Su-jeong defies the medical strike to save patients and takes on a risky operation at GUMC in Doctor X: Mafia in White episode 8.
On October 31, Doctor X: Mafia in White episode 8 premiered on Netflix. The episode follows Su-jeong as she takes on challenging surgeries while GUMC struggles with a nationwide doctors’ strike. Meanwhile, she fights to protect young patients who need urgent medical attention despite the hospital’s lack of staff and resources. Moreover, Su-jeong steps in when another surgeon collapses, raising questions about her identity as the mysterious Doctor X as she prepares for Ga-eul’s high-risk operation.
Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers about the series. Read at your own risk.
GUMC Faces a Nationwide Medical Strike in Doctor X: Mafia in White Episode 8
Episode 8 of Doctor X: Mafia in White opens with a flashback showing GUMC’s senior doctors and interns taking the Hippocratic Oath during their medical school graduations.
In the present, Magnolia Society Chairman Kim announces that doctors from the Korea Medical Association plan to strike unless the government meets their demands. Seong-gyu also speaks on behalf of the interns and declares that they will stop working and leave the hospital.
Director Bu questions whether the doctors are honoring the Hippocratic Oath they once took. Meanwhile, the hospital prepares for the consequences of the upcoming strike.
Su-jeong Takes on a Young Patient’s Case
Forty-two hours before the strike, Seong-jin calls Su-jeong, Won-jin, and Tae-kyeong to the operating room. He asks them to perform an emergency operation on an eight-year-old girl’s teddy bear.
Su-jeong and Won-jin initially find his request ridiculous. However, they eventually agree to help Hyeon-a by stitching up her stuffed toy in a mock surgery. The moment reminds Su-jeong of the children she cared for in Lagota before their tragic deaths.
Hyeon-a thanks Su-jeong for saving her teddy bear. However, the young girl also speaks sadly about her future because she knows that her own condition will not improve. After the mock operation, Seong-jin explains Hyeon-a’s medical condition. A tumour surrounds her abdomen and causes severe pain.
Meanwhile, Hee-sook meets with Director Bu, the senior doctors, and Su-jeong to renegotiate her contract. Following her recent contributions to the hospital, Su-jeong receives a new agreement that allows her to choose which patients she wants to treat. GUMC needs her help because the strike will leave the hospital with fewer available surgeons.
Outside, doctors begin posting flyers to announce their planned walkout. During lunch, Hee-sook, Su-jeong, Won-jin, and Tae-kyeong discuss how the strike will affect patients and hospital operations. Hee-sook also points out that Tae-kyeong remains the only intern who refuses to join the protest.
Su-jeong Challenges the Doctors to Uphold Their Oath
The group later encounters a young patient named Yoo Ga-eul. She waits for a paediatric surgeon to approve her operation, but her condition continues to worsen.
Su-jeong considers taking over the case despite the risks. During a meeting, Dr. Do explains that Ga-eul has a benign tumour that causes severe abdominal pain. Dr. Bae and Director Bu discuss her condition, but Su-jeong believes the young girl needs immediate treatment.
She volunteers to perform the operation despite the strike. However, Dr. Do warns that the hospital lacks the support staff needed for such a complicated procedure.
Su-jeong reminds the doctors of their Hippocratic Oath. She urges them not to ignore a patient who urgently needs medical attention. Sun-ae then informs the group that the government plans to revoke the licences of doctors who participate in the strike. Dr. Bae tries to contact Seong-gyu, but the intern refuses to answer his calls.
Sun-ae also asks Director Bu to let Su-jeong operate on Ga-eul. She believes the decision could help GUMC address the growing negative media attention. Su-jeong confidently claims that she can complete the 10-hour procedure in just six hours. Dr. Bae agrees to renegotiate her contract if she succeeds.
Later, Dr. Bae tells Su-jeong, Won-jin, and Tae-kyeong about Ga-eul’s family. Her parents died in a car accident during the 2020 medical strike. Since then, her grandmother has raised her and her younger sister, Ga-yeong.
A nurse thanks Su-jeong for volunteering to help Ga-eul. Meanwhile, Su-jeong overhears Hyeon-a congratulating Ga-eul for securing surgery. Hyeon-a sadly mentions that her own doctor has left the hospital.
Seeing the two girls together reminds Su-jeong of Neema and Baraka. That night, she discusses Ga-eul’s case with Hee-sook and her friends. Despite the uncertainty, Hyeon-a and Ga-eul remain hopeful about their futures.
The Strike Puts Patients at Greater Risk
The next morning, Seong-jin tells Su-jeong that the emergency room has also closed because of the strike. They discuss how the walkout continues to hurt patients, even more severely than the medical crisis in 2020.
Meanwhile, Tae-kyeong tries to stop Seong-gyu from leaving GUMC. Seong-gyu explains that the doctors feel exhausted and underpaid. He also complains that the government treats medical professionals like replaceable machines.
Tae-kyeong continues arguing against the walkout, but the other interns confront him. They call him a traitor for refusing to support their cause. Tae-kyeong fires back and accuses them of putting patients’ lives at risk for their own interests. Their argument escalates until Won-jin steps in and separates them.
Won-jin later asks Tae-kyeong why he chose GUMC instead of completing his internship at the university where he graduated. He avoids answering her question, and they head to the operating room for Ga-eul’s procedure.
Before surgery, Dr. Do asks Su-jeong whether she feels confident about the operation. He defends the doctors’ strike and points out that surgeons carry enormous responsibility when they fail to save a patient.
He also reminds her that every doctor makes mistakes at some point in their career. Su-jeong responds that she trusts her abilities and will do everything possible to avoid failure.
Su-jeong Takes Charge as Another Doctor Collapses in Doctor X: Mafia in White Episode 8
Meanwhile, senior doctor Dr. Hwang collapses while performing an operation. Sun-ae quickly informs Director Bu and Dr. Do about the incident.
She reveals that Dr. Hwang had also been scheduled for surgery, but the strike forced the hospital to postpone his procedure. Despite his poor health, he insisted on continuing to work.
Director Bu, Dr. Do, and Dr. Bae rush to the operating room to find someone who can take over the procedure. They arrive and discover that Su-jeong has already stepped in to perform the surgery before Ga-eul’s operation.
Su-jeong successfully completes the procedure within the promised time. Outside the operating room, Dr. Do and Dr. Bae discuss her medical ethics and begin questioning their previous assumptions about her.
Dr. Bae understands the doctors’ reasons for striking but wonders whether abandoning patients is ethically justifiable. After completing the first operation, Su-jeong and Won-jin take a short break before preparing for Ga-eul’s surgery.
Meanwhile, Director Bu approaches Hee-sook and asks whether Su-jeong is the mysterious Doctor X mentioned in recent news reports. The episode ends with Su-jeong arriving at the operating room just in time to begin Ga-eul’s surgery, as the hospital continues to struggle with the growing medical strike.
Episode 8 explores the ethical conflict between doctors’ demands and their responsibility to protect patients. Su-jeong’s determination to continue treating those in need makes her stand out, especially as GUMC struggles with staff shortages. The episode builds tension around Ga-eul’s surgery while adding intrigue through Director Bu’s growing suspicions about Su-jeong’s identity as Doctor X.
Catch the next episode of Doctor X: Mafia in White at 8:50 PHT, with new episodes airing every Friday and Saturday.
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