Survival Guide to Dating Your Boss. Fiona McArthur
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midwife in charge of the case has called it. We’re all working for the mother and baby, but just a moment,’ she said sweetly, ‘I’ll put you onto the midwifery manager.’
Tilly held the phone with the tips of her fingers as if she’d just discovered it was covered in horse manure. No wonder everyone detested this guy. She carried it at the end of a straight arm and handed it to Gina. ‘I think this is for you.’
To Tilly’s surprise Gina smiled wryly as if she’d seen this coming. Gina shooed her away to other preparations and Tilly gave no apologies for possibly upsetting the consultant. It was her job to help protect the women in her area. Thank goodness Gina knew that.
Marcus put the phone down after the brief discussion with Gina. He measured his steps to the door because what he really wanted to do was swoop down to birthing and shake his nemesis.
He couldn’t believe the gnome thrower from next door was a midwife in his ward but he had no difficulty believing she’d champion home birth.
Home birth. The taste of it was metallic in his mouth, his least favourite association with his job, but even he could see that was personal and he shouldn’t let it colour his judgement.
But he’d sort that after he assessed the new admission. ‘Page my resident and registrar to meet me immediately on labour ward, please, Sheryl.’ He spoke as he strode out the door and his new secretary nodded at his back. She was used to obstetricians in a hurry.
He briefly considered the shock he’d received when Matilda had been on the end of the phone. He tried not to think about the fact she would have told them all about the incident at his aunt’s house. He was above out-of-school gossip and could ignore that the staff would snicker at the idea of him being hit by a gnome. And that he’d picked her up from the floor that morning.
Tough. He had more important things to think about.
The midwife in charge, thank goodness, was a sensible woman, but he wouldn’t tolerate lack of respect from anyone, no matter how many windows she’d fixed for his aunt.
Marcus didn’t wait for the lift and loped down the stairs two at a time, each step more forcible than the last, until he realised what he was doing. Calm. Control.
Tilly didn’t give Dr Bennett another thought. She used a different phone to get a gurney over for her patient to transfer immediately to Theatre as soon as she had ‘his’ permission.
The ambulance arrived with her patient a minute later and Tilly directed them into the empty birthing room where she had the set-up for a catheter and IV ready to go.
Mary looked calm as usual but her hand shook slightly as she handed over her patient. ‘This is Josie. We spoke about having a Caesarean on the way in, and that we’ll have to put in a drip and catheter before surgery.’ Mary’s lilt was more pronounced with worry.
‘Hi, Josie. I’m Tilly. One of the midwives here.’ Tilly handed Mary the pre-jellied sensor from the electronic foetal monitor so they could all hear how Josie’s baby’s heart rate was.
The monitor picked up the clop-clop of the baby, a little faster than average rate but as soon as Josie started to get a contraction it slowed quite dramatically and Tilly looked at Mary. ‘I’ll just pop the drip in while we wait for the obstetrician. Dr Bennett is our new consultant and he’ll be taking over Josie’s care while she’s here.’
Tilly smiled sympathetically at the worried woman and her husband, and they all listened as Josie sighed heavily at the end of the contraction. When it was completely gone and her baby’s heart rate had slowed even more they all waited with held breath until the rate slowly picked up and finally returned to the rapid rate of a compensating baby.
Okay, baby was coping and doing a good job of conserving energy, but not for long.
Tilly went on. ‘It’s rotten luck this has happened to you, but we’ll try and keep you up to date as we go, and Mary and your husband can stay with you whatever happens.’
The door opened and a group of three doctors swarmed in like big white moths. Tilly didn’t think it was fanciful to think they seemed to shrink the room.
The tallest moth was more like an avenging angel. An archangel she’d met before. ‘I’m Dr Bennett. Fill me in, please.’
Mary stepped forward. ‘I’m Josie’s midwife.’ That was all Tilly heard for the first frozen second or two because she was staring at the disaster that stood in front of her.
She felt like slapping her forehead. Dr Bennett. Mrs Bennett. Gnome man. This was a pearler. Wait till she told the girls at home. He didn’t even look at her but somehow she knew he knew she was there.
Mary’s voice drifted back in and Tilly listened distractedly as she went back to hanging the IV flask.
‘Josie was doing beautifully, seven centimetres dilated, when we had a sudden dive of the fetal hearts with a good recovery the first time and then a repeat with a slower response.’
The chief white moth didn’t say anything and Mary hurried on. ‘Then the foetal tachycardia you can see on this graph. I’m not sure why, the response isn’t dependent on position, but in case it was a true knot or something sinister we opted to come in. Each contraction has seen a slower recovery of the deceleration in heartbeat.’
‘Of course.’ His voice gave nothing away. ‘What time did you notice the first deceleration?’
Mary glanced at her watch nervously. ‘Maybe twenty minutes ago.’
He didn’t say anything but inexcusable delay was the message everyone in the room heard. He looked away from Mary and his face softened into a reassuring smile as he leaned down and met Josie’s eyes.
‘You did the right thing, coming in.’ He nodded and rested his hand on Josie’s as she clutched the sheet. ‘We’ll have your baby out very quickly. Hang in there.’ He glanced around at the rest of the people in the room. Tilly included. ‘I want Josie on the table in ten minutes.’
Tilly felt the tiny slip of her leash and gave up on her silence. Didn’t he have any idea how attuned Mary was to her women? She struggled, but thankfully her voice came out mildly, for her, as she gave in to defence. She waved the catheter in her hand. ‘Thanks to Mary’s pre-warning, the gurney’s here and Josie’s almost ready now, Doctor.’
His glance barely acknowledged her existence as he swept out.
‘Holey dooley, thanks for the bat.’ Mary caught Tilly’s eyes and rolled them as she regathered her composure. ‘Now I know what court feels like.’
‘You do an amazing job, and have better statistics than a dozen hospitals, Mary. I don’t mind telling people. He’s new and doesn’t understand but my manager says he’s one of the best,’ she said to Josie with a grin, ‘and we’ll have you there in under ten, Josie, so bear with us.’
Josie was in Theatre in eight minutes, once she was there a very quick spinal injection that numbed her took five, and her son was born ten minutes later.
Marcus peered over the green drape that separated Josie’s upper chest from the operation site. ‘A true knot in the cord, slowly pulling tighter as he descended the birth canal.’
At least he had the grace to nod at Mary, Tilly thought. ‘You were right. Well done.’ Then he looked back at Josie. ‘A bit too dangerous for baby for a normal birth this time but he looks great now. He’ll be with you in a sec.’
At the other end, waiting to take the baby, Tilly had to admit his technique was amazing. Swift, yet sure, and by far the most gentle Caesarean she’d seen since she’d started her training.
Sometimes the tugging at the end of the operation, that time as baby’s head and body were removed after opening the uterus, could look almost brutal, but this baby had been scooped seamlessly and with a birth almost as serene as vaginal birth in water.
Tilly