Okay. Let’s talk about investing.”

“Um, I’m sorry, but I don’t think it’s appropriate to talk about that in the examination room. It seems like I’m trying to do business with the patient, so let’s move.”

“Hmm. I guess so.”

“Then please follow me.”

I got up from my seat.

****

Academy Library.

Princess Elise sat down in front of me with her legs crossed. I fetched a few sheets of paper from one side of the library. I have a lot to explain… … .

“To be honest… … . I cursed and attacked the professor at the banquet hall, but you helped me wholeheartedly. What a mess.”

“Oh, that’s right.”

“I heard that the professor is arrogant, overbearing, and likes to argue.”

I think the rumors have been distorted a bit. When did I ever do that, you crazy guys? I sighed.

“If I didn’t see a patient because he was stupid and had a bad personality, I wouldn’t be able to earn money for my meals. Oh, I don’t mean that, Lady. I don’t treat patients based on their personality.”

“Hmm.”

“The society is originally a place to fight.”

“Hmm. It’s a place where the academic society goes to fight… … The professor is a bit of an odd person. I’ve heard that he causes trouble every time he goes there.”

It’s true.

“Many people’s lives are at stake. If you change just one dot in a medical textbook, thousands of people could die or live?”

“That could be possible.”

“For that one point, grab them by the collar, swear at them, do a play with props, fight for hours to convince the academics… … .”

I blurred the tail of the horse.

An academic conference is a place where everyone who attends must do their best. This is especially true for those who have not yet reached the age of enlightenment.

Elise nodded slowly.

“I understand. Please explain.”

“Okay. What company is it?”

“Our lab has developed a new drug that kills bacteria. There have been quite a few papers on it. A certain strain of blue mold produces a special substance that kills bacteria. We can purify this substance by chemical means.”

“What are bacteria?”

I scratched my head. I thought it was too easy. To the laypeople of this world, germs were a medical discovery made only a few months ago.

It might not seem like much of a big deal to have a substance that selectively kills bacteria, especially if you don’t know what a bacteria is.

“A type of very small particle that causes disease. Microscope–that is, if you put several magnifying glasses together, you can see it with your eyes.”

“This is the first time I’ve heard of it.”

“I found it.”

Elise frowned.

“You discovered germs, and you’re the one selling the medicine that kills germs?”

Now that I think about it, I can understand why people are suspicious. Bacteria and a way to kill them were discovered by the same person within a year. I don’t think I would have believed it either.

“That’s right.”

“Uh… ….”

“Honestly, I’m a little suspicious.”

I looked at Elise. I didn’t know how to explain it. What if she didn’t believe me?

“This has been independently verified by multiple researchers. It is the result of academia’s in-depth investigation into what causes disease and how to solve it.”

Elise didn’t take her eyes off her suspicions. No, but what if it’s real?

“Hmm. Let me explain for now.”

“Yes. Anyway, we even found a way to mass-produce a drug that can kill germs.”

“Yes.”

“You just need to attract investment. But, the more initial investment, the more medicine you can make and the more people you can help. That’s why I’m asking for help.”

The little prince was a bit worried.

“Teacher, you are not a businessman.”

“Yes?”

“Am I curious about how this medicine works, or how many people it can save? I guess I could be curious, but even if I were to hear an explanation, would I really understand it?”

“Is it difficult?”

“It’s a money issue.”

“Since it is a matter of life and death and it seems that it will be produced exclusively, wouldn’t the government coordinate for the greatest public good?”

Elise laughed.

“You’re more innocent than you look.”

“Hmm.”

“Let’s talk about money.”

I nodded.

“This is what the Imperial Family explained. Potential puerperal fever patients, wound patients, gangrene patients, surgical patients. According to statistics, there are about ten million patients in the Empire who need this medicine every year. That’s a conservative estimate. ”

“How much medication does one patient take?”

“If used preventively, it is one pill. If used after an infectious disease caused by bacteria occurs, it is several pills. Conservatively, to meet all the needs of the empire, more than ten million pills are needed per year.”

The number is large, Elise pondered.

“10 million a year. Is that possible?”

“If you divide this up, it’s 30,000 pills per day, and 30 pills’ worth of medicine come out of 1 liter of culture solution, right?”

“Yes.”

“It takes about a month to finish culturing the blue mold, so 30 1,000-liter incubators. Or 3 10,000-liter incubators.”

Elise clapped her hands together as if trying to calculate. Even if it were 1000 liters, it would only be about the size of a large bathtub, so it wasn’t an impossible task.

“Then. You’re saying that the sales are 10 million gold each? If you sell each pill for 1 gold.”

Why doesn’t it deviate even a little from the conversation we had at the imperial palace? I sighed. What should I say to convince Elise?

More than just convincing people to invest.

How can I get Elise to see things from my perspective?

I thought about it for a moment. I had already received investment from the royal family.

It was difficult to convince the bureaucrats that we will help patients in this way and that this will be of great help to society. This time, Elise’s reaction was similar, if not identical.

“That’s true, but 1 gold is a bit expensive. I think it needs to be adjusted for the public good-”

“Hmm… …. If I just listen to what the professor says, it seems like a really good investment opportunity. There are still some doubts. How effective will it be?”

effect?

Oh, I just remembered what to say. This isn’t just a good investment opportunity, and I’m not sitting in front of a banker.

Elise tilted her head.

Isn’t there a concept called economic impact?

Beyond treating patients, how much economic benefit can be gained by appropriately responding to a particular disease?

“The economic impact of this treatment… …. In addition to the revenue from the sale of the drug, wouldn’t it include the activities of the person who almost died? Like the taxes that they wouldn’t have been able to pay if they were dead?”

****

I once read a paper that said if we invested money into preventing lead exposure in infants and young children, the economic impact would be 17 times greater than the amount invested.

Because exposure to lead in infants and young children causes a chain of problems, from intellectual disability to chronic diseases.

This is the same.

I started talking in earnest.

“If we can save people who are dying from illness, the economic impact will be great. Puerperal fever, wound patients, surgical patients. These people are the most economically active, right?”

Elise is not just a banker who handles money, she is a ruler with a territory that she is responsible for. We can dig into that.

“People infected with gram-positive bacteria, mostly hospitalized people, are soldiers, mothers, children, etc. If we can prevent these people from dying or getting injured, the economic effect will increase by tens or hundreds of times the amount invested.”

“Oh, I didn’t think of that.”

“Don’t just think about investing, think about buying medicine. Not only will it save lives, but if it prevents the deaths of tens of millions, how much of an economic impact will it have?”

I looked at the princess’s expression. Elise blinked in thought. It seemed like Elise finally understood the situation.

“That’s right, really.”

“In the old days, if you were shot in the arm or leg with an arrow on the battlefield, didn’t they cut off your arm or leg?”

“That was a hundred years ago.”

“It’s not that bad now. Gangrene is a scary disease. It’s only now that we can treat it properly.”

Elise seemed completely convinced by these words. I won again, Elise.

****

It was a very successful negotiation.

I went back to my lab and stretched out my legs. This time, I had not only gotten investment, but I also got a sales channel, which meant I had support that would help get the drug to patients.