All In a Day
8:00 AM
My job is to not get in people’s way. Only ask the questions
on the checklist. Process patients, no decisions of consequence. Each question
is a screen to assess symptoms. But what ends up happening is the interview
becomes a last grasp for comfort. I hear people tell me stories they wouldn’t
bear to tell their husbands or wives. And I have to urge them to answer the
medical question directly and move on to the next. Like people on a reverse assembly
line, deconstructed to their most minute parts. At the end of the session,
people usually shake my hand and leave without saying much. As a fourth year
medical student, I can’t legally provide a diagnosis. They look at me waiting
for some closure. All I can do is reference them to someone higher on the totem
pole. But a patient doesn’t come to the hospital expecting good news anyway.
An announcement pierces the air. “Paging Dr. Sinclair,” the
loudspeaker says.
Hospitals have different codes to say over the loudspeaker
as to not cause alarm. Code Blue is the most common. It means that a patient is
in need of resuscitation. Code Grey means there is a patient with a stroke. We
also use doctor codenames as well. “Dr. Stork” means a woman is in labor and
needs immediate help. “Dr. Sinclair” means there is a dangerous situation. I’ll
have to take the back elevator to get to the cafeteria later.
In the examination room, the chief resident is telling his
patient that he should cease chemotherapy treatment. That realistically, he
should focus on her quality of life with the little time he has left. He can’t
say this out loud, but the doctor wants him to go out with some dignity. Be
able to say goodbye to his family without worrying about vomiting everywhere.
With some hair left. Able to stand up on his own. I hear his patient warmly say
thanks. His voice has a gentle rasp but no waver. I can hear his wife softly
sob. She begs him to reconsider. To give it one more shot. He says “I’m tired, and
I’m ready.”
Five patients into my day. I look over my lengthy notes. My
hands write everything my patient have to say because I don’t know what is
actually important for my seniors to know. During my daily reports, what are
called “sign-outs,” the chief resident’s eyes always glaze over. When I see his
notes on a patient, they’re about a quarter of the length. The bare essentials.
I straighten out my pristine white jacket and welcome whoever is up on the
queue.
The next patient walks in alone. She looks young but has
grown distinct crow’s feet around her eyes. She’s dressed well, but her clothes
are unnaturally baggy. I can see her collarbone jut out. She has prominent,
attractive cheekbones, but her cheeks have hollowed. I assess her basic
information. Age, height, weight, race. She is only thirty-five years old. Five
foot five. I try not to avert my eyes when I hear her weight. Usually patients
understate their weight out of self-consciousness. She says she’s 150 pounds,
and she probably was. I ask her about her family to break the ice.
She says, “I had a son.” The clock ticks loudly,
reverberating through my silence. I ask the first question verbatim, and she
gives me a short response. After a few questions, her phone goes off with the
standard xylophone ring tone. She turns it off without looking.
“You can take that call. I don’t mind.”
She says, “Don’t worry, I don’t need to. It’s just my mom.”
The interview lasts ten minutes. She thanks me and reaches
out. Her hand is soft and cold. She holds on and lets the heat of my hand
radiate. I have to pull back and usher her out politely.
4:00 AM
I am required to come at five in the morning, but I always
come earlier to do my rounds. I check the updated notes, the overnight nurse’s
report on each patient in the ward. Most of the patients are still asleep.
This morning, one patient tried to sneak to the bathroom
with a cup. His IV bag stand trailed behind. His catheter hung limply between
his legs. I had to tell him he couldn’t drink any water or eat anything before
surgery.
He kept repeating, “But I’m so thirsty.”
I said, “You can’t drink when the doctors intubate for
surgery there is a reduced/no risk for aspiration which could lead to
pneumonia, a big complication post surgery.” He stared at me blankly.
“They have to stick a tube down your throat and if you
drink, your throat could swell and you could get really sick.”
He said, “But I’m thirsty, can’t you please let me have a
cup of water? Just one?” I pressed the call button for the nurse.
She walked in and asked what the problem was.
He said, “I’m so thirsty and the doctor won’t let me drink.”
The nurse said, “Mr. Rodriguez, you have a busy day today
and you need your rest. Come back to bed and lie down. Let me get you some
candy to suck on. What flavor would you like?”
“Lemon has always been my favorite.”
“You’re in luck. I always carry some candy around, and the
last piece is only for you.”
“Thanks, Lisa. You’re my favorite.”
“How about I adjust your bed. Comfortable now?” Lisa asked.
“Yeah, I’m perfect,” Mr. Rodriguez said.
“That’s good. I’ll be here if you need me. All you have to
do is press that little call button.”
“I think I’ll be ok. I’m going to try and get some rest.”
“Sleep well Mr. Rodriguez.” Lisa closed the curtain. I took
my cue to leave.
People cope in different ways to being sick. Some withdraw.
Some latch on. Some lash out. Patients are labeled things like difficult,
drug-seeking, depressive, or delusional. But being sick is inherently
disempowering.
Cancer becomes the every day norm. We see death all day
long, 90 hours a week. You eventually stop thinking about it as individual
tragedies and instead as letters on a paper, or numbers on a clipboard. Some
doctors think of it as an inconvenience. But to the patient, it’s likely the
worst news they’ll hear in their life. Last week, an intern in a different
department casually let slip that the patient’s symptoms indicated he likely
had cancer. He said it offhandedly. But only the senior staff members give the
bad news. After some immediate crisis intervention, the intern’s supervisor
pulled the intern into the hallway. I’ve never seen someone get chewed out so
badly. The intern looked like he wanted to sink into his shoes.
11:00 PM
I do my second set of rounds before my lunch break. Mr.
Rodriguez’s bed is empty. Someone had placed flowers by his bedside. Daffodils.
The rest of his belongings are gone. The surgery was supposed to start at nine,
and it was a four hour procedure. I found out it had lasted only an hour.
Cancer looks like a bulbous, mutilated mass when you open
someone up. It has a hard foreign consistency. But medicine has come
a long way. With the advent of robotic laparoscopic surgeries also known as
keyhole surgeries, procedures have become very minimally invasive and recovery
times are much shorter. But sometimes doctors have to make traditionally large
incisions when the cancer becomes too large. Doctors have to caution families
not to expect surgery to be a miracle cure. That every time you go under the
knife, it’s a big risk. It’s inherently violent, and you make the patient a lot
sicker before they can hopefully become healthier. Doctors have to inform
families of the financial cost as well. But after the surgery is done, the
hardest part is the long walk down the hall to the waiting room.
The cafeteria is like the rest of the hospital, an over
air-conditioned, sterile, insulated box. The food objectively tastes decent,
but the air makes it feel unsavory in my mouth. I chew to get some nutrients in
my body before the latter half of my shift.
“Paging Dr. Stork,” the loudspeaker blares.
I text my girlfriend about my morning. Kerry is an intern at
a neighboring hospital. An intern is the most junior member of the team after
you first receive your medical license out of school. She works in Cardiology,
but she hopes to eventually be a gynecologist. I tell her about my morning.
She’ll respond when she wakes up. My girlfriend works the night shift, from
five at night to nine in the morning. Since I get home at eight, we haven’t
seen each other in a month even though we live together. It’s like a ghost
resides in my house. Albeit a friendly ghost who does the dishes and leaves
cookies on the counter.
1:00 PM
My pager goes off. It’s time for the differential diagnosis
meeting on the new patients. We evaluate what possible diseases or conditions
there are based on the symptoms and narrow them down collectively.
I brace myself and walk in the meeting area.
The chief resident, Dr. Han says, “Great, you’re finally
here. We’re doing a whip around.” Everyone else in the room stares at me, some
with encouraging looks, some with apathy, and some with tired contempt.
Dr. Han asks, “What medication is most viable for a patient
exhibiting the following symptoms and why?”
I categorize each piece of information and cycle through
hundreds of pages of my reference books. The chief resident crosses his arms
and tenses his shoulders.
“Um, um,” I stutter.
“Alright next. Dr. Johnson, what would your recommendation
be?” Dr. Johnson is the intern on our team and he can’t come up with an answer.
The chief resident moves to the 2nd Year doctor, Dr. Diaz and asks
the same question. His tone is even and unfeeling. She responds promptly. Dr.
Johnson shakes his head at me. The Dr. Diaz gives me a weak smile. Sporadically,
the chief resident will quiz each member of the staff on a relevant question,
and if they can’t answer in thirty seconds, he moves on. I’ve seen him ask six
doctors until he gets a valid response in time.
We run our differential and I listen and absorb as much as I
can. My cheeks are flush. My hands are still clenched. The session passes in a
blur, with each doctor rapid fire eliminating non-answers. By the time I am
done evaluating one idea, the group is already three steps ahead. The way they
talk to each other, I can’t even begin to fathom reaching that level of
critical thinking. Their entire frame of mind is on an entirely different plane
than mine. The chief resident can reference every major oncology study for the
last fifty years. I can barely remember where my keys are in the morning.
I walk out of the room the same way I walked out of a bar
last Saturday. When you are on four hours of sleep consistently, a study showed
that it’s the equivalent of being drunk all the time. But there’s so much
information a doctor has to learn that 90-100 hour weeks are the only way to
get enough experience. I look at my watch. It’s only two o’ clock. Six hours
left in my shift.
2:00 PM
I go to the ICU to check in with a few specific patients.
The chief resident gave me a list of things to take care of in his absence. He
had to give a consultation at the Nephrology Department and would be occupied
for a few hours. He told me if I had any questions, to feel free to ask Dr.
Diaz for help. All I have to do is check their status.. Nurses check vitals. Most
of the patients on the list are stable and everything comes back at predictable
levels.
“Code Grey, Incoming,” the loudspeaker says. Means the
stroke victim is on his way.
I’ve visited Mrs. Wendy Henderson in her room every day
since I started my rotation at the hospital. She has a very poor prognosis, so
I have to stop by frequently to check her vitals.
“Good afternoon, Mrs. Henderson.”
“Call me Wendy, please.”
“Good afternoon Wendy. And it’s good to see you too Rita,” I
say.
Wendy and her daughter Rita apparently had a falling out a
few years ago, but when Wendy got sick, Rita came back. They don’t tell me the
details. Rita’s face looks weathered. Her skin is pulled tight against her
face. I notice old pockmarked scars around her basilic vein in the bend of her
elbow.
I tell them that they
look so much alike. They stifle a giggle.
Wendy tells me that when Rita’s mother was on her deathbed,
she told Rita’s father to marry someone nice like Wendy, the family babysitter.
So he did. He married Wendy. Wendy was twenty-three years old taking care of
three year old child who had her mother’s fire and her father’s lack of fear.
Rita says she just accepted the resemblance, but Wendy
always had a long hearty laugh. But it took time for Rita call Wendy, “Mom”,
even though they seem so close now.
Rita told us the story when Rita and Wendy were walking
around the mall. Rita was begging for some candy and Wendy would have none of
it. Rita shouted, “You’re not my mom!” The employees called the cops. They had
to call Rita’s father to clear things up.
When Rita was eight, she came down with the chicken pox, and
she had to miss a lot of school. Rita called her friends but everyone was busy
during the week. Wendy had found Rita’s mom’s old cookbook, so she made some
chicken soup. The broth was made from scratch, with chicken bones, veggies,
boiled for four hours.
Rita tasted it and cried. Wendy asked her if she was sad,
and Rita told her she was sad and happy. Sad her mom wasn’t around, but happy
that she could have her soup again. She asked Wendy what her “real” mom was
like. And Wendy was good friends with Rita’s mom, so Wendy had quite a few
adventures to share. They stayed up all night. Wendy ended up catching a cold.
When Rita finally got better, she told her friends about her fun mom who kept
her company.
“From that day on, Rita always called me Mom,” Wendy said.
“Because you are,” Rita said. “Hey mom, I have to go, but
I’ll be back later tonight?’
“Promise?” Wendy asked.
“I promise,” Rita said. She kissed her mother on the
forehead.
With only the two of us in the room, Wendy tells me, “I feel
so bad for that poor boy next door. I can hear him calling out for his father
at night. But not once have I seen anyone but his mother come around,” Wendy
says.
“I’ll check in on him later,” I say.
“Thank you darling. How are you holding up?” Wendy asks.
“I’m hanging in there,” I say.
“You need to eat more. You look too skinny. I wish I could
cook for you.”
“Yes, Mrs. Henderson.”
“Call me Wendy, please.”
“Yes, Wendy, I will try and eat more,” I say.
“That’s better,” she says.
Wendy is a Methodist. She doesn’t drink or gamble. She won’t
touch playing cards. She never smoked or did any drugs. She always had her
music. Wendy tells me stories about how she played the organ at church. The
organ was located on the 2nd floor and she could look down on the
congregation from a tiny window used for ventilation. Summers, it would get so
hot that she would play with her jacket off and blouse buttons undone. I always
poke fun because who else would take her shirt off at church but Wendy.
She asks, “What they do with dead arms?”
“What do you mean?” I reply.
She says her arm is cold. She can’t move her fingers at all.
Last week, Rita wheeled Wendy down to the lunch room. She tried to play the piano
but her fingers wouldn’t listen to her. Her right hand was clenched in a claw.
Today, no feeling except for the freeze she could not warm.
I feel her arm and feel nothing but sharp bone. Where my
triceps muscle was, she had skin. The cancer had metastasized all over her body
and atrophied her arm muscles.
She pulls out an easy tunes song book. I see her shaking
hand trace the notes. She plays an air piano. Looks at each note and misses the
invisible piano key. Wendy puts the book back and says that she wants to rest
but she can’t find a comfortable position. She hasn’t left her bed since she
found out she can’t play piano anymore. Now she’s developing bed sores. I tell
her that she needs to keep moving.
“Don’t worry, I won’t give up,” Wendy says.
I walk out and run into a janitor. I ask him to bring an
extra blanket for room 306.
4:00 PM
Wendy is sitting up in bed. She motions me over and puts her
finger to her lips. “It’s not a good time to talk right now,” she says. “A man
I’ve never seen before just walked into the room next door. It doesn’t look like
it’s going to end well.”
“What makes you think that?” I ask.
“You’ll see,” Wendy says.
“Get the fuck out!” I hear the woman next door yelling.
“Please Olivia, I haven’t talked to our son in months,” a
man says.
“And whose fault is that?”
“It’s mine. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”
“It’s a little too late for that,” she says.
“Don’t say that,” he says. “Please don’t say that. Olivia,
I’m sorry.”
“Why are you here?” she responds.
“I just wanted to see him and see if he’s ok”
“Well, he’s not. He really isn’t.” Her voice trails off.
“I brought you some coffee. You look like you could use
some,” he says.
“Thanks.”
“How are you holding up?” he asks.
“I’m fine,” she says.
“Can I sit down?” he asks. I hear a chair move.
“No, I’d rather you not.”
“I know I fucked up, but please let’s not make it about us.
It’s our son we’re talking about. That’s why I’m here.”
“Now what? You show up for the first time in months and you
expect me to welcome you?”
“No, I… I didn’t know what to expect.”
“It’s been hard. It’s been really hard.”
“I’m sorry,” he says.
“Look, I can’t do this right now Matt. Let Timmy rest. He
hasn’t been sleeping well,” she says.”
“Because of the chemo?”
“He can’t keep anything down. He has to get up in the middle
of the night all the time.”
“Is there anything the doctors can do to help?”
“It’s chemo, Matt. It’s not exactly the best thing for your
body.”
“But can’t the doctors give him something to help with the
nausea?” he asks.
“He’s been taking something called Emend, but it hasn’t
really been helping,” she says.
“I can talk to the doctors to see if we can’t switch his
prescription.”
“Please don’t.”
“You look tired. I can help. It’s not a problem.”
“No.”
“I’m his father, and I should be part of his medical
decisions.”
“Matt, I don’t have the energy for this right now. I don’t
have it in me anymore.”
“I should leave,” he says.
“You should,” she says. “We really needed you Matt, and you
weren’t there. And now you’re here, when there’s nothing we can do. There’s
nothing.” She sniffs, holding back tears.
“Olivia, I missed you,” he says. “Every night I went to
sleep thinking about you.”
“Me too.”
“Do you remember when you took me to the hospital on our
first date?” he asks.
“Of course I do.”
“Man that car came out of nowhere,” he says. “I’m still hazy
on the details.”
“I thought you were an idiot. A brave idiot, but still an
idiot.”
“Hey, I wasn’t about to let my date get run down by a car.”
“Like I said, brave idiot.”
“I thought you looked like an angel. But that was probably
the concussion talking.”
“Probably.”
“You should drink some of the coffee I got you. It’s getting
cold.”
“Yeah.” She takes deep, labored gulps. I hear a chair
scrunch as the man sits.
I think about Timmy’s file. It indicates his sedation comes from
the Xanax he has to take for his anxiety. It has a supplementary narcotic
effect to the morphine. We think he’s in so much pain he can’t process it any
more. He had hallucinations during his last round of chemotherapy. He saw his
grandmother. Olivia told us that the grandma passed away last year. We called
in the psychiatrist. We didn’t know what it meant.
“What’s the doctor’s prognosis?” he asks.
“Not good. He only has a few months left. He wants to see
his friends at church for the Christmas service. He’s sad he can’t join in this
year. They said he could come anyways, but I don’t think he’s ever going to
leave this place.”
“I got him a bunch of new comics for an early Christmas
present. I figured he’d be bored having to be here all day,” Matt says.
“That was nice of you.”
“I hope I got all of his favorites. I think I got them all.”
“I’m glad you didn’t wait until his birthday to come. He was
asking for some comics for Christmas. He knows his birthday in April is too far
away. Look at him. He looks so peaceful,” she says.
“He really does,” he says. The room is quiet, except for
regular beeps of the electrocardiogram. “I know it’s not under the best
circumstances, but it’s good to see you, Olivia.”
“I wish I could say the same,” Olivia says. The boy stirs in
bed.
“Timmy, are you awake?” Matt says.
“Dad, why are you here?” Timmy says, his voice frail and
dry.
“You’re awake! It’s so good to see you son,” Matt says.
“Mom, why is Dad here?” Timmy asks Olivia.
“He’s here to see you,” Olivia says.
“And I brought something for you, don’t you want to find
out?” Matt says. He places the comics on the bed.
“Please dad, leave,” Timmy says.
“What?”
“Dad, I don’t want to see you.”
“But…”
“Dad, get out.”
“But son…”
“I said get out!” I see a comic book fly out of the room.
“I’m sorry son.”
“I hate you. I never want to see you again.” Matt doesn’t
respond. He exits the room with dragging footsteps. It’s always disquieting to
see a grown man weep.
The beats from the electrocardiogram accelerate at a
worrying pace. Timmy’s breaths become short and labored.
“I’m sorry, but I need to go,” I say.”
“Do what you have to, son,” Wendy says.
The chief resident’s distinct pace clears through the closed
curtains. I follow eager to learn from him.
“Dr. Han, please help!” Dr. Han has had Timmy as a patient
for a long time.
“Timmy, nod if you can hear me. Everything is going to be
ok. Deep breaths now.”
6:00 PM
It’s time for Wendy’s chemotherapy session. She’ll be on the fourth floor. I’ll go keep
her company.
“I’m going to pray for them,” she tells me. Wendy has a
prayer notebook. She spoke of God as if He was an old friend who she had become
reacquainted with. She says she fell away from God after her husband died. How
lost she felt. But she tells me had to find Jesus when she got sick. And Jesus
helped her find Rita again.
Wendy has stage four pancreatic cancer. Only a 4% chance to
live. People wonder where doctors get these statistics from. We don’t pull them
out of a hat. They’re based on exhaustive medical studies averaging mortality
rates among a wide population. However, the average person is a late twenties,
early thirties male without other exacerbating medical conditions. And that
young John Doe only has a four percent chance to survive stage four pancreatic
cancer. What am I supposed to say to sixty-five year old woman who’s has a bad
heart?
Wendy’s daughter asked me why we couldn’t operate. I could
explain that the pancreas is a central organ connected to pretty much
everything in some way. I could talk about the different necessary endocrine
systems, its physical location, or its multifunctional purposes. I choose to
defer.
“Sorry, Dr. Diaz can probably give you a better answer than
I can. I’m only a medical student Let me page her,” I say.
Dr. Diaz arrives five minutes later with a psychiatrist. We
take Rita to a different, more private room. It’s never really quiet in a
hospital. Different machines make a cacophony of noises, a disjointed chorus
calling out which patients are alive. Occasionally, a flat note pierces the
buzz. A voice calls out the time of death, and the flat line ceases.
The psychiatrist held Rita’s hand. She says we know Wendy is
going to die tomorrow. Not eventually. Tomorrow. They try to calm her down and
say the psychiatrist was just trying to be nice. She says there has to be
something bad you aren’t telling me.
“We never tell anyone they will die tomorrow. because really
everybody is different and while you can estimate hours or days of such, we
sometimes get surprised,” says Dr. Diaz.
“This is the first time in my life that I didn’t want a
surprise,” Rita says.
Dr. Diaz and the daughter walk out of the room. “Can I get
you something to drink Rita?” Dr. Diaz asks. She guides Rita to chair, her hand
in the small of Rita’s back.
“A bottle of whiskey would be nice,” Rita says.
“Sorry, I can’t help you there. But let me get you a cup of
water.”
“That would be great,” Rita says. “I need to sit for a
little bit. It’s too much to handle right now.”
“Paging Dr. Diaz,” the loudspeaker says.
“Excuse me, but I have to go,” Dr. Diaz says.
“I understand,” Rita says. Dr. Diaz briskly takes her leave.
Rita finishes her cup of water and places it on the couch.
Rummaging through her purse, she takes a small chip out and puts it in the cup.
Rita says good-bye to Wendy, but she never meets her mother’s gaze. Wendy calls
out, but Rita is gone.
Wendy calls me back in her room.
She asks, “What are doing for Christmas?” Her eyes are red.
I tell her that I’m going home to see my family in D.C.
“That’s a shame. I would have like for you to join me and
Rita for dinner. Let me give you my number in case you change your mind,” she
scribbles a number on a coaster next to her bed. It’s a different one than the
one in her file.
In the cup, Rita had placed her five year Alcohol Anonymous
chip.
7:00 PM
Last patient on my agenda before my sign-outs and debriefing
session. I step into the bathroom to text Kerry. Shouldn’t have my phone out in
public. Inbox is empty. Kerry is in surgery all day.
“Could you send me something to cheer me up? It’s been a
day.” I press send.
Timmy is the last patient on my agenda before I do my final
sign-outs and head home for the night. I’m shadowing his two RN’s, Lisa and
Jen. Since the events in the afternoon with his family, we’ve been closely
monitoring his vitals. He’s resting now. His mother hasn’t said anything for a
long time.
“Timmy are you ok?” Lisa says. “Timmy?” She gives him a
gentle shake. “I can’t get a pulse. Checking respiration. He’s not breathing.”
“Call in the code,” Jen says to me. “Can we get some help in
here!” Jen yells out the door.
“Code Blue, Room 404, Code Blue, Room 404,” I relay to the
desk. Another nurse rushes into the room. I don’t know her name. She escorts
the mother to the side of the room and explains the coming procedure. Olivia
hears the nurse but her eyes look unfocused and watery.
Jen lowers the bed. “Engaging in CPR,” she says. She counts
off the beats to the rhythm of “Staying Alive,” or more morbidly, “Another One
Bites the Dust.”
“Good job with compressions. Make sure you do the whole
cycle,” Lisa says. On TV, Code Blue looks like a chaotic storm of haphazard
defibrillator shocks and frantic shouts. But in real life, panic is the
opposite state of mind you want to be.
The two nurses see the situation. One says, “I’ll go get the crash cart.” The
other nurse takes off his nasal cannula, which delivers oxygen.
Dr. Han and Dr. Diaz arrive. “I’m Dr. Han and I’m going to
be running the code,” Dr. Han says, “What’s the situation?”
“He just went into V-Tech,” Lisa says.
“I’ll do the documentation,” Dr. Diaz says. She grabs the
Code Blue paperwork from the cart. Everyone communicates their roles clearly.
It’s still a whirlwind of activity. The room is always crammed full of different
personnel so everyone has to be on the same page.
“Stop the CPR so we can roll him over,” Dr. Han says. “Bring
out the respirator.”
“I’ll take care of respiration,” Jen says.
The pharmacist enters. “What IV’s do you have running?” he
asks.
Lisa says, “Normal Saline and 20 mg’s of Nitroglycerin.”
Dr. Han says, “Run his fluids wide open, turn off the nitro
drip. Continue chest compressions for another two minutes. Dr. Diaz, you’re
keeping track of time.”
“Switch out with me,” Lisa says. CPR commences. A lull in
the room sets in. While Lisa’s counts under her breath, the squeaks of the bed
springs stand out . I hear a rib crack. A common occurrence during CPR. Beads
of sweat accumulate on her face. Jen switches in and out to respirate the
patient. Everyone in the room watches for any sign of response.
“Two minutes CPR completed,” Dr. Diaz says. During a Code
Blue, everything has to be carefully documented.
“Let’s do a pulse and rhythm check,” Dr. Han says. Lisa
takes a step back and takes deep belly breaths.
“No pulse. I have flat line on the monitor,” Jen says.
“Deliver 1 mg of epinephrine and resume CPR, for two
minutes. Keep on that respirator,” Dr. Han says.
The new nurse says, “I’ll switch in.” She counts off.
“1,2,3,4,5,6,7…” Jen respirates.
“1 mg of epinephrine ready to be delivered,” the pharmacist
says. Lisa tells him he has a central line. Lisa sets up the IV.
“1 milli epinephrine delivered,” Lisa says.
“Is he still bagging ok?” Dr. Han asks.
“It’s becoming more difficult,” Jen says.
“Let’s set up for intubation,” Dr. Han says. “Get out the
Code Blue panel from the crash cart,”
“1,2,3,4,5,6,7…” Another rib cracks.
“Good Job,” Lisa says. She pats the other nurse on the
shoulder. “We’ll get a chest x-ray when
this is all done.”
“Two minutes CPR completed,” Dr. Diaz says.
“I’m going to go ahead and intubate,” Dr. Han says. He
completes the procedure with practiced efficiency. “Check for pulse and
rhythm,” he says after the patient’s breath stabilizes. “See if there’s color
change. He looks around the room. “Lisa, could you listen for blood breath
sounds?”
“We have V-Tech on the monitor and no pulse,” Jen says.
“Amiodorone 300 mg, IV,” Dr. Han says.
“Amiodorone 300 mg, ready,” The pharmacist says.
“Amiodorone is in,” Lisa says.
“Two min CPR again.” The new nurse continues on.
“How are you doing?” Lisa asks the nurse. She doesn’t
respond. Lisa says, “Change out.” She takes over the CPR procedure.
“Two minutes CPR completed,” Dr. Diaz says.
“Pulse and Rhythm check,” Dr. Han says. His tone remains
calm and collected. Timmy still has no response.
“Blood sugar 75 and dropping,” Lisa says.
“Deliver 1 mg of epinephrine,” Dr. Han says. “Resume CPR,
two minutes. Call in the EEG and
“Lets brainstorm. Mrs. Tanner, could you describe the lead
up to this?” Dr. Han says.
“I don’t know what happened. We were talking, I was just
trying to get him to calm down, but he was so angry, so angry. But then he
started breathing weird and he wouldn’t say anything, and his heart monitor
went crazy and then it just stopped. Please, I don’t know what I’m going to do
if he dies.”
“We’re not at that point yet Mrs. Tanner,” Dr. Han says.
“I shouldn’t have let him stay. This is all my fault,”
Olivia says to herself. Another nurse comes in.
“Call in the Chaplain on an outside phone,” Dr. Diaz tells
the arriving nurse.
“Increase ventilatory rate,” Dr. Han says.
“Increasing respiratory rate,” Jen says. They complete
another cycle of CPR. No response. Timmy’s lips take on a blue hue. They do
another pulse and rhythm check. No response.
Cease CPR. I’m calling it. Time of death. 7:15 PM. October
16, 2015,” Doctor Han walks out the door without another word. Dr. Diaz guides
Olivia to the Chaplain. Olivia stopped crying. She collapses into a chair and
begins to hyperventilate. Dr. Diaz attends to her.
“Debrief at nurses station in five minutes,” Lisa says.
“Please sign the code blue documentation before you leave.” Lisa lifts the head
of the bed up a little. It’s to drain the blood down so they don't look as blue
and bloated and to make Timmy presentable for his family.
I excuse myself so I do not lose composure in front of
Timmy’s mother. I see Dr. Han go into the staff room.
I open the door. Dr. Han is crumpled against the couch. His
body shakes as he gasps for air. I reach out my hand to console him, hesitate,
and close the door behind me.
8:00 PM
I’m changed back into my street clothes. Dr. Han has cleaned
himself up since I last saw him. He’s waiting by the exit.
“I will see you tomorrow,” Dr. Han says. “Good work today.”
“Thank you Dr. Han.” All the tension in my body dissipates.
“Keep it up,” he says.
“I’ll try,” I say.
“Code Blue, Room 306,” the loudspeaker says. My heart
shutters. I turn to race back in the hospital. Dr. Han holds me back.
“Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it. You go home and get some
sleep. You’ll need it for tomorrow.”
“Ok, Dr. Han, have a good night.”
“Rest well,” Dr. Han says.
I walk out the automatic doors and do not look back. The
winter air bites my face.
8:30 PM
The parking spot across the street from my apartment is
available for once. The front door always gives me trouble. I jiggle my keys
and work the lock open.
“Hello empty apartment,” I say, kicking off my shoes and
letting my white coat fall to the ground. Before I do anything else, I always
have to take a shower. Hallway still steamy, I open the fridge and its empty. My girlfriend and I haven’t gone grocery
shopping in weeks.
I pull out my phone to order some food. One new message.
It’s a picture of Kerry smiling. She’s wearing my sweatshirt. It’s the first
message she sent me when we started dating. I asked her to cheer me up during
midterms week and she sent me this picture.
I lie down on her side of the bed and rest on her pillow. It
smells like her shampoo. I set my alarm for four hours later and wonder to
myself if she still had my sweater. My bedroom is so cold.