Chapter 15 – Cyanotic
"Bleep, Bleep!" Alerted the dispatch radio.
"County General, this is dispatch for status update. Over."
Susan walked to the radio and picked up the hand receiver.
"Dispatch, County General's on open status. Over"
"10-2, General"
She puts the receiver down and walked to the other side of the admit desk.
"Jerry, can you call Abby and see if she had any luck finding Neela?"
"Bleep, Bleep!" The radio alerted again.
"County General, how do you read? Over."
Susan walked back to the radio and picked up the receiver again.
"Read you 10-2. Go ahead, dispatch."
"General, implement drowning protocol. Two casualties alert, Boy and a woman both critical, fell in frozen lake at Archer Park, Over."
"On stand by, Over." Susan replied
"Trauma 2 & 3 are free, we can put them in there" Luka said.
"Ok, let's round up at the ambulance bay" Susan commanded
They all snap on their gloves in preparation for the casualties to arrive.
A siren wailed from the distance, the decibel gets higher as the Paramedics nears the hospital.
Neela sat next to Abby laid out on the gurney in the back of the ambulance. She had difficulties trying to push an IV, struggling due to the EMT's driving erratically at high speed causing it to rock side-by-side and bumping on the uneven roads.
"Shit! Come on!" Neela shouted feeling frustrated, fiddling with the tubes.
"We're nearly there," said EMT Dumar squeezing the air bag.
The driver slammed on the brakes, which sent Neela flying against the driver cabin. She gets up in a daze and stumbled. The EMT opened the door - Susan, Luka, Sam and Chuny standing waiting to assist. Neela stepped out.
"Neela!" Susan shouted at her surprise then looked at the victim "Oh my god!"
"Abby?" Luka said.
The other Ambulance pulled up.
"That be the boy…" Neela said.
EMT Doris Pickman stepped out from the back of the vehicle. "We've got DOA"
Neela puts on a painful expression after hearing the bad news.
They pull the gurney out of the Ambulance and quickly pushed Abby into the ER.
"She's cyanotic!" Neela cried, "It's all my fault… BP's 32 palp, pulse is weak, she's bradycardiac, heart rate's 38"
"What's the temp?" Luka asked.
"80, I managed to revive her, she wasn't breathing or had a pulse. Her lungs were full of water"
"Put her in trauma 3, warm her up or we'll lose her"
They threw few layers of blankets over her body. The doors of the trauma room swing open and positioned the gurney. They all gather around, pulling out wires and tubes.
"The warmed IVs are here," Sam announced, hanging them up.
"We'll need a pleural lavage to warm her heart" Luka placed his stethoscope round his neck
"Good idea!" Susan squeezing the air bag. "What happened Neela?"
"The boy was messing about on the frozen lake and fell through… Abby was kneeling to reach him and I was holding on to her ankles, the ice gave way when she got hold of the boy. She went in…" Neela sobbed, "It's all my fault!"
"Why is it your fault?"
"I wasn't gripping onto her hard enough" Neela looked way; she noticed a few colleagues gathered around behind the door, watching in shock.
"I'm not getting a pulse," Sam said, holding Abby's neck.
The heart monitor gives a lethal rhythm.
"Come on Abby, don't give up on us now" Luka puts his hand on her chest and pushes it. "Stay with us!"
The monitor bleeped the normal sinus.
"She's back"
"Good! Lets start the lavage now!" Susan said, with the stethoscope in her ears.
"Keep the IV going," the Croatian doctor instructed. "And Sam watch out for the re-warming shock"
"Ok" She looked at Luka with jealousy when he is holding Abby's hand and leaned over stroking her hair. She knew they had a history together, knows that deep down he stills cares for her…
Outside in the corridor, Susan catches up with Neela, who is rushing off to go somewhere to cry alone.
"Neela!" Susan shouted for her attention.
The Indian doctor paused on the spot and clenched her face as she turned to her boss.
"Where the hell were you?" Susan asked "Jeez! You've put Abby's life at risk!"
"Well I did say it was my fault"
She shook her head "No Neela, it isn't, I'm sorry I've shouldn't have said that"
Neela puts her hands in her coat pocket and sighed.
"I'll have a chat with you later, there's so much going on right now"
"I guess you still want me to work now?" Neela asked with her head bowed down.
"Well yes! We're short staffed here!"
"Dr Lewis" Jerry said, leaning over the counter, waving the phone to her. "Long distance phone call"
"Ok I'll take it" She walked to the admit desk and turned to Neela "Speak to you later, ok?" Susan took the phone from Jerry and answered it.
"Hello Dr Lewis here"
"Hi it's Carter"
"Carter! Thanks for leaving me in the lurch at short notice!"
"Sorry, I had to see to an emergency over here in Kisangani"
"Yeah trying to patch things up with Kem" Susan said sarcastically
"What? What are you on about? There's no Kem here, the hospital camp is experiencing problems at the moment, they're threatening to remove it, so I am trying to work out where to relocate it"
"Oh I'm sorry for jumping conclusion, well… On everyone's behalf"
"Everyone's behalf? They're thinking that I've gone running to Kem?" Carter said smiling and looking puzzled "No-no she's got engaged to someone else and living in Paris, so I was calling to say I may have to stay here a little longer"
"Gee thanks, thanks for letting us know"
"You sound stressed out than ever"
"Well you could say that," Susan replied "We are seriously understaffed here"
"Ok, so in general. Is everyone ok?"
"Well… erm… it…" Susan stuttered to avoid telling him the bad news
"What is it Susan? I know that tone"
"I really don't want to say it down the phone" Susan clenching her teeth trying not to say anything.
"Susan!"
"Well... erm…" Giving out a nervous "Ha" trying to bring herself to tell him.
"It's Abby, she's critical"
"What! What happened?"
"She got cyanotic trying to save a boy in a frozen lake…"
"Oh my god!"