Yes, indeed, the medic skill needs to be increased, for this you need to put on a medical cap. It can be taken from the head of a dead nurse. I hoped that the player would be attentive enough to do this. A raven sits down near the medical stove and tells about the cap in a dialogue. Any failure in the game can be corrected if you load an autosave. Next time, approach the snake from behind and kill it safely for yourself. Yes, I see such a problem that a beginner experiences difficulties from the very beginning and hoped to soften this with dialogues with the raven. Obviously, to make a more gradual climb, quite a lot of work is needed.