This is no Fraiser

Chapter 11

I pushed the button for the eighteenth floor. The lady next to me pushed the same floor again as if my pushing it wasn’t sufficient. I hate that. I jiggled my car keys in my pocket anxiously as I thought about them.  Right now I needed them bad- I needed them more then ever. I needed them so desperately but right here wasn’t the time. Being surrounded by workers and what I guessed were a couple patients I could hardly do it- what would they think? I wasn’t really sure but I didn’t care either. I just needed to get to my office and get them. “Why didn’t I do this in my car,” I thought in anxiety. 2

Suddenly the elevator doors opened and I took off pushing one person out of my way as politely as one could do so. I didn’t really care. Moving swiftly I came to the main counter and nearly passed it when a nurse yelled out my name.3

“Dr. Barbie.” She hollered and although I didn’t see it I knew her whole 500 pound overweight body was shaking from the vibration of my name. She shook like that when she spoke. It was almost like watching someone shake a bowl of jelly. I tried to ignore her and kept walking.4

“Dr. Barbie.” It was clear I could hear her so I turned around and smiled politely. 5

“Yes, Marsha,” I asked.6

“You are on rounds today and they need you across the street in Floor one of the Myers building. A patient is acting up. Code 3.”7

“Have another doctor handle it Marsha,” I said as I let a litter irritation slip into my voice. I was just desperate to get them.8

“You’re the doctor on call today. Now, I took the liberty of calling the other doctors but all the other doctors are out. Only other one here is Dr. Marks and he’s see’n patients.” Marsha hollered down the hall at me.9

I fidgeted a bit as I momentarily became noticeably angry. “Fine I said,” resuming my stature. “I’ll handle it. Let me just straighten something out in my office and I’ll be right over.” As I turned my back once more to hurry down the hall I could hear the echo as Marsha called out, “Now you do what you need to but I just wanted to let you know they said it was very urgent.” I didn’t respond. For some reason she liked to proclaim her opinion on things when it wasn’t really needed and I hated it.10

“Okay! I’ll be phonen’ them then’!” She hollered again. I never cared for black people- lousy insurance and lots of problems. They are always doing drugs.11

I entered my office and closing the door quickly, I turned the lock. I set my briefcase down as I opened it and smiled. Pulling out several pill bottles I emptied several of the contents into my hand and then swallowed them with bottled water from my desk. That should help me through the next few hours I told myself reassuringly. Then closing my briefcase I placed it beside my desk and left the office once more. Code 3 in the Myers building- great- I thought to myself. Just great. I stopped suddenly and entered the bathroom to straighten my full head of hair. Yes, it was gray, but nonetheless slick and stylish for a man in his late 30’s. my eyebrows were thin, my nose just right and thanks to my plastic surgeon- very few wrinkles. I straightened my hair a little more and sighing, I was off to help with the code 3.12

~ ~ ~13

“Dr. Barbie,” Nurse Heathers said as I unlocked the first floor door and opened it. We kept all the doors locked. It kept patients from running away which to many people’s disbelief happens more than I cared for.14

“Tommy is out of order.” Heather continued15

“What is happening,” I asked as she handed me his chart and opening it I began to scan. Tommy Willcock was his name. It reported that the nighttime nursing staff had found he hadn’t slept for past two days. Dr. Detrinis has upped his Depacote and put him on .5 milligrams of Valium at night time. A little high of a dosage for a kid and reading further it was for what I suspected- getting him to sleep. Nevertheless, it hadn’t been working. As I gazed at his list of meds Nurse Heather’s voice came into my head.16

“He got in a fight with another kid on the unit. They were fighting over a chair and when he was asked to leave the room by the technicians he became enraged. He started to throw chairs, yell, scream. We had to call a code so we could take control of him. He is just being difficult,” she said knowingly as I shut the chart and looked up at her. There were three techinacs in the room who were following are every word. It was almost as if some sick form of entertainment to them. 17

“Can I talk to him?” I asked. I wasn’t really asking. The phone was ringing and had been for the past ten seconds and when I looked at it with annoyance Rob or Robert… not really sure what his name was but he picked up the phone to my reliefe. My medicine hadn’t quite kicked in.18

“Of course. He isn’t being really cooperate though. Um, he also was harming himself by throwing himself into the walls so we had to put him in the  brace to restrain his movement.” The nurse said as she was handed the phone.19

“Okay let me see him, um Rob- that is- can you bring me to him.” I cheated by looking at his name tag. 20

Leading me through double doors I entered the control room that had a steel door but it lay open because on a mattress lay the twelve year old Rob strapped down. He was overweight so I had no doubt that had to use at least five or six people to do this.21

“Rob” I said, “How are you. I heard you got tied up with anger and burst into a fight.” My clever joke fell from ears but I enjoyed amusing myself. The medicine was starting to work.22

“You motherfucking bitch.” He hissed.23

“Well have you seen my degrees?” I asked and smiled. “Look I’m going to help you calm down but you have to help me. I want you to calm down. What I want you  to do to help me is write a paragraph about your behavior and why what you did was wrong. Josh or I mean Robert here is a nice gentlemen and he will bring you a penicile and paper. Getting up I turned around to see Nurse Heathers watching over me. She followed me back down the hall to the nurse’s station.24

“I think the lack of sleep is really affecting his mood. He was obviously tiered. He didn’t have the energy but to yell once and I have been around here once when I saw this kid. Normally he is ticking as smoothly as a clock. What I’m doing is changing his medicine. Who has his case again?”25

“Dr. Detrinis,” said the nurse and as soon as I heard his name I knew I couldn’t change his meds. Dr. Detrinis was the head doctor and normally I did what was what I thought in the patients best interest but when it was Dr. Detrinis’s patient I knew to stay away. All doctor’s hate criticism from other doctor’s of their same level. They especially hate it when you steal a patient or change their medication. I wasn’t a popular person, but I also wasn’t stupid.26

“I changed my mind,” I said smoothly. “I am going to leave all of his medicines alone, but I want you to give him a cocktail right now of 25 mg. Of Haldoll and .25 mg well.” I paused a moment to think. “Make that .5 mg of Xanax. I don’t want him falling asleep until tonight- that is if he does sleep.” The nurse nodded her head to my request and using her keys she opened up the medicine room. I, however, took up the charts once again and began to write my observations. I finished quickly. Writing wasn’t really my trade and I knew nobody actually read these things.27

As I began to leave I stopped and said loudly so that she could hear me, “Heather, also make sure to write a note and have Dr. Detrinis aware of this fit.”28

“Yes, Dr. Barbie,” she said.29

“O Dr. Barbie before you leave here is that paragraph you asked him to write.”30

“He is cooperating- that’s great,” I said in a monotone. “I’ll just give it to Dr. Detrinis tomorrow since his chart has already been put up.” I unlocked the door and closing it behind me I crumpled up the paper with one hand and threw it in the trash. I paused at the door to think about throwing it away. Was I a bad doctor? No- I thought-  I wasn’t- I was just being realistic. My thoughts quickly feel to my side as a toon came into my head and I began to whistle. As I exited the building I looked up, “What a beautiful day.”31