** Their love,
to have and to hold in earth, and in heaven. **
She was a long
way from home, had been for years. She had been in the United
States, most of her life. The Australian accent came from her
mother, Ann, who was born and raised in Melbourne until she
married her Buffalo born beau, Allen.
Dr. Judith Baker,
Jude to her friends, knew moving to Chicago on an Exchange
Program from Buffalo, was the new beginning she needed in her
life. What she didn't need was time to think about it. Arriving
in Chicago a month after being accepted on to the program, she
settled into her room at the hotel near her friend, Kerry
Weaver's place, as though she had been living there a lifetime.
She missed nothing of her life left behind, patients who had come
and gone, friends she had never made, and a father's grave she
had not visited in 11 years.
She got ready for
her first day at Cook County General, excited about where the day
was about to take her. Kerry was going to meet her at the
hospital, show her around, and settle her in for what she hoped
would be a long stay. Jude chose the blue jeans and the AC/DC
T-shirt, a gift from a friend from Down Under. She was not fussy.
She was the kind of woman, who spoke her mind when she felt she
needed to. Lost her temper when bureaucratic red tape stopped her
from doing a job she often did well. She was a young woman made
up with different masks, private and personal one moment,
devilish and charming the next. Passionate and spirited,
frightened and afraid. Independent and stubborn when she needed
to be, fearless and protective, alone and lonely. Her personality
rejoiced in throwing itself in the middle of anarchy, her own and
everyone else's. She couldn't help it. She loved the natural high
it gave her, but often hid away her feelings and emotions, and
never let anyone see how the insanity often sorrowed her heart
with the memories of her past.
She looked
forward to her new beginning. New city, new hospital, new faces,
the same patients, sick and injured, hurt and dying, but she
didn't care. Jude loved what she did, and the anticipation grew
in her as she made her way to work.
The Bees Gees
blasted from her earphones, and the roller blades on her feet was
the kind of transportation she enjoyed since buying them a few
years ago. They kept her slim body healthy with the exercise, and
saved on vehicle expenses. Singing out of tune with the music,
she skated her way through the streets of Chicago, taking in the
sights, places and people, weaving her way through the maze of
traffic, corners and lights that would lead her to Cook County,
and her first day of rotation as a fourth year Resident.
Her shift started
at eight o'clock, and she was not going to make it...
Suddenly struck
from behind, the tiny red car spun into oncoming traffic, and the
intersection came to a complete standstill. Glass and wreckage
lay all over the road. Police on the scene breath tested the
other driver. He showed no visible injuries, except for confusion
about where he was and what he had done. What was to come of him
now? Did his life bring him to this dark place, he couldn't be
sure, right now nothing made sense as he tried to walk a straight
line. The drunk tried to steady himself but it was hopeless,
obvious to the naked eye he was well over the legal limit. The
police would take him to the hospital to have him checked out for
injuries, and then escort him to the police station. They would
book him on DUI, and whatever else they needed to, maybe
manslaughter, if the other driver didn't pull through.
Possible internal
bleeding, plummeting BP, near amputation below the left knee, and
multiple lacerations, was Jude's assessment of the driver of the
wrecked car. Trapped behind the wheel for more than an hour,
rescue workers brought in the Jaws of Life to free the teenager
from the squashed metal. Jude administered medical aid as best as
her ability allowed, and knew, Michael Barnett, 17, had no chance
of survival if paramedic's didn't arrive at the scene, soon.
****
Dr. Kerry Weaver,
sat on the couch in the doctors' lounge, quietly writing up her
charts for the patients she had already seen this morning,
concerned on Jude's whereabouts. She had no time to think about
all the possibilities of what could have happened to Jude, before
Dr. Robert Romano burst into the room. He was on a double shift,
and had taken care of at least two-dozen patients, ran three
surgeries, in which he had an expensive life support system
breakdown during one of them. Missing breakfast, Robert spent
hours trying to explain to board members why the ER needed more
money and on top of that, his exchange program recipient was
still not at work. He was not in the mood.
“There you
are! So where is she?” Kerry knew he was talking about Jude
but wanted to delay in telling him the bad news. The look on his
face was not an understanding one.
“Who?”
“Our Aussie
mate, Dr. Weaver.” Robert annoyed at Kerry's ignorance.
“She's here, right Kerry?”
“Of course
she's here Robert, she arrived a couple of days ago.”
“That's not
what I meant, and you know it.” He didn't appreciate Kerry's
attitude. “What you're telling me is the doctor they picked
from our hospital to take part in this program began his rotation
in Buffalo three hours ago, and the doctor you wanted to take
part in it, is somewhere in Chicago, but not here in the ER,
where her shift started...” He looked at his watch, “almost
an hour and a half ago.”
“She's on
her way.” A lie. Kerry had no idea where Jude was, and she
was beginning to worry. The desk clerk at the hotel where Jude
was staying, told her when she called an hour ago, she had
already left for work.
“I hope you
made the right choice with this little Aussie biscuit, Weaver.
I'm sure you don't want to look like an idiot in front of the
board members when they want to know how their new initiative is
going.” Typical for Dr. Romano, pass off the blame whenever
he could.
“She'll be
here, Robert.” Another lie. Kerry had no idea when Jude
would arrive. Kerry hoped nothing had happened to her on her
first day in a new city. Robert didn't care. This new Resident
was not making a good impression on him. Turning up late on your
first day just was not the way to keep on his good side. Did he
have one?
His pager blasted
at its usual annoying shriek and he answered it. A surgical nurse
needed to see him about a patient he earlier worked on in
surgery.
“She has
until ten, or she's back on a plane to Buffalo.” Robert's
voice trailed off as he walked out of the room, he didn't need to
hear Kerry's response. His word was final. The hands on her watch
clicked over to 9.35, Jude had 25 minutes to arrive and start her
rotation, and Kerry had 25 minutes to find her.
****
The paramedics
pulled into the ambulance bay and Michael's scream was heard
throughout the emergency room. His BP appeared to be getting
better but still not stable. His clothes were blood-soaked. The
paramedics covered his lacerations as best as they could at the
scene, they worried more about internal bleeding, and his almost
amputated leg. His pain was wrenching, and the medication
administered at the scene just wasn’t enough.
Paramedic's Tony
and Rich struggled to get Michael out of the back of their rig
and they had no way of persuading Jude to get off while they
tried to get Michael inside. She knew if she moved, he would
probably be dead. She kneeled on the gurney, over Michael, trying
to place as much pressure as she could on his wound, hoping to
keep the bleeding stopped. He had already lost liters at the
scene, and she feared surgeons wouldn't be able to save it. They
needed to find out how serious his other injuries were, and get
him into surgery as soon as possible, if his leg had any chance
of staying attached to his body.
“It's okay
Mike, hold on man, we're almost there.” yelled Tony over
Michael's scream. They couldn't calm him, he was hysterical, and
they couldn't blame him. One minute you are on your way to
school, the next paramedics are rushing you into the emergency
room, trying to save a leg that had been half cut off by some
drunk driver.
The pain was
excruciating, and Jude was worried he would lose consciousness
again, they already revived him once at the scene, and they need
to stabilize his blood pressure and get him into surgery as soon
as it was possible.
“Hold on
Michael, we're going to do this now, and we'll have you walking
out of here on both legs in no time at all.” insisted Jude.
It was a promise she should not have made, because right now she
didn't know what was going to happen. She showed not what she
felt in her heart and spirit, afraid if she did, the faith
Michael believed in, would be lost. His blood loss and low blood
pressure was a concern, and she needed to get him inside and give
him the proper care, before the outcome of what would be his
future, could be determined.
Tony and Rich
hurried the gurney inside, Michael still wrenching in pain, Jude
still leaning over him, she was not going anywhere until they
were in the trauma room. She didn't even bother taking off her
blades, she didn't have time, saving Michael's life, and his leg
was her top priority.
****
“Do not put
me on hold.” Dr. Luka Kovac's words were ignored as the
nurse put him back on hold for the second time. He stood behind
the front desk, on the phone, on hold, waiting to talk to a
doctor up in Orthopedics about a patient with a broken arm. Luka
was tired and unshaven, he too was on a double shift and only
halfway through. Today had not been a good day. Puked on, peed
on, a screw up with labs made him tell the wrong patient she had
breast cancer, and now he had to baby-sit a new Resident, Dr.
Romano insisted he keep an eye on, but still had not shown up for
work.
He waited on the
phone, yawning, and wondering where the hell all the noise and
screaming were coming from. He had no time to think or wait for
his call, when he saw Tony and Rich slam the gurney through the
doors of the ER; he threw down the phone and met them as they got
to the front desk. He was a little surprised to see a young woman
kneeling over the patient.
“What the
hell are you doing?” His accent strong and a little slurred
in his tiredness. Jude didn't hear a word he said, she couldn't
hear a damn thing over Michael's scream, and it was getting to
the point where it was starting to annoy the hell out of her,
“What are you doing?” yelled Luka loudly.
“What the
hell does it look like I'm doing,” She recognized the
accent, “I'm saving this guys life.” snapped Jude, she
had no time for conversation; she had a life, and a leg to save.
“Where we
at?” yelled Rich.
“Trauma one.”
answered Luka; still unsure about what was going on, and who this
young woman was, covered in blood. He had no idea if it was hers
or the young boy screaming in pain. He would find out.
Kerry knew, and
felt relief when she saw her fly pass on the gurney as Tony and
Rich pushed their way through to trauma one. She stood in the
corridor signing a chart for Lydia, and caught just a glimpse of
a young woman on a gurney, but she recognized that face anywhere.
A friend from way back. A friend who was a sister.
Kerry was only
beginning her career as a doctor when she met Jude for the first
time. Jude was a 16-year-old girl whose courage had wavered,
whose strength had faded, and whose sanity had obviously been
touched. Determined and caring, Kerry didn't give up on this girl
who had come to her broken and torn. She consoled her during the
nightmares, eased the suffering when the scars began to heal.
Loving and gentle, Kerry held her as she cried herself to sleep
and when she pleaded in her dreams to be spared from the hurt and
hatred set down on her by a man she no longer thought of as her
father. Dr. Weaver encouraged Jude when the daylight shine upon
her face and the anguish showed, when she lay in her hospital
bed, alone, living a life she often felt was not worth living.
Kerry grew to love this young girl whose hope and spirit began to
grow in the months following, whose scars faded, and whose
determination finally brought her to a place, where she would
survive.
“Near
amputation below the left knee, lacerations to the chest and
face.” shouted Jude over Michael's cries of pain. “BP's
108 over 66, pulse 102, respiration's 24. Estimated blood loss at
scene, 2 liters. Start two large bore IV's of normal saline wide
open, and let's check his vitals every 5 minutes.”
“Let's give
him morphine for the pain,” insisted Luka. Haleh sprang into
action. Kerry stood in the doorway watching Jude and Dr. Kovac
run the trauma. She couldn't wait to catch up with her, they had
not seen each other in over two years, and she missed her friend
dearly.
Rich and Tony
left them to it. Their job was done. They would come back later
to check in on how his condition was and how he pulled through
what would possibly be the worst thing that could ever happen to
him in his life.
“We're out
of here, let us know how he goes, huh Doc?” He was talking
to Jude.
“You got it,
and thanks fella's.” She made a mental note to let them know
how it all went here on out. They had been a great help and she
hoped she worked with them again during her stay in Chicago.
Michael's pain
instantly subsided, as the nurse kept an eye on his BP and
vitals. Jude still concerned about his leg changed the pressure
dressing, checking the wound for contamination, and hoping shock
didn't set in. Michael was lethargic but oriented in time and
place. Luka checked Michael's pupils; he was more concerned with
his other injuries. He wanted to rule out any internal bleeding
and head injury.
“Page
whoever you need to, we need to get this kid into surgery ASAP.”
“Benton's on
call.” said Haleh. Malik went to the phone to page Dr.
Benton.
“Let's get a
CT, chest film and pelvis,” ordered Luka.
“CBC?”
asked Haleh.
“Yes,
Lights, PT, PTT, and Urinalysis, type and cross match, and get
four more liters of O neg. in here,” answered Dr. Baker.
“And let's update his tetanus.”
Haleh waited for
Dr. Kovac's reassurance that Jude's orders were okay and he
agreed. She left to get the blood. Jude was not impressed in
having her patient taken over by another doctor, especially one
she didn't know. Minutes later, chest film and pelvis was clear,
no sign of any internal bleeding, they were still waiting on the
CT but there was a hold up.
“We need to
get him into surgery, save his leg, before he gets an infection
and it makes it too late for them to reattach it.”
“I want to
rule out any head trauma and get his vitals stable before he goes
to surgery!”
“You want to
what? Wait a minute, you are?” A jerk. Who did Luka think he
was telling her what he was going to do to her patient?
“Dr. Kovac.
I work here. You?”
“I'm the
doctor who's taking him up to surgery. Now if you don't mind, get
out of the way.” She didn't care who this guy was. Michael
was her patient and she was going to save his leg. The nurses
didn't know who was in charge, granted Luka Kovac had the
seniority, but this girl brought him in and she seemed to know
what she was talking about. They still didn't know if she was
actually a doctor, but they saw Kerry at the door and she was not
protesting about Jude and what she was doing. They figured they
would stay out of it.
Already Jude
could tell she didn't like this guy. She would never like him,
she was sure of it. She knew no matter what happened, how life
for him or her changed, or what lay ahead for them both, she
wouldn't let herself like him under any circumstances, even if he
was kind of sexy.
“Let's rule
out head trauma.” interjected Luka. Jude couldn't believe
this guy.
“Tell me
Michael, how many fingers do I have up?” She held up two.
“Two.”
“CT scans
clear.” He was starting to piss her off.
“My leg...”
Michael's speech was a little slurred. Michael was petrified; he
didn't want to lose his leg. He was 17 years old and he had his
whole life ahead of him. Plans made. Dreams and ideals worked
for. He had places to go, things to see and do. He had
girlfriends to make love with. Children to nurture. He had
weddings to dance at, and vacations to ski. He had the normal
life of a 17-year-old boy to live, and all of that was suddenly
slipping away.
“Don't worry
Michael I told you, out of here on two legs.” She winked at
him. Luka didn't like this. Michael's speech worried him, and
losing consciousness at the scene was not a good sign.
“Look,
Kovac, is it?” She knew it was. He nodded. Yes, it was.
“It's been
like close to 3 hours, we don't get his leg reattach, we're
looking at infection, shock, and this kid is not going to leave
here without both his legs, you understand me.” Jude was
starting to lose her temper. She wanted things to be happening so
she could save her patient, his life, and his leg, and no one
seemed to be doing anything about it.
“He lost
consciousness at the scene, his lethargic and his speech is
little slurred.” He was losing his temper too.
“He's so
ripped on meds of course his speech is slurred, so would yours
be.”
“We rule out
head trauma first and then we take him up.” Neither of them
was going to back down.
“Didn't we
just go through this? Am I not speaking clearly?” She looks
at Haleh, “You understand me right?”
“We've
controlled the bleeding. We stabilize his vitals, get his BP up,
and wait on test results.” interrupted Luka. Haleh didn't
want to get into this. Dr. Kovac was the doctor she knew and
trusted, that is all she needed to know, or cared to.
“Okay fine,”
Jude knew Haleh's silence meant they were going to listen to this
man, and under the same circumstances, she would have probably
done the same. She didn't want to admit it, but she respected the
nurse's decision. “In simple terms and the easiest
explanations, and in your own mothers tongue just so you'll
understand it, kopile.”
This woman was a
bitch. A bitch that spoke Croatian. Who did this woman think she
was? Luka Kovac didn't like her, and he didn't want to have some
stranger who seemed to know what she was talking about tell him,
how to run his patient in a trauma, even if she was kind of
pretty.
“Dr. Baker.”
Kerry's voice came from outside the trauma room doors. Jude
didn't see her standing there. She was too busy trying to save
Michael's leg, and piss off this doctor she took an instant
disliking to. She saw Kerry standing there. Her face lit up, how
she longed to see her friend. Take her into her arms, and
remember what it was like to be loved by her closest and dearest
friend.
“Can I speak
to you please?” Jude knew this was Kerry's subtle way of
asking her to leave Michael in Dr. Kovac's care. She didn't want
to let go and she didn't want to give in, especially to this guy
and her disappointment showed. “Sure.” Luka couldn't
help feel a little pleased with himself, and she noticed.
“Kovac!”
He looked at her. “The CT scan comes back negative, and this
kid loses his leg because you waited too long, granted you may be
taller than I am and much bigger than I am, but I swear to God I
will have no problems dropping you on your ass.” She was
serious, and he knew it. No more words spoken, no thoughts
touched, or disturbed. Their stare entwined for what seemed an
eternity.
Kerry broke it
up.
The nurses were
quiet, they liked her, they liked her attitude, they knew she was
not the kind of person people stood on, and she was not. Jude
Baker had past that stage in her life a long time ago. No longer
did people take advantage of her, no longer did they use and
abuse her. Now she stood up in dignity and pride to right a
wrong, to help a helpless cause and to protect and save precious
life.
She didn't want
to be the first one to give in, and neither did he. Stubborn and
confident in his manner, Luka was sure to set off a determination
and fighting will in this young doctor as she had already fired
up in him.
“Now, Dr.
Baker.” demanded Kerry. She always hated it when Jude
insisted on always pushing things, and never stepped back. She
was afraid Jude's anger would push her over the edge she insisted
walking on every day. Jude hesitantly walked out of the trauma
room, leaving her patient in some other Doctor's hands. She did
not like the idea.
“Dr. Kovac,
the second the boy's films get in take him upstairs,”
ordered Kerry, and he agreed. Luka checked Michael's vitals
and almost amputated limb again while they waited on the scan, as
Jude met Kerry in the corridor. For the time being Michael was in
a stable condition, as soon as his CT scan was clear, they would
take him up to surgery, where Dr. Walker from Anesthesiology was
waiting and Dr. Benton and Dr. Lewis from Orthopedics prepared
for surgery.
****
Jude and Kerry
stepped out of the way, as not to disturb anyone and not to be
disturbed. Two friends instantly reunited. Hugging tight, not
wanting to let go for dear life. No one knew of the past they had
shared, the past they had survived. Kerry Weaver had been the
guiding hand, the force of will and power to Jude's recovery.
Protecting and protective of her well being. Healer to her broken
faith and torn flesh. Guard and guide to a soul who through
anguish and despair found sanctuary in the spiritual hand of the
heavenly father. Kerry Weaver had been the inspirational compass
in the life of Jude Baker and in the path's she chose to take in
her young life.
****
Sam Barnett ran
to her car in fear and panic. She regretted ever buying her only
son his first car. The nurse on the phone didn't explain too
much, just that her son had been involved in an accident, and was
at Cook County hospital receiving medical assistance from an
event unforeseen by anyone 3 hours earlier.
In a single moment, and with a single phone call, Ms. Barnett's life had changed. Was he dead? Was he suffering? She threw her own car into first gear and sped to the hospital, praying to God her son's life had been spared.