The Midwife's Christmas Miracle (Dalverston General Hospital)

by Jennifer Taylor

  Lucy shook her head. ‘No. The baby is still receiving oxygen via the umbilical cord when it’s born, so being submerged under the water for a short time won’t harm it. Once it’s lifted out of the water then it will start to use its lungs to breathe.’

  ‘What if there’s a problem during the birth?’ someone else piped up.

  ‘Then we would ask the mum to get out of the pool,’ Lucy explained. ‘We carry out all the usual checks during the birth, so we would pick up on any problems if they occurred. And it goes without saying that if there was any indication beforehand that a water birth wasn’t the right choice then we would advise against it.’

  Everyone seemed happy with her answers, she was pleased to see. She was a firm believer in the benefits of a water birth and could only hope that it might encourage some of the other women to consider the idea. It obviously hadn’t put Rachel off because she smiled happily.

  ‘I’m going to tell David’s mum all that the next time she starts going on about me having a proper birth. It might stop her nagging me to death!’

  ‘But remember, Rachel, it’s your choice, and you need to make that clear to her,’ Lucy said firmly. ‘Actually, I think we’ve got some leaflets about water births in the office. I’ll give you one to take home. Maybe that will help to convince her.’

  She made a note to fetch the leaflets after they’d finished their tour and carried on. They visited one of the wards next and once again everyone was impressed by the bright and airy facilities. After that, they went to the nursery and then the special care baby unit, where any sick babies were treated. Although they could have missed it out, Lucy knew that a lot of mums found it reassuring to learn that such facilities were available if necessary.

  The women were a little subdued as they made their way back to the meeting room afterwards, but they soon brightened up after they’d had a cup of tea. Lucy left them to chat while she went to the office for the leaflets. Max was there, talking to Amanda, but he merely nodded when she went in and she didn’t know whether to feel pleased or sorry.

  She sighed as she headed back to the meeting room, wishing that she didn’t feel so ambivalent. One minute she had decided to avoid him and the next she was disappointed because he hadn’t spoken to her, and it was all very confusing. She knew that she needed to sort out her feelings, although what that would achieve was anyone’s guess. It certainly wouldn’t change the fact that Max’s attitude to life was very different from her own.

  Once the tour was over, it was time for Lucy to go for her break. There were just her and Cathy on duty that evening and she was hoping it wouldn’t be too busy. She had just got back when Anita Walsh, one of the community midwives, phoned to say that she was sending a patient in to them. Anita was on her way back from visiting another of her mums and was stuck in traffic. She promised to get there as soon as she could, but in the meantime she would be grateful if someone would look after her patient for her.

  Lucy assured her that she would sort everything out. She made her way to Reception and a few minutes later Emma Baker and her husband arrived. She booked Emma in then showed the couple to the delivery suite they’d be using. It was Emma’s third child and she was very matter-of-fact about the birth. She was only due to stay in the unit for six hours following the birth and would be sent home after that so long as everything went smoothly.

  Lucy did Emma’s obs then set up the foetal monitor to check the baby’s progress. She was a little concerned when she discovered that its heartbeat was much slower than it should have been. It was a sign that the baby could be in distress due to a lack of oxygen and needed monitoring.

  She decided to wait a couple of minutes and do another foetal heart tracing as it could turn out to be a temporary blip. Emma’s contractions were strong and the tightening of her uterus could have reduced the supply of oxygen reaching the baby via the placenta. She got everything ready then did another tracing of the baby’s heartbeat, along with a recording of the uterine contractions. Checking it back, she was in no doubt that the baby was becoming increasingly distressed.

  ‘Is something wrong?’ Emma asked after she’d finished.

  ‘I’m not happy about the baby’s heart rate,’ Lucy explained gently. ‘It’s slower than it should be, which means your baby is starting to show signs of distress.’

  ‘But this didn’t happen with the other two,’ Emma protested. She turned to her husband. ‘Did it, Peter?’

  ‘No, it didn’t,’ he stated emphatically. ‘Are you sure that machine is working properly?’

  ‘There’s nothing wrong with the equipment,’ Lucy assured him. She could tell they weren’t happy with her findings but there was little she could do about it. The baby was her first concern and she knew that she needed a doctor to take a look at it.

  Lucy explained all this to Emma, then went to the phone and asked the switchboard to page Diane. The registrar phoned her back almost immediately to say that she was with a patient who was threatening to miscarry and didn’t know how long she would be. She suggested that Lucy page Max if it was urgent.

  Lucy sighed as she contacted the switchboard again. Although she would have liked a little more breathing space before she saw Max again, obviously it wasn’t to be. She would just have to play it cool and not allow herself to get carried away. Max may be an extremely attractive man but she wasn’t about to embark on another disastrous relationship. She had learned her lesson the hard way and she wasn’t going to repeat her mistakes.

  * * *

  Max was on his way out of the hospital when his pager beeped. He groaned as he turned round and headed back inside. So much for hoping he might get an early finish for once, he thought ruefully as he made his way to the lift. Lucy met him in the corridor and he had to make a determined effort not to react when he saw her standing there. However, he couldn’t deny that his heart seemed to be kicking up a storm and it was annoying after he had resolved to behave sensibly from now on.

  ‘Did you want me?’ he asked, adopting a deliberately neutral tone.

  ‘Yes. I need you to take a look at a patient for me, please.’ She led the way to the delivery room and paused outside the door to hand him the printout from the foetal monitor. ‘As you can see from this, the baby is showing signs of distress. It’s the mother’s third child and she’s roughly six centimetres dilated, but I wasn’t happy about waiting.’

  ‘It could be a while yet before the baby is born,’ Max agreed, glancing at the tracing. He reached past her to open the door, feeling his senses spin when he realised all of a sudden just how petite she was. Her head barely came up to his shoulder yet for some reason he had never noticed it before. It was difficult to concentrate as he followed her into the room when at every turn he seemed to discover something new and fascinating about her.

  ‘Dr Curtis would like to take a look at you, Emma,’ Lucy explained as she led him over to the bed.

  Max dredged up a smile, determined that he was going to get a grip on himself. ‘Lucy tells me that your baby appears to be a little distressed, Emma. I’d just like to examine you and see what’s happening, if you don’t mind.’

  Emma didn’t look too happy as he gently examined her, feeling her tummy first so that he could check the position of the baby in case that was the cause of the problem. Everything was exactly as it should be; the baby was lying with its head well down, in a perfect position to be born.

  ‘That’s fine,’ Max said moving to the bottom of the bed. ‘Baby’s in a good position so that isn’t the problem.’

  ‘We never had anything like this happen with the other two,’ Emma’s husband said curtly. ‘Are you sure there really is a problem?’

  ‘I’m afraid so. I know it must be hard to accept after you’ve had two trouble-free births, but trust me when I say that we all want the same thing. We want to make sure that your baby is safe and well.’

  He carried on with his examination when the couple didn’t raise any further objections, frowning when
he spotted a loop of the umbilical cord protruding down through the mother’s cervix. ‘Take a look at this,’ he said softly to Lucy.

  She bent down to look and nodded. ‘I see what you mean, although it wasn’t there before.’

  ‘It’s probably slipped further down as the baby’s moved down the birth canal.’

  Max straightened up, knowing that there was no time to delay. ‘A loop of the umbilical cord is protruding down through your cervix, Emma. It means there’s a very real danger that your baby could be deprived of oxygen. The safest way to avoid that happening is to perform a section.’

  ‘A section!’ Emma exclaimed in dismay. ‘You mean you want to operate?’

  ‘Yes. If you were fully dilated, I might have recommended a forceps delivery but we can’t afford to wait. A section will be quicker and safer.’

  ‘I don’t know…I mean, I never imagined anything would go wrong.’ Emma bit her lip. It was obvious that she was upset at the thought of having her baby delivered by Caesarean section when she’d expected to have a normal birth.

  ‘Dr Curtis wouldn’t suggest a section unless he was absolutely sure it was the best thing to do,’ Lucy said quietly.

  Max felt his heart lift when he heard the conviction in her voice. There wasn’t a doubt in his mind that she meant what she said and the fact that she so obviously trusted his judgement filled him with joy. He cleared his throat, not wanting her to suspect how moved he felt by her vote of confidence.

  ‘Lucy’s right. I am not an advocate for stepping in unnecessarily, believe me. However, there are occasions when it would be foolish not to do so. Your baby could suffer permanent brain damage if he’s deprived of oxygen and that is a risk I’m sure none of us wishes to take.’

  ‘No, of course not,’ Emma agreed shakily. ‘I’d never forgive myself if that happened. If you think a section is necessary then that’s what we’ll do. Isn’t that right, Peter?’

  ‘I…um…yes, of course,’ her husband muttered, looking a little shocked.

  Max wasted no more time as he went to the phone and informed Theatre that he would be operating. In a very short time, Emma was on her way. He followed the convoy out of the room, pausing briefly to have a last word with Lucy. ‘The baby should be fine and so will Emma. She’ll be back with you in no time at all.’

  ‘Thank you. I know they’re in safe hands.’

  Max felt that little tug on his emotions again. Why did her opinion matter so much? he wondered. He knew he was good at his job and didn’t need anyone to tell him that, yet it meant something really special to know that she believed in him.

  He shrugged, trying not to get too hung up on the idea. ‘As I’ve said before, we make a good team, Lucy. I doubt if Emma would have agreed to this op so readily without your input. She was obviously swayed by the reference you gave me.’

  She gave a little grimace but he saw the colour that tinted her cheeks. ‘I only told her the truth.’

  ‘Then thank you.’ His voice dropped and he could hear the emotion it held even if she couldn’t. ‘It’s good to know that you have such faith in me, Lucy.’

  He turned away, knowing that he was in danger of saying too much. It would be a mistake to do that, a huge mistake to let himself get carried away. He sighed as he headed for the lift. A few kind words and he was like putty in her hands!

  Chapter Seven

  LUCY popped into the special care baby unit to see Emma’s baby before she went home. Although little Ruby Rose Baker didn’t appear to have suffered any ill-effects from what had happened, it was normal practice to keep any babies born by Caesarean section in the unit for the first couple of days. Anita Walsh, the community midwife, was there when she arrived.

  ‘I can’t believe this has happened!’ Anita exclaimed. ‘It was a textbook pregnancy from the start, just like Emma’s previous two were. She didn’t even suffer from morning sickness!’

  ‘No wonder she was so stunned when she was told that she needed a section,’ Lucy said sympathetically. ‘It must have been a real shock for her.’

  ‘It was. She was only expecting to stay in for a few hours and now she’ll be here for a week.’ Anita sighed. ‘I know how stubborn Emma can be when she sets her mind on something, so I expect she kicked up a bit of a fuss. I’m really sorry that you got landed with this, Lucy.’

  ‘It wasn’t your fault,’ she assured her. ‘Anyway, Emma seemed to accept what needed to be done once Max had explained how dangerous it could be for the baby.’

  ‘Now, that I can believe,’ Anita said with a laugh. ‘Not many women can resist when Max turns on the charm!’

  Lucy smiled dutifully but it was painful to have Max’s reputation as a silver-tongued charmer confirmed once more. She tried to shake off the feeling of disappointment that filled her as they left the unit, but it was hard to shift it. Although she knew how foolish it was, she didn’t want to have to see Max in anything other than a positive light.

  ‘So how are you settling in?’ Anita asked as they headed along the corridor. ‘It must be a big change for you living here after the city. I’m not sure if I could make the move the other way.’

  ‘I really like it here,’ Lucy replied truthfully, glad to have something other than Max to occupy her thoughts. ‘I certainly don’t feel as though I’m missing out by not being surrounded by all the hustle and bustle of city life.’

  ‘What about your friends and family, though? You must miss them,’ Anita suggested.

  ‘I do, but it’s easier for everyone if I’m living here,’ she said without thinking.

  ‘What do you mean by that?’ Anita asked in surprise.

  Lucy sighed when she saw the curiosity on the older woman’s face. Although she didn’t want to go into detail about what had led her to leave Manchester, she could hardly refuse to answer. ‘Oh, just that I split up with my fiancé a few months ago and it caused a bit of a stir. That was the reason why I decided to move to Dalverston, in fact. I wanted to make a completely fresh start.’

  ‘Oh, dear, I am sorry.’ Anita patted her hand. ‘It can’t have been easy for you, Lucy, but I’m sure you did the right thing.’

  ‘I’m sure I did too.’ Lucy summoned a smile, although she couldn’t help wondering if she was right to say that.

  She sighed as she said goodbye to Anita and went to fetch her coat because she knew what was behind her doubts. It was this situation with Max that troubled her and until she had worked out what to do about it, it would continue to do so. It was worrying to think that she had escaped from one difficult situation only to jump straight into another.

  * * *

  It was almost eight p.m. before Max was ready to leave. After he’d finished in Theatre, Diana had paged him about her patient. By the time they had discussed possible courses of treatment, he’d needed to check on Emma Baker again. Still, the upside was that he’d been far too busy to think about Lucy.

  He groaned as he made his way across the car park. Every thought he had these days was followed by another one about Lucy and it was scary to know how hung up he was on her. Maybe he had made plans to address the situation, but it was the here and now that worried him, what would happen in the next few weeks. Although he’d had no problem avoiding commitment in the last three years, it was different with Lucy, very different indeed, and that’s what worried him. He simply couldn’t trust himself to do the sensible thing.

  It was a disquieting thought and he found it impossible to shrug it off as he got into his car. There was a Christmas market being held in the town that week and there was a lot of traffic about when he left the hospital so it took him twice as long as normal to reach the town centre. The market was being held in the main square and the traffic was even worse there because of the numerous diversions that had been set up to avoid it. Max followed the signs, wishing that he had stayed in work until the market closed. At this rate he’d still be driving around at midnight!

  He had just reached the junction with the main road w
hen he spotted a commotion on the pavement. A young woman had collapsed and a crowd was starting to gather around her. Pulling into the kerb, he jumped out of his car and hurried over to see if he could help.

  ‘I’m a doctor,’ he explained as he pushed his way through the bystanders. He crouched down next to a young man who was obviously with the woman and introduced himself. ‘My name’s Max Curtis and I’m a doctor at Dalverston General. Is there anything I can do to help?’

  ‘It’s my wife. She…she’s having a baby!’

  The man looked as though he was ready to keel over at any second so Max moved him aside. He smiled at the young woman. ‘My name is Max Curtis and I’m a doctor. As luck would have it, I work in the maternity unit at Dalverston General.’

  ‘Thank heavens for that!’ she exclaimed.

  ‘Can you tell me your name and when your baby’s due?’ he asked, checking her pulse.

  ‘Alison Cooper and my baby was due on New Year’s Day, although I don’t think he’s going to wait that long,’ she added ruefully.

  ‘So how long have you been having contractions?’ he continued, wanting to build up a clearer picture of what was happening.

  ‘I’m not sure. I’ve been having pains on and off for a couple of days but I assumed they were Braxton Hicks’ contractions. I wanted to visit the Christmas market tonight, so we drove over here from Ulverston, but as we were walking back to the car, my waters broke.’

  ‘And how long ago did that happen?’

  ‘About ten minutes,’ she began, then groaned as another contraction started.

  Max checked his watch, needing to know how frequent her contractions were. He also needed to examine her, although he was loath to do so with all these people watching. He was just trying to work out how to afford her some privacy when he heard someone calling his name and glancing round he saw Lucy pushing her way through the crowd.

  ‘What are you doing here?’ he demanded, feeling his heart squeeze in an extra beat as she crouched down beside him.