Chapter 20
"I think we can do this here, but we need not only the equipment but also a kidney," Lucien figured after reading the article that Doctor Chase had given Alice. The group had moved into the morgue for some privacy and hopefully a phone call from Doctor Kluk.
"I don't disagree. Did we have a match for a kidney yet though?" Doctor Chase asked.
"Therein lies the rub. We haven't been looking for very long," Alice spoke up.
"No match and no equipment. Transporting Mrs. Dunwoody all the way to Sydney doesn't sound like a good plan," Doctor Anderson shook his head.
"I agree but how long can we assume the dialysis will last?" Doctor Wilson wanted to know. Lucien shook his head. Pumping Mrs. Dunwoody full of antibiotics, may buy them some time but if the fever was due to her failing kidneys, it wouldn't be enough.
"Well, we have to hope that her lab results give us better news," Lucien admitted. There were a lot of shaking heads and frowns. The phone rang and Alice picked it up. She wasn't on long before she thanked the person on the other end of the call.
"White count is elevated. The nurses have started antibiotics to bring the fever down along with IV fluids. They'll have to wait to start the dialysis," Alice told them.
"Is there some way we can find a donor kidney here in Ballarat?" Doctor Chase asked.
"Right now, our best bet is a living donor, but the person would have had to be in good health and the blood type would need to match Phyllis' blood type. A bigger issue is that we'd have to get the person to consent to such a thing. For some it goes against everything they understand to donate a body part. I worry that even that might not be enough," Lucien admitted.
"The rejection of the kidney," Alice figured.
"Indeed. Her body could reject it, even if it shares a common blood type with her. If she had one good kidney, I'd just remove the bad one, but we aren't that lucky. Certainly, trying a procedure like this with her having a fever is not a good idea," he told the group.
"Well, we should start a local search. I have no idea how they'd transport a kidney from Sydney and have it still be viable," Alice shook her head.
"Yes, they'd have to bring the person here, which adds to the difficulty. Start asking people around the hospital for their blood type. Let's see if we can find someone who would be of a mind here before we move to go outside the hospital. Gentlemen, I appreciate your assistance with this. We'll need to keep a close eye on Mrs. Dunwoody in the meantime as well," Lucien heaved a sigh.
"We'll see what we can find. Please let us know if you need us for anything else," Doctor Chase clapped Lucien on the back before he left the room. Doctors Anderson and Wilson agreed and said that they could be called in at any time to assist.
"What can we do to keep her stable?" Alice wanted to know.
"I want more information. We need to know for certain that her failing kidneys are causing this. What is her kidney output? What is causing the cough? I want to run some more tests," Lucien said.
"I'll help. Do you think Jean could get people to volunteer a kidney?" She wondered as the two moved out of the morgue and headed back for the nurses' station.
"Jean's network of people has shrunk considerably since we got married. She left the church based on their position regarding our marriage. I know she still has her sowing circle. Maybe she could still get people to help from the church, despite everything," Lucien said.
"Do you feel guilty about her leaving the church?" Alice was surprised at his comment. Not that the Doctor was a religious man, but she knew that Jean had used the church to help her after the death of her first husband.
"No, she is still religious, she just doesn't go to church. One can be religious without attending services. I'm pretty sure God doesn't need you to be there every Sunday to prove your devotion. I do know that it wasn't an easy decision for her and that some see our marriage as some sort of confirmation of our sinning," Lucien rolled his eyes. Jean would never be the other woman. She broke off what had barely started when Mei Lin arrived. Anyone who truly knew Jean would have known that she would never break up a marriage for her own benefit.
"Ah I see," Alice nodded as they stopped at the nurses' desk. They quickly told the nurses what other tests they wanted to run and then Lucien made a call to Jean.
To Be Continued…