Quicker update than usual. Thanks for the reviews last chapter! Much appreciated :) Any errors in spelling and grammar are my own mistakes. I'm no doctor and any of the medical stuff in this chapter is purely thanks to the internet!
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"Nick Jordan, 49 years old. Involved in an RTC. Visible lacerations to the head. Complaining of head and neck pain. GCS of 9 on arrival, improved to 10 since. BP is 100 over 80" asserted Dixie as she pushed the trolley into the ED with the aid of Jeff. Adam, Jay and Tess came hurrying over, each grabbing onto the bars of the bed and pushing Nick towards resus.
"Has Zoe been informed?" questioned Adam, anxious to know whether Zoe was aware of what had happened to Nick.
"Yep. I've called her and her sister is bringing her in along with Alexa" responded Dixie. "Right ladies and gents, can we all grab a piece please" Dixie gestured towards the board Nick was lying on and almost simultaneously, everyone took hold of a side. "Okay, on my count. One, two, three" On three, they all lifted Nick gently onto the resus bed. With every patient, they wanted to make sure they gave the best care they could possibly could but it was even more important if a colleague was the one they were treated.
"Thanks for that guys, we'll take over from here" instructed Adam. Dixie and Jeff nodded and wandered slowly back out of resus, both extremely concerned for the welfare of their boss.
"Can you hear me Nick? It's Adam"
"Hmm" groaned Nick. He seemed to be feeling worse than he was in the crashed car but he was glad to be out of it. Who knows what could have happened if he had remained there any longer.
"Okay, I'm just going to shine a light in your eyes" Adam pre warned, taking a small torch out of his top pocket. As soon as the light from the torch touched his eyes, Nick felt an instant pain shoot through his head.
"Nick, can you tell me where your pain is?" asked Adam, hoping for a good response from Nick. Nick tried to take a deep breath before answering Adam's question.
"My head... neck. Arms tingle" said Nick slowly.
"Right Jay, can you order a head and neck CT and an X-ray" Adam ordered.
"Sure" Jay obliged, dashing off to fulfil his duties.
"Nick, I'm going to get you some pain relief. Hopefully that should make you feel more comfortable" said Adam, moving closer to Nick to make sure that he could hear him.
"Where's Zoe?" mumbled Nick, trying to take off him oxygen mask. Tess quickly noticed what he was doing and she took the mask out of his grasp and placed it back over his face.
"Nick, you need to keep the mask on. Zoe's been called and she's coming in with Steph and Lexi" Tess said comfortingly but Nick shook his head.
"Not Alexa. I...I don't want her to see me l...like this" Nick requested. He couldn't stand to have his little girl see him in such a bad way.
"That's fine Nick. I'll get Kirsty or Jay to mind her while Zoe's here. Try not to worry" soothed Tess. Afterall that Zoe and Nick had been through over the last few years, she hated seeing yet an obstacle standing in their way of happiness. She had watched their relationship grow over the years and she remembered fondly their joy when Alexa was born. She just prayed that Nick would fully recover from this and that he and Zoe could get on with their lives. Adam walked away from Nick and gently pulled Tess by the arm, taking her over to one side.
"Can I leave you to organize some pain relief?" asked Adam as Tess nodded "We can't do much until we find out the results of the scan so I'm just going to check on a couple of other patients" Adam was hesitant to leave Nick but he knew he'd only be gone a couple of minutes. Adam wandered out of resus and through into the cubicles. As Adam walked past the nurse's station, he heard someone call his name.
"Adam, How's Nick doing?" Kirsty asked as she filled in some information on one patients discharge form. Adam shook his head, unsure of how to answer the question.
"Not great. The results of the CT should put things into perspective" answered Adam. He wasn't willing to disclose to much information as patient confidentiality still applied even though Nick was joint clinical lead. Adam was pleased that the staff were concerned about Nick though. Adam caught Jay walking past and grabbed his arm. "Jay, have you managed to find a slot in CT for Mr Jordan?"
"Yep, although it's not for another half hour or so. They have a backlog of patients. I'm surprised I managed to get a slot to be honest" replied Jay.
"Okay, that's fine. Oh Jay, Kirsty could I ask you both a favour" Adam said, looking between the two nurses who nodded their heads simultaneously. "Zoe's coming in with Alexa and her sister. I'm wondering whether one of you could mind Alexa for a while as I presume Steph would want to go in and see Nick as well"
"Yep, that's fine with me. I'm due on a break soon" Kirsty stated.
"If Tess doesn't mind then I can easily spare a hour or so" agreed Jay. Adam smiled towards them both, grateful for their support.
"Brilliant. We'll see what Zoe wants to do when she arrives" Adam commented. "Right, I need to get back and see some other patients"
As Adam went off towards cubicles, Kirsty and Jay were left stood at the station, contemplating upon the conversation they had just had. Charlie appeared round the corners and meandered up to them. He scowled when he noticed the solemn faces.
"Come on, cheer up. It can't be that bad!" laughed Charlie as Kirsty and Jay exchanged confused glances. Did Charlie not know?
"Gramps, you do know whats happened don't you?" quizzed Jay. Charlie frowned in response, uncertain of what the young nurse was referring too. He'd only been gone about twenty minutes. He wondered what could have happened in that short space of time.
"Mr Jordan's been in an RTC. He's just been brought in" Kirsty informed, taking in the look of horror appearing upon the senior charge nurse's face.
"Wait, what?" Charlie asked again even though he'd heard clearly the first time. "How is he?"
"Better ask Adam" instructed Jay, pointing towards Adam who was checking over another patient. He didn't seem focused with them though. It was clear he was deep in thought.
"Tess is with Mr Jordan in resus now I think" added Kirsty.
"Right" Charlie responded simply "I'd better go and see him" Charlie paced of in the direction of resus, still trying to digest the bad news. A few minutes later, he was entering resus and immediately saw Nick lying on a bed, a collar still strapped around his neck. Tess was stood about a foot away from him, checking his obs. She heard footsteps behind her and turned around as Charlie approached. He could see that Nick's eyes were firmly shut and he shot a worried glance at Tess.
"Kirsty told me. How is he?" Tess shrugged her shoulders. It wasn't that she didn't have a clue what was going on but she, like Adam, was unsure of the extent to Nick's injuries.
"He keeps dipping in and out of consciousness. I've cleaned up the laceration he sustained on his head and given him some pain relief. We are waiting on a CT now" Tess sighed.
"I can hear you" mumbled Nick, the oxygen mask upon his face muffling the sound of his voice.
"How are you feeling Nick?" replied Charlie, laughing slightly.
"I've been better"
"Do you remember what happened?" queried Tess.
"A car crashed into me" answered Nick, pulling the mask off his face. This time, Tess didn't try and stop him. "Is Zoe here yet?"
"No but she's on her way" reassured Tess, resting a hand upon Nick's arm. "Just try and get a little rest now" Tess added, looking at Charlie who nodded in agreement.
"Wait, what happened to the other driver?" asked Nick, his breathing sounding slightly more breathless than before.
"I believe they've been taken to St James'" informed Tess. "Let's put this back on eh" Tess took the oxygen mask once again and placed it back over Nick's mouth. A few seconds after, the resus doors burst open and Noel appeared at the door. He beckoned for either Tess or Charlie to come over to him so he didn't have to shout what he wanted to say across resus. Charlie looked a Tess who gestured for him to go and see Noel.
"Zoe's here" Noel said quietly as Charlie acknowledged what he'd said. Charlie ran his hands through his hair, not particularly looking forward to seeing Zoe's distraught face. Charlie took a deep breath before leaving resus. It seemed like his feet were dragging on the floor as he approached reception. He could see Zoe. She had her back to him and she was half leaning on the desk with her head in her hands. Steph was bent down next to her with Alexa directly in front. Steph had hold of the little girl's hands as she stood shakily on her own two feet.
"Zoe?" called Charlie, walking up to his colleague. Zoe immediately span round and it was clear to see that she had been crying from the mascara that was slightly smudged around her eyes.
"Is he okay?" Zoe sniffed, wiping away a stray tear. Charlie tried to muster a weak smile in response but it was so difficult when he saw Zoe's distressed, tear stained face.
"You'd better come through" was Charlie's answer. There was no way that he'd discuss Nick's condition out here where everyone could listen in. Zoe glanced towards Steph who gestured for her to go in.
"Don't worry about Lex. I'll look after her" promised Steph, picking up Alexa and balancing the wriggling toddler on her hip.
"Why don't you wait in the office?" suggested Charlie. Steph looked towards Zoe who put her hand into her bag and pulled out a piece of scrunched up paper.
"Here's the number code for the door" informed Zoe, passing the paper to Steph.
"A nurse can watch Alexa if you want to come in Stephanie" offered Charlie. Steph pulled a face and looked at Zoe who just shrugged her shoulders. At this moment, Zoe couldn't be bothered to think of the ongoing uneasy feeling between her sister and fiancée. The only think that mattered was that Nick got better and he could come home to her and Alexa.
"Erm... I'll be along a little later. Give Zoe a chance to be with Nick on her own" replied Steph. Zoe gave a weak grateful smile back at her sister and then looked down to the floor. "And it's Steph. Stephanie sounds so formal!" added Steph as an afterthought. She'd never really been that keen on her name so ever since she was a little girl, she had always insisted on it being shortened. The only time her full name was ever really used was on official documents.
"Okay Steph" smiled Charlie. He took Zoe's arm and gently led her into resus while Steph and Alexa went in the other direction. Zoe paused at the resus doors. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. The last thing she wanted to do was to go and see Nick strapped up, unable to move. She couldn't leave him though. She couldn't turn away. Nick needed her. He needed her support and love and Zoe was determined to give him just that.
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X Natasha X