One Sure Thing (Mamma Lou Matchmaker Series) (5 page)

"My name is Dr. Adams, and I’ll be your attending physician this morning. What seems to be the problem?"

Hope smiled at her patient, with caring and warmth. Louise nodded pitifully as Hope came closer.

"Good to meet you doctor, my name is Otis Wheeler. I’m a close friend of the family." He offered his hand.

"A pleasure meeting you, Mr. Wheeler," Hope replied.

They shook hands as Hope looked at him oddly. She stared a moment. “I apologize for staring, but you look very familiar. Have we met before?”

Colonel Wheeler nodded and smiled. “You have an excellent memory. I came in a few months ago with a friend of mine, Chester Grant. He came in complaining of stomach pains.”

“Of course, that’s right. Mr. Grant.” She smiled fondly remembering the two older gentlemen. They were an interesting pair that kept the ER staff in stitches with their Abbott and Costello routine. “How is Mr. Grant? I hope he’s feeling better.”

“He’s doing much better. His cancer is in remission at the moment and his doctor is very encouraged by his recent test results.”

Hope smiled brightly. “That’s good news. Please tell him that I asked about him the next time you speak to him.”

“I certainly will,” Colonel Wheeler assured her, “I certainly will.”

Hope nodded then turned her attention to the smiling elderly woman sitting in the exam bed. She picked up the medical chart from the end of the bed and looked it over.

“I see that you have a rash.”

“Yes,” Louise answered calmly.

Hope grabbed a pair of latex gloves and began examining the series of red welts on Louise’s arms and legs. She devoted particular attention to the rash on Louise’s face and neck. “How long have you had these?”

“Not long, a few hours maybe,” she replied. “They itch like the dickens.”

Hope continued the exam, asking several more questions. Unfortunately none of the answers Louise gave added up. She found herself asking more questions only to be completely confounded by the patient’s responses. She pulled the gloves off then leaned against the exam table.

“Have you ever been tested for various allergens- food, dust, pet dander, anything like that?”

“No, never,” she said, fibbing easily.

Hope nodded and made a notation in the file. “And you’ve never had a reaction like this before tonight?”

“No.” Another fib.

Still puzzled, Hope scribbled on the chart. She looked up at Louise again than scribbled some more. “Okay,” she began, “I’m going to give you something to ease the itching and reduce the swelling. It might also make you a little sleepy, so don’t be alarmed.”

Colonel Wheeler moved closer and took Louise’s hand.

“I’m also going to give you a prescription for something just in case the hives return.” Hope noted the concern shadowed across Louise’s face. “There’s no need to worry. I don’t think it will return. These things usually run their course as long as the initial irritant isn’t reintroduced. But, just in case, you’ll be prepared.”

Louise nodded. “Does this mean you’re going to discharge me?”

Hope smiled, “Technically, you haven’t be admitted. But yes, you can go home as soon as I’ve completed the paperwork.”

“Oh, so that’s it? There’s nothing else you need to do?” Colonel Wheeler asked.

“That’s it. Mr. Wheeler, I presume you’ll be driving Mrs. Gates home?”

He nodded.

“Good.” Hope flipped the chart close. “That’s about it Mrs. Gates. You take care of yourself and don’t forget to make an appointment with an allergist and see your personal physician.”

“Thank you doctor,” Louise said somewhat hesitantly.

“You’re quite welcome.” Hope nodded then immediately left to attend to her next patient. She visited four patients in the next half hour. On her way back from seeing her last patient, Maxine stopped her at the nurses’ station. “Number five just came back. She’s experiencing chest pains. You might want to check on her when you get a chance.”

“Chest pains?”

“That’s what she says.” Maxine’s expression lacked the usual don’t-give-a-damn
smirk. Instead, it was replaced by genuine concern.

Hope grimaced. “That’s odd.” The medication she’d prescribed shouldn’t have caused symptoms of chest pains. “Set her up, I’ll be right there.”

Maxine nodded and quickly hurried off.

Hope sat at the nurses’ station for a moment and jotted down notes from her last patient. Then she mulled over the medication she’d prescribed and the possible side effects. She went into the computer files and pulled all the information about the drug.

The side effects were clearly outlined, as she compared the medication with Louise’s chart and the pharmaceutical databank. Diphenhydramine was a standard antihistamine and commonly issued drug used for severe allergic reactions. Hope reread the file quickly, keying in additional information. Based on the dosage administered, Louise should have been sleepy and groggy instead of experiencing heart palpitations and respiratory difficulty.

Nothing seemed to make sense. There was absolutely no reason for Louise Gates to have chest pains. Hope grabbed the chart and went back to exam room number five.

The exam room had magically morphed into a high-tech lab filled with machines and electronic monitors all blinking at the same time. Heart monitors scanned biorhythms as an EKG and EEG spat out narrow strips of paper-recorded data.

Louise lay still in the bed. Her eyes were closed and her breathing was labored. A precautionary oxygen apparatus had been secured and a respirator had been issued. Hope walked over to the nearest machine and read the findings. She scanned the next few machines all coming to the same conclusion. None of this should be happening. By all accounts Louise Gates should be merely groggy from the prescribed medication.

Hope walked over and scanned the heart monitor a second time then leaned down to speak with Louise. She smiled pleasantly so as not to alarm her patient. "Mrs. Gates, I understand you’ve been experiencing chest pains and shortness of breath." Louise nodded pitifully. Hope frowned, then lowered the chart and fixed her direct gaze into Louise Gate’s once sparkling brown eyes. "Tell me more about the pains, are they sharp, stabbing pains or more dull and achy?"

"I’m not sure. I just started to feel pains here and here." Louise pointed to her heart and chest area.

Hope nodded her head in understanding as she pulled a light scope down from the wall. “Are you experiencing any discomfort now? Any pains?" She spoke gently and softly.

Louise shook her head. "No, not at the moment. They come and go."

"I see." Hope shined the bright beam of light into Louise’s left then right eye. "When did you begin experiencing this pain?"

"About ten minutes or so after you left here. It was stronger then."

“How long did the pains last?” She asked as she continued the exam.

“A few seconds. Then they stopped, but they returned stronger.”

Hope nodded and continued. “Have you had these pains before this evening?”

“Yes,” Louise said, sleepily, and told Hope of the previous times she experienced chest pains.

Hope listened attentively to Louise as she recalled the first of many occurrences. Hope frowned, something didn’t add up. Louise’s eyes were as clear and sparkling as they’d been just thirty minutes ago yet she complained of intense chest pains.

Hope removed the stethoscope from her jacket pocket and placed the ends in her ears. “Did you have these pains earlier this evening, when you first noticed the hives and rash?”

“No.”

Hope nodded.

“I mean yes,” Louise said, changing her mind. “I don’t really remember. We had dinner with friends last night. We went back to my son’s townhouse and that’s all I really remember. Everything else suddenly seems foggy.”

“Don’t worry about that. I’d like to listen to your chest. Just lay back and relax.” Using friction to warm the metal disk, she quickly rubbed it on her green hospital scrubs then placed it on Louise’s chest. After giving a series of breathing commands, Hope frowned then grabbed a pair of latex gloved and began the preliminary physical examination.

“I feel so light-headed.”

“The medication is probably beginning to make you a little drowsy. Just relax.” Hope picked up the medical chart. “Were you doing anything strenuous last night?"

“Oh no, we had dinner with friends that’s all.”

“And you said before that you hadn’t eaten anything unusual?”

“No, nothing unusual.” Louise frowned thoughtfully then looked to Otis Wheeler.

He chimed in as if on cue. “We ate at Spotlight NYC.”

Louise continued, “I started feeling a tightness right after dessert, but I thought nothing of it. The food was really good. I presumed that I’d just overeaten. Then, a few hours later we went back to the apartment. It wasn’t until afterwards, when the hives came, that I began to feel the tightness in my chest again. After that, the rash seemed worse.”

“That’s when we came here," Colonel Wheeler added as he stood by Louise’s bedside looking concerned.

Hope put the chart down then tugged the stethoscope from around her neck and plugged them into her ears again. She listened intently as she moved the small circular disc across her patient’s chest and back.

She picked up the chart again and scribbled notes. "Well, Mrs. Gates, your vitals are all fine. I have to admit, you have me slightly puzzled. I’m not sure what’s causing these chest pains.” She smiled reassuringly. “Your tests are all negative. I wish my other patients were in such good health.”

A chuckle from Colonel Wheeler had both women smiling.

“Maybe I have a weak heart?”

“No, I don’t think so.”

“How about arrhythmia, isn’t that when your heart skips a few beats every now and then?”

Hope shook her head. “You have no history of arrhythmia. It’s not a condition that just pops up from time to time. All of your tests were negative.”

“So are you going to keep me here?” Louise asked, sounding too hopeful.

Hope shook her head. “I can’t release you knowing that you’re having chest pains.”

“So you’re keeping me?”

“Yes. You definitely had an allergic reaction to something you ingested. As for your chest pains, I think I’d like to keep you a little longer and have a few more tests run.”

She noted that Louise nodded happily.

“I see your blood pressure is slightly elevated. This might just be because of the circumstances. Nevertheless, I’d also like to get your blood pressure down a bit before releasing you.” Hope flipped a few pages in the chart. “Is this the complete list of medications?”

"Yes."

“Doctor,” Colonel Wheeler stepped forward, handed Hope a sheet of paper then took Louise’s hand. “That’s the list of everything Louise ate yesterday and last night.”

“Great. Thank you.” Hope briefly looked over the list not finding anything unusual. “Mrs. Gates, I’m sure there’s nothing to be overly concerned about but I’d like to clear up a few questions and concerns nonetheless. I’d also like to have a few more tests run and depending on the results, possibly keep you tonight and tomorrow for observation.”

“So, you want me here just twenty-four hours or so?”