by K. Darblyne
The blonde looked puzzled. "I was just being curious, Doc." She wrinkled her nose and with a tilt to her head looked over at the tense looking surgeon. "You don’t have to tell me, if you’d rather not."
The raven-haired woman thought about it. It wasn’t a bad memory; in fact it was just a story that she herself had been told. ‘Ah, what the hell! McMurray better appreciate this.’ "My parents named me after a dead relative." She looked direly at the petite nurse.
"You sound like you have always had problems with it?"
"Let’s just say that it has surprised a few people along the way. People seem to think that I’m something other than who I am."
Danni rolled her eyes with that thought. ‘Yeah, and who wouldn’t want to climb off of their death bed to keep an appointment knowing that it’s with such a beautiful surgeon?’ Even in the dim lighting Garrett had a raw beauty in her angular well-defined features that were outlined by dark colored hair and eyes that were like giant pools of azure water inviting you in. The dark blue surgical scrubs acted more like a thin veil delicately covering the well-proportioned muscles of the surgeon. The bronze coloring of her skin added to her god-like appearance. The young nurse let her gaze take in all that was offered. "So, I take it that you are Irish and Italian by heritage."
"That’s right." Her tone was a reflective one. "But I don’t follow any of the customs."
"I’m curious, do you know what ‘Garrett’ means?" The nurse cocked her head to one side and looked over at the tall woman.
The surgeon thought for a moment and offered, "I have been told that it means brave spear man." She chuckled softly, "I guess that’s why I like those sharp cutting instruments, huh?"
The surgeon was now suddenly confused. In fact, the more she thought about it, the more agitated she became at the thought of letting so much of her personal life come to the surface. There was no need for this information to be known. After all, it had no bearing on the patient’s outcome or survival rate. How could she let this happen? Garrett closed her eyes trying to ward off any further investigation of her life from the impertinent nurse.
Suddenly a flash of memory bolted through Danni. The spear held in both hands, it reminded her of her dream earlier today. She shook her head trying hard to get her thoughts in order, to have them make some kind of sense. Could she have had a premonition of the events today? Or could it all just be coincidence? This was something that she was going to have to think long and hard about. ‘Coincidence, that’s it.’ There is no life to this woman’s eyes. No, sparkle of an underlying soul. Well at least not to the ordinary person. ‘I know that it’s there, it just has to be drawn out.’ Danni looked at Garrett and smiled politely. It was still something to think about.
"Danni…" the Technologist interrupted, "Danni, we’re done with the scan."
"Ah…yeah, thanks. Did you see anything?" She tried to regain her composure looking nervously at Garrett.
The radiologist rubbed his chin as he scrolled through the images quickly. "No, no bleed in the head, no fractures either. The abdominal images confirm the broken ribs and chest tube placed within the pneumothorax but there clearly is no evidence of any visceral injuries at this time." The radiologist made eye contact with the trauma surgeon who was now standing next to him. "Looks like he got lucky, just a lot of orthopedic injuries."
"Hmm…sounds like he gets a bed on a floor instead of a unit then. Thanks." Garrett shook her head in acknowledgement to the technologist. "Danni, get me the Doctor for Orthopedics? Let’s see what they have planned for our patient."
"Sure thing!" The familiarity and the inclusion of the nurse in the patient’s care by the surgeon excited Danni. Earlier she had thought there would be no hope of furthering a friendship and now everything was falling nicely into place.
Garrett stood pulling on her long white lab coat. She busied herself looking through the pockets for the key to her call room. The surgeon quickly considered the possibility of actually seeing it and getting some rest, but only after her patient was settled into his room or the operating suite if that was what the Ortho doctors wanted. ‘There it is.’ She thought as her fingers felt the familiar object.
"Doc, they want him to go to the floor now. They’ll operate first thing in the morning." The nurse hung up the phone and began to gather up all the paper work connected to her patient. "Will a room on the orthopedic floor be all right for tonight?"
Trivoli nodded her head in agreement; "I’ll want to make sure he gets settled in properly. I’m going up to the floor with you."
"You don’t have to, Doc, I’ve transported lots of trauma patients upstairs…" Her voice trailed off as the fire grew in the steely eyes of the Fellow. "But if you really want to, you’re more than welcome."
They seemed to complement each other’s action in the care of the patient as they readied him for transfer to the floor. It was obvious to all around them that they worked as a team, the blonde nurse and the Fellow. One anticipated the action of the other without words or looks. If one didn’t know better, one would think that the nurse and surgeon had been working together for many years. The two women found themselves completely at ease in the other’s company, when they didn’t think about it.
***********
The charge nurse was amused as she noticed the red scrub marks on Rosie’s neck and arms. She couldn’t help thinking about the shocked look on the flirtatious nurse when she realized her hopes had once again run aground. Mom could only hope that Rosie wouldn’t take it too hard. "So, Rosie, you’re smelling a little better." The older nurse sniffed softly to emphasize the change in her scent.
"It won’t do me any good, so why waste it on you people." There was a little bitterness in her tone of voice. "Damn, David." She muttered under her breath.
Karen tried hard not to laugh but lost the battle. "Serves you right, always trying to latch on to some unsuspecting doctor."
Rosie shot an icy glare in her direction but within seconds started to laugh.
"That’s what I get for trusting people to have the appropriate gender names, I guess."
"You have to admit, Trivoli is a good surgeon. Don’t you think?"
"Well, I guess you are right." The nurse self-consciously rubbed the red marks on her neck; "I bet Danni’s feeling pretty insignificant right about now at thinking of her as a med student."
"I wouldn’t worry about that one. You know she has a way of making things turn out right." Karen settled into her chair and started to view the monitor screen noticing a transfer patient from another hospital. "Looks like we’re going to get to see YOUR Garrett Trivoli in action again, Rosie."
"No way," the nurse cringed. It was just too soon. ‘Why did I call her that?’ Rosie knew that Mom wouldn’t let her possessiveness of the new trauma fellow just drop. It would have to wear off. Somehow she just knew that it would take more than a day or two at that. "Well, I don’t have to worry about impressing anyone now. What’s coming in?"
"Looks like a head trauma." The charge nurse was to the point. "Probably coming in about 20 minutes."
"Great! I hope Danni gets back in time. I don’t feel like jumping through hoops every second with that new Fellow."
***********
With her patient tucked nicely into his room, Garrett stopped by the nurses’ station on the orthopedic floor. She waited patiently for the verbal exchange of information to stop between Danni and the floor nurse before drawing the young blonde’s attention. The surgeon invited the nurse. "Care to share an elevator down?"
"Yeah, but I thought you were going to try for some sleep?"
"I can feel the vibes, there’s no sleep for me tonight." Her tone was authoritative as if she could sense something in the air. "Besides, I like talking to you. It’s been a long time since I was able to do that. I mean…just talk and not about patients or procedures. It…a…feels kind of nice." "Where did that come from? McMurray, what the hell are you doing to me?"
Danni was taken back by the
surgeon’s candor. "Sure, what do you want to talk about?"
"Gee, tell me something about you, since you already know my life history." There, she thought, that should break the ice with this nurse. "McMurray, if you only knew what you are putting me through, listening to all of this dribble."
"Well, I’m a nurse. Surprised huh?"
The doctor smiled. "Come on, tell me something that I don’t know."
"Okay, I’m of French ancestry. My parents named me Danielle, I have two siblings, and that’s pretty much my story in a nutshell." The young blonde blushed slightly.
"You don’t like talking about yourself, do you?" "Thank the gods, that she is quiet at least about one subject."
She wrinkled her nose and looked up nervously at the elevator door as it opened. "No, I don’t."
The tall woman waited for Danni to enter the elevator first. She followed after standing silently until the doors closed. "Sorry." The surgeon feared that she was making the young woman uncomfortable. "I don’t mean to pry."
"I know. I just don’t think that I’m anything special to talk about. That’s all." Her eyes locked into the cool crisp blue of the surgeon’s eyes and Danni could feel herself being immersed into the gentle pools. "If you don’t have any plans for this Saturday, we’re having an E.R. outing at Schenley Park, Bar-B-Q and a softball game. If you’d like to come, I’m sure you could get to know some of the E.R. staff. What do you say, you could bring your family if you’d like."
"I…I don’t really have any family, Danni." The woman’s tone was cold and abrupt. "Nor do I want any now or in the future."
"Well, you could still come, or are you on call?"
"No, in fact, I’m off." ‘Damn, it was out before she could stop it.’ The surgeon thought momentarily. "I don’t know the city at all, and I don’t have a car…" She was trying to regain her sense of control, which was slipping right through her fingers. ‘McMurray!’ she screamed to herself, as if it would help.
"Then what else would you be doing? It’s settled. I’ll pick you up and take you with me. How’s that?" The young blonde nodding her head in approval.
"Well…if you insist. I guess that would be all right." Garrett was startled. How did this happen? Here she was in a new town, one day into a new job and already she had plans for the weekend with a new friend. She had never found it easy to make friends or to feel at ease so quickly in a new place. The gods knew that she had a lot of practice at new places. She usually accepted her solitude without trouble. But this, this was definitely not her norm. The fact that someone would want to be her friend was a little shocking. It wasn’t that she was bad or anything, it just wasn’t easy for her to get close to people. She had accepted that many years ago.
"Great!" The nurse was smiling, her teeth showing through the broad smile. There, she had made an offer of friendship and it was accepted.
The feeling of accomplishment suddenly faded with the shrill beeps of the trauma pager. Both women quickly turned sober faced reflecting the nature of their jobs. Socializing time was done and all matters turned immediately back to business.
"Trauma Team page…Trauma Team page. Level One Trauma Patient transfer form Uniontown Hospital via helicopter # 3. Twenty-year-old female assaulted with Baseball bats. Patient has sustained head trauma and is intubated. ETA is ten minutes. Level One Trauma Page."
Danni let a long noisy breath escape her. "Here we go again."
The Trauma Fellow rolled her eyes, "Yeah, I know." She silently thanked the gods for giving her something that would make her feel like she was in control again. She always felt that way every time she had a patient to worry about. The way she was feeling right now, she would be grateful for every trauma patient that came through the doors.
The elevator came to a stop and both women exited, making their way to the trauma suite. Danni silently offered a prayer for the patient’s safe keeping and quickly readied herself to assist in the patient’s care. Garrett gowned and prepared mentally for the next battle.
Rosie turned the corner of the hall and smiled silently to herself at the sight of both Danni and Garrett standing ready and waiting. ‘Way to go, Danni.’
"So, everything alright?" Rosie looked at the nurse as she donned her lead apron.
"Yeah, and you?" Danni returned the cryptic verbiage.
"I‘ll be okay. You know how fast I bounce back." Rosie winked at her co-worker.
Garrett cleared her throat, "Sorry about the gender confusion."
"Not your fault, doc." The nurse assumed her assigned position next to the Trauma Fellow. "I think the air will clear on this one."
Garrett smiled under her mask. She sniffed the air lightly and commented, "I think it smells pretty clear already." There was a glare to her eye and sarcasm in her voice.
"Well, you would have liked it if you were a guy. Trust me, doc." Rosie was being apologetic.
"Trauma in the Department…Trauma in the Department."
The atmosphere hurriedly became sober. Garrett surveyed the room and saw everyone at their stations as the stretcher was wheeled in. The peculiar shape of the young patient’s head grabbed the surgeon’s attention. It was apparent that the young woman had been the victim of an aggressive attack. The blood pooled in large clots underneath the short matted hair. It was impossible to ascertain it’s true color. The blood was oozing everywhere. The patient was transferred off of the helicopter stretcher on the long board that was underneath her and the Fellow gingerly started assessing the battered woman’s head. The skull felt soft and with no true form. The bone fragments were easily moved under her gentle touch. The surgeon swore under her breath at man’s savageness to his own kind. It was something that she would never understand.
"X-ray, get the chest and abdomen and a lateral C-spine. Karen call for Neurosurgery and alert CT Scan that we will need a very quick head." The surgeon snapped off her blood-covered gloves and reached for a new pair. The whole time, her eyes kept surveying the patient’s body for bruising or any evidence of further trauma. Seeing none, Garrett began to evaluate the woman’s body starting at the shoulders and working her way to the feet. The skilled hands swiftly felt for bony integrity while her eyes scanned the area for asymmetry. The surgeon slowed her assessment when she reached the abdominal area. This was her prime area of expertise. It was an area that could hide injury and she knew it all to well. The painstaking ritual of examining the abdomen for softness or rigidity or rebound tenderness was now addressed. Feeling no rigidity the surgeon sighed in relief. But the knowledge of protocol dictated that the patient would receive one of two courses of treatment, Diagnostic Peritoneal Lavage often referred to as DPL or exploratory laproscopy surgery while neurosurgery would operate on her brain and skull. Time was of the essence for this young patient. Trivoli chose appropriately to run to CT Scan for the head and do the exploratory surgery in the O.R.
Garrett looked over at the charge nurse, "Is CT Scan ready for us?"
The nurse nodded her head as she talked on the phone.
"Danni, let’s pack her up and move her over to CT." The surgeon was in control; "Neurosurg can see her there."
"Neurosurg will be down as soon as they can. Dr. Shevchik doesn’t want you to delay the CT Scan, he will meet you there." Karen bellowed out loud and clear for all to hear as she hung up the phone.
"Okay, people, you heard that. Now let’s move out." The voice commanded obedience.
Danni hastily transferred the EKG monitor wires to the portable unit. Rosie connected the Bag Valve Mask and oxygen tubing to the small portable tank and turned off the room supply. The young intern positioned at the patient’s left thigh hurried to finish the last of the blood draws from the femoral stick that he had accomplished only to drop one of the tubes causing it to shatter on impact with the floor. All action stopped and an uneasy hush fell over the room, standing out loader than any freight train hurtling noisily down its rickety old track.
The cold eyes of the surgeon shot daggers at the
cause of the delay. All eyes fell on the lowly intern as he hung his head looking down at the floor where his inadequacy had been made known. The surgeon’s eyes fell also on to the floor where instead of a shatter test tube and wildly patterned blood splatters, she saw the marring of not only her shoes but also that of her perfection in treating the patient. How could she make them understand that it had to be perfect, she had to be perfect?
With disgust at her now failed attempt at perfection this time around, she sighed. Laying the blame at herself for allowing it to happen, for letting an imperfection to slip by her. ‘You let this happen. You are to blame.’ The voice inside of her head screamed at her. She tried to pick up the pieces of her failure as she brushed past him without saying a word. Slowly, the rest of the group followed suit and resumed the effort to mobilize the patient. The intern stood back against the side of the room watching the stretcher go by.
