The Healing Touch (Japanese: 超執刀, Super Sword lit. Super Surgery) is a superhuman ability possessed by select doctors in the Trauma Center Universe. It allows for the user to preform supernatural feats during surgery, at the expense of great physical strain. This allows doctors and surgeons the ability to treat people within an inch of death, or otherwise deemed ‘incurable’. The Healing Touch manifests differently depending on the doctor. It can also notably be a great mental burden on doctors who have such an ability, as shown by Dr. Hoffman, and later, Derek Stiles. It is also noted by Greg Kasal that the Healing Touch cannot be a replacement for skill and practice.[1]
In the English releases of both Under the Knife and Second Opinion, it is said by Robert Hoffman that the Healing Touch is supposedly passed onto the descendants of Asclepius, the Greek God of Medicine. However, this is not the case in the original Japanese text. Naomi Kimishima often related her Healing Touch to her time in India.
The Healing Touch often manifests for a doctor due to an emergency that brings a patient close to death, as seen with Derek Stiles after a car accident, and Valerie Blaylock after a building collapse.
It is also possible to lose the Healing Touch, most notably experienced by Derek Stiles in Under the Knife 2. This can likely be caused by physical intervention, or by a loss of faith in one’s abilities. It is unknown if a doctor can permanently lose the Healing Touch once achieving it.
Once the Healing Touch has been shown in the game, and/or practiced by the doctor with the ability, the Healing Touch becomes available for general use. In general, the Healing Touch can only be used once per in game operation, and only once during multi-patient ops. There is an exception for operations involving Mature Savato, as the Healing Touch is used twice. However, the effects of the Healing Touch can last in between patients during multi-patient ops. The duration of the Healing Touch depends on how well the star is drawn in Under the Knife, and Second Opinion. However, it has a constant duration in both New Blood and Under the Knife 2. In New Blood, it is impossible to use two doctors’ Healing Touches at the same time during an operation in Co-op mode. However, in Second Opinion, both Naomi and Derek are shown using the Healing Touch together to save Dr. Hoffman.
There are also multiple times that the Healing Touch is forcibly used regardless of player input. This includes 1-8, 2-1, 5-9, 6-8, and X-7 in Under the Knife, 1-8, 2-1, 5-9, Z-2, 6-8, and X-7 in Second Opinion, 1-4 and 1-6 in New Blood, and 1-6 and 3-3 in Under the Knife 2. When the Healing Touch is automatically used, the game will show a perfect five-pointed star, and once activated, it will have no cool down and can be used indefinitely. This is typically done for plot reasons.
There are two major categories relating to the Healing Touch: those that affect time, and those that affect the Vitals.
This type of Healing Touch involves the user thinking and moving at superhuman speed through intense concentration. This also requires an extreme amount of mental energy and focus, which can be physically taxing at the extreme. Observers will note that the user appears to be moving extremely quickly. This is shown to the player during Leonardo Bello’s operation recap in 4-4 in New Blood.
In Under the Knife, this makes the Doctor move 2x faster, while in all other titles, it makes the doctor 4x faster.
A list of those able to make use of this type of HT includes:
There are two major variants of this Healing Touch: Naomi Kimishima’s and Valerie Blaylock’s.
Naomi Kimishima’s Healing Touch allows the player to boost the vitals through well preformed actions during an operation (typically via Cool actions, or through OKs). Her Healing Touch will award varying amounts of vitals depending on the evaluations given by the game.
| Easy | Normal | Hard | Extreme | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cool | ||||
| Good | ||||
| OK | ||||
| Bad | ||||
| Defeat |
Valerie Blaylock’s Healing Touch locks the patient’s vitals at their current value, essentially making the patient unable to improve or worsen. This means the Antibiotic Gel and Stabilizer will have no effect on the vitals during the duration of her Healing Touch. The only way to influence the vitals during this period is for the patient to enter Cardiac Arrest, or to switch patients. At the end of her Healing Touch, vitals will increase by 10.
Although it is discussed in game, it is unknown if Dr. Montgomery had a time altering Healing Touch, a vitals related Healing Touch, or neither. Additionally, although Dr. Hoffman’s Healing Touch is discussed in game, it is unknown if this is the same as Derek and Markus’s Healing Touches, or if it manifests differently.
In general, it is advised to use the Healing Touch when the patient is close to death, or you’re having trouble with tight cycles for operations involving aneurysms or burns. Additionally, the Healing Touch is particularly useful for dealing with Triti, though it will likely result in a poor score. There are some notable exceptions where you should not use HT, particularly during Ventricular Fibrillation and Cardiac Arrest, during Savato operations, and during Aletheia operations. Healing Touch will not affect XS ranks for most operations in the series, except for several ops in Under the Knife (for S Rank), X Ops, and Triti ops, so it is also a viable strategy to use Healing Touch to help improve score.
With Naomi’s Healing Touch, it is advisable to use it as a replacement for using Stabilizer, provided you can get consistent Cools or can laser multiple Small Tumors for multiple OKs. This allows you to focus more on completing the operation. Naomi’s HT is particularly useful for Kyriaki and Paraskevi.
Valerie’s Healing Touch is almost always a good idea to pop when the vitals are plummeting, or something that will cause a potentially fatal drop in vitals is about to occur (i.e. Cardia’s Last Stand). This is particularly useful in ops with touchy vitals, or when you consistently cannot maintain the patient’s vitals in a particular op. Valerie’s HT is particularly useful for Ops.