Chapter37
The weeks between Martin's start at hospital and the Christmas holidays seemed to fly by. During that time, Louisa had finished her course work for the term, Martin had settled in to his role as head of the vascular department, the villagers had adjusted to the new GP without any complaints, and the Chens were learning the ways of village life.
With all the changes in the village and Martin's time spent away from home, Louisa found herself busier than ever. Fortunately, James was happy at Portwenn Tots, Mel's preschool. He loved all the activities that she planned, especially now that he had Arthur as a friend. Knowing that he was safely and happily cared for gave Louisa the peace of mind to focus on her current term work, write her last two research papers and work with fellow students to polish up a group project and presentation.
Her experience as Portwenn Primary head teacher had prepared her well for her studies. As the end of term neared, her tutor Sam Bradman approached her to discuss her plans for completing her course work and starting her supervised clinical training. He reiterated that her understanding of the course material was exceptional, and that the maturity she brought to her studies gave her insights to young patients that less experienced students lacked. There would be no shortage of opportunities when she began her search for a training position in one of the counselling centres in Wadebridge, Bodmin, Padstow or Newquay just to mention a few. He was encouraging and suggested that she start making inquiries right at the beginning of the year. It was important that she visit each centre and interview the staff to ensure that she would fit in and be able to make the most of her internship before starting a search for her first job. It was flattering that he had such confidence in her abilities, but she reminded him that she was expecting her second child and that she planned to take a leave from her studies the first term in the new year after the baby's birth.
She agreed that she would start to research the various centres where she could do her clinical training while on maternity leave from her studies. She didn't add that she was thinking of extending her break through the summer term as well. After that she still had a full term of coursework to complete before she felt she would be ready to start her clinical training. She didn't want to commit to a training position until next fall at the earliest. To tell the truth, after she completed her internship, she was hoping to set up a private practice in Portwenn in order to set her own hours and be close to the children. It was exciting to contemplate beginning her new career, but it was also thrilling to think about their new baby. She had missed so many of James' milestones attending to her responsibilities as headmistress. She didn't want to miss any of those with the new baby. So many changes coming; it was almost daunting to think about.
Louisa had also found a friend in Ethel Chen. They would meet for tea in the morning once or twice a week and talk over all the things that women discuss, their children, and their respective families. They started sharing recipes, laughing over some of the unusual aspects of their pregnancies, and more often than not, discussing their husbands and the challenges inherent in being married to someone working in medicine.
Ted Chen had stepped easily into the role as village GP. His outward demeanour and professional presentation were similar to Martin's, but his approach to his patients was the polar opposite; he was kindly and attentive, and the villagers took to him immediately. Martin could be kind and gentle with the occasional patient who was afflicted with a condition over which they had no control, but to those who were careless with their health, who ate and drank too much or took no exercise and who ignored his advice, he was generally gruff and rude. Even so, they appreciated his skills, and they valued his immediate attention to emergencies. Many recognised his genuine concern for their health and they appreciated that he was brilliant at diagnosing their ailments and his straight talk, "telling them how it is", but they were frequently frustrated with his failure to express any interest in the difficulties they might face in complying with his treatment regimen.
Ted was almost as skilled as Martin, but he was soft spoken and expressed interest in the lives of his patients. Where Martin had trained as a surgeon and had little training and no inclination to see his patients as real people with lives outside his surgical theatre, Ted had trained in general medicine and he learned early in his career that patients responded to gentle persuasion. He would explain his treatment plan thoroughly and check to see if they would encounter any obstacles in compliance. As a result, few patients returned before they completed their course of antibiotics or to complain that the medicine was useless. If they did, he would gently listen to their concerns and then reiterate what they needed to do and guide them back out of the surgery. Louisa frequently overhead villagers singing his praises as she walked through the village. More than one asked her how Martin's work at hospital was going and if he planned to make the change permanent. They never hesitated to add that they hoped Dr. Chen would stay on in the village.
Louisa wasn't sure if she wanted the Chens to stay in the village even though she and Ethel were becoming good friends. Despite enjoying Ethel's company, Louisa still wished that Martin were back working full time in the village. She missed seeing him during the day, although she had to admit that his current schedule wasn't too bad, and he seemed much happier than in any time she had known him. It wasn't that he was making jokes or grinning from ear to ear all the time; no, his expression was just as serious as it always was. It was just something in his manner that seemed lighter, less grumpy, with fewer complaints about the imbeciles he had to see each day. Of course, he wasn't interacting with villagers day in and day out. Perhaps that was it.
And one thing more, she knew when they first married that he wasn't one to win any awards in the romance department. He certainly wasn't a 'Hearts and Flowers' kind of man, but he seemed to her, dare she say it, a bit more openly affectionate than before. He had even initiated a few of their intimate moments without her taking the lead as she usually did. That was nice, very nice.
She loved that they were able to share their midday meal on the days he was working in Portwenn. One day she had made a lentil and vegetable soup for lunch. It was one of her more delectable efforts and Martin complimented her on its flavour more than once during the meal. As they finished washing up, he reached out to give her a hug and he thanked her for the delicious meal. She beamed up at him; pressing her hands on his shoulders and with a slight smirk, she kissed him soundly on the lips. It surprised him; but without thinking, he gazed down into her eyes and kissed her back, a long and smouldering kiss, pressing his hands firmly against her backside, pulling her to him. She leaned into him, hoping that it might lead to a more romantic encounter and wrapped her arms around his waist when they pulled apart, "That was nice."
"Mmm," he replied in a gentle hum.
"Would you liked to move upstairs?" She whispered into his chest, and was encouraged when he responded with another gentle "Mmmm."
She could feel his interest hard against her belly, and she murmured, "A little afternoon delight?"
Another "mmm" escaped from his lips, but then he jerked his head back, "What?"
"You know," and she nodded her head towards the stairs.
Understanding lit up his face, but he released her, spluttering, "No …no. I can't … I'm sorry." He glanced down at his watch and added, "I have a teleconference with the IT team in fifteen minutes."
"Oh … right," she sighed in disappointment.
"But perhaps tonight?" He added sensing that he had let her down.
"Yes. That would be brilliant." She beamed back at him.
"Good." He turned and walked back to his study; and with the hope of an early evening ahead of her, Louisa returned to the essay she had been writing before lunch.
Perhaps it would be good if he were to continue at Truro with Ted Chen working as the village GP. They should talk about it before the baby arrived.
Louisa's observation that Martin was happier was spot on. He was more content than he had been since his arrival in Portwenn. He was back doing surgery, his first love, what he was best at, and it was gratifying in more ways than he could count. He spent most of his in-hospital days consulting with patients and in theatre. On his Portwenn days he was busy in his home office searching for additional candidates for his department, reviewing the procedures that he and the other surgeons performed each week, completing what seemed like the endless paperwork required by the NHS, and squeezing in time to work on the IT project.
One of the nicer aspects of his Portwenn days was the opportunity to spend a few minutes over lunch with Louisa. After several years together, she had become a better cook, and one day she made some lentil vegetable soup, which was particularly flavourful. After doing the washing up, they had shared a hug and a kiss and she had suggested some 'afternoon delight'. At first, he was puzzled. 'Afternoon delight' …. It was a term with which he was not familiar although he could guess what it meant. Later that afternoon, he had researched the term and his research had confirmed his suspicion. It was a tantalising idea, one he felt he should consider once his work slowed down, if it ever did.
His workweek was demanding, and he enjoyed the challenge, but he knew he couldn't keep up the current pace. He still did not have the full complement of practitioners in the department needed to meet patient demand. Some of the immediate pressure from the hospital board to build the staff was beginning to ease up. They were pleased that he had found two surgeons to add to the staff so quickly, but he cautioned them that it was likely to take upwards of a year or longer to fully staff the unit.
The dinner with Priya and her partner Sofia was the first of several social engagements that Martin and Louisa were required to attend. As important as these dinners were to Martin's ability to staff his department, he was grumpy whenever they had to go out. The same weekend that they dined with Priya, they entertained a young couple, Jack and Sarah Harding. Martin had spoken with Jack whilst he was in London and had observed him in theatre and was impressed. Where Priya was actively interested in joining Martin and moving to Cornwall, Jack was interested, but more cautious about the move. He knew of Martin's reputation and he eager to work with Martin and to participate in whatever research projects he might join, but his wife was less enthusiastic. She expressed doubt about the cultural opportunities available in Cornwall as opposed to those available in London. Of course, Valerie was able to expound on all the museums, art galleries and theatre offerings to be found in Truro and nearby towns and villages.
Just as Martin's mother would have done, Valerie offered to introduce Sarah to several well-known local artists and invited her to join the hospital auxiliary where she would be able to meet several influential residents. Louisa knew it wasn't fair, her comparing Valerie to Margaret, but she couldn't help her revulsion every time Valerie opened her mouth. She knew that she had to be pleasant to this woman because she was after all, the wife of Martin's boss. She needed to find something positive in her character; and after all, Valerie did seem to know more about the cultural attractions available in Cornwall than Louisa herself knew.
Sarah and Jack also had two young children, a boy and a girl, both under five and Sarah had concerns about raising them outside a large city where she felt the schools might not be as challenging as those in London. Valerie assured her that Cornwall boasted some excellent private schools and commenced to describe the two schools that her children had attended. Valerie might be the source for Cornish cultural attractions, but schools in Cornwall were Louisa's area of expertise. She interrupted Valerie's monologue and did her best to reassure Sarah that there were many very good schools in Cornwall in addition to the private schools Valerie had recommended, and she promised to send Sarah information on which school districts were considered the best. Of course, she was partial to Portwenn Primary, but thought that living in Portwenn might be too much of a commute for Jack even though Martin was making it work. She even went so far as to offer to drive Sarah to several villages close to Truro that were known to have excellent schools. Sarah declined the offer, but was happy to have Louisa provide her a map with the various villages marked on it.
Martin had also contacted one of his students from his time at St. Mary's, a young man with a promising career in vascular. The surgeon had been excited to hear from Martin, to have the opportunity to work with him once more, and had come down to tour the Cornwall hospital, bringing his wife with him. They had had a pleasant dinner with the young couple, but after spending the weekend in Truro and the surrounding area, the wife was not impressed; she loved her life in London and was not willing to relocate. Martin was disappointed, but knew not everyone was likely to see the charms inherent in Cornwall; if it hadn't been for his childhood memories on the farm and now his marriage to Louisa with her strong ties to Portwenn and the family that they planned to raise there, he himself would be back in London.
He had interviewed two other surgeons, but had declined to make them an offer. One was a colleague of Jack's from his London hospital who was eager to work with Martin, but he didn't have the full complement of skills that Martin currently needed in a surgeon. Martin really needed practitioners who could provide competent care to the people of Cornwall immediately. He told Jack's former colleague that he had promise, but he would need further training and encouraged him to reapply in a year or two when he had additional experience and outlined specifically which procedures he should perfect. The other candidate that Martin rejected was a former colleague of Robin O'Neill, the hospital's young thoracic specialist from Ireland. The man had excellent credentials and his skills were reputed to be exceptional, but it was apparent that he was cut from the same cloth as Adrian Pitts. Martin had caught him pinching the bum of one of the nurses as they were leaving the surgical suites, behaviour that was anathema to Martin. Images of that smirking lothario floated before Martin's eyes, and he did not hesitate to coldly tell the man that such behaviour was completely unacceptable, and that he would not be welcome to join any department headed by Martin Ellingham.
By the time the holidays were looming, Priya had been working in Martin's department for several weeks, consulting with patients and performing necessary surgeries. She had made the decision to join Martin the morning after their dinner. While Priya went back to London to give her notice and start packing up their London flat, Sofia stayed behind and started searching for a new home. They had both decided to settle near Sofia's brother in Newquay. They were looking forward to living near family, but even more than that, they were looking forward to being near Fistral Beach, perhaps Cornwall's best surfing site. They were both thrilled at how the fates had conspired to bring them the best of all worlds with Priya working with one of the best vascular specialists in the country while living where they could pursue their surfing passion.
Jack had also accepted Martin's offer and was due to start at the beginning of the year. He and Sarah had decided to rent a home for their first year in Cornwall in order to become acquainted with the area before purchasing a permanent home. They had located a suitable house for let on the outskirts of Truro and had moved in most of their furniture the week before Christmas. Louisa had kept in touch and had helped with the children while the removal men were unloading their van, and she visited again the next day with a welcome basket of holiday treats. She knew that it was important that Martin's staff and their families feel at home in Cornwall if they were to stay.
Word of the expanded vascular department had spread and patient referrals were flooding the unit. Even varicose vein patients who had delayed treatment were suddenly clamouring for appointments. While she hadn't focused her practice in London on varicose veins, Priya was more than competent to treat these patients and she volunteered to step in once a week to help Arthur Bender, their varicose vein specialist, who had suddenly found his schedule fully booked.
Jack couldn't come on-board any too soon. With Priya and Westmore carrying much of the current patient load, Martin was able to focus his attention on the more complex cases that appeared in their unit, and he was finding his return to surgery exhilarating. After his first full week on-site, he transitioned to four days on site, and after Priya joined the department, he had felt comfortable assuming the three-day workweek he had negotiated with the Board. The on-site days could be long and demanding. He found that the best use of his time on-site was to focus on patient care, reserving the more tedious administrative work for his time in Portwenn.
As she watched the holiday decorations spring up around the village, and talked with Pippa about the annual school holiday pageant, Louisa was inspired to host a holiday open house at their new home. Knowing how much Martin hated any kind of socializing, she approached him carefully after dinner one evening in early December. She had bought a fish and steamed some fresh winter vegetables, an optimally nutritious meal that she was certain Martin would enjoy. After they had bathed James and tucked him into bed, they retired to the couch in their spacious lounge, each with a cup of tea, Louisa with the last reading for her course work and Martin with the latest issue of EJVES*, which had replaced his usual BMJ and Lancet most evenings. After a half-hour or so, she decided the time had come to broach the topic of an open-house. She put her reading down, "Martin?"
He looked up, "Yes?"
"I've been thinking."
"Yes?"
She closed her laptop and tapped nervously on the cover, "Well, the holidays are coming up."
"Yes, I have noticed the decorations." He detected a hesitancy in her voice, and he closed his journal and sat a little straighter in preparation for a difficult conversation about Christmas. Did she want him to decorate a tree or take her shopping?
She screwed up her mouth and took a deep breath, "I've been thinking that we should host an open-house for the staff in your department"
Martin took a deep breath himself and blew it out forcefully through pursed lips. A party; that was worse than holiday shopping or dragging a fir into the house and setting it up. He shook his head vehemently, "No…no. I don't think that's a good idea. We're far too busy taking care of our patients. And you have James to care for and yourself … no need to exhaust yourself with all the planning needed for such an endeavour."
She leaned forward in her chair. "I'm not talking about a big gala, just a simple gathering outside hospital, sort of a team bonding thing. You are head of the department, right? I imagine it's part of your job to encourage team cohesion, and I think that a casual party where we can all get to know each other better would be one way to do that. We can invite families to join us; it would show that you are interested in their life outside of hospital."
"I'm not."
"You should be. You never know. There may come a time when one of them has a family emergency and you will have to rearrange schedules to accommodate them." She had segued into her head teacher voice, the one that brooked no dissent.
"Humph."
"We'll keep it simple and casual. Maybe ask people to drop by sometime between two and five in the afternoon – say the Sunday before Christmas. How does that sound?"
"It will be a lot of work. I don't want you to stress yourself. It's not good for the baby."
"My classes will be over so I have the time. I'll just order some snacks, maybe some savouries from Al at the pub, some sweets from the bakery and assorted drinks. I'll even use paper plates so we don't have too much washing up to do. How does that sound?"
"Do I have a choice?"
"Of course, you do. Just think about it for a few days and let me know, okay?"
She flashed him one of her brilliant smiles and he knew he was going to agree, he didn't really have a choice, but all in good time. "Mmm."
Two mornings later as they were preparing breakfast, Martin said, "The open house. Yes."
Louisa threw up her hands and exclaimed, "Yes? Are you sure?"
"Yes."
She wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him tightly. "That's brilliant. Shall I work with Mrs. Lassiter to make up a guest list?"
"Yes. Just keep me out of it. I have more important things to do than party planning."
"Don't worry. You won't have to lift a finger."
"Right." He replied with a hint of scepticism in his voice, although he was pleased to see the delight in Louisa's eyes as she started to hum several silly Christmas songs.
*EJVES the European Journal of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery. As of this writing in 2021, there is no UK vascular specific journal, although there has been recent serious discussion on the need for one.