Page 15 of A Helpin g Hand for the Village Nurse

Ottilie wondered how to answer that, and then decided there wasn’t a way. Instead, she smiled again before following Flo, who was already grumbling her way to the reception desk to be shown into the GP’s consulting room.

‘What can I do for you?’ Dr Cheadle asked as Flo and Ottilie were shown in.

‘I didn’t want to come,’ Flo said, taking a seat at the other side of the GP’s desk anyway.

‘I persuaded her to come,’ Ottilie said. ‘And I’m very sorry for asking you to see us at such short notice?—’

‘Not a problem…’ Dr Cheadle waved away the apology. ‘If my nurse thinks I ought to take a look at someone, then that’s good enough for me. Pleased to meet you in person, Ottilie, by the way…’ She gave a wry smile. ‘Nice to see you getting straight down to work even though your first shift isn’t until next week.’

‘I hope you don’t think I’m one of those nurses who can’t do a thing unless you tell me what to do first. And I don’t make a habit of this, just so you know. But I was concerned about Flo’s funny turn. She says she’s had something like it before. I thought hypotension but…well, I’ll let you examine her; you know much more than I do.’

‘I love the phrase funny turn,’ Dr Cheadle said, going round the desk with her stethoscope at the ready. ‘It’s very much all-encompassing, isn’t it? Anything that’s not quite right, it’s a funny turn. Although it sounds vague, you know straight away that it means something quite significant; you just have to get to the bottom of what that is.’

She warmed the end of her stethoscope and nodded at Flo. ‘Right, let’s have a listen.’

Flo looked far from happy but sat quietly as Dr Cheadle listened to her heart. She looked equally put out when her blood pressure was measured and her pulse taken.

‘Any nausea?’

Flo shook her head. ‘A bit dizzy, I suppose.’

‘A lot dizzy from where I was standing,’ Ottilie put in. ‘Pale too. And clammy.’

‘Hmmm.’ Dr Cheadle was thoughtful for a moment. Then she sat down at her computer and began to type. ‘Blood pressure’s not what I’d like it to be. Heart sounds a bit sticky too. I think I’ll send you for some scans.’

‘At the hospital?’ Flo asked, looking as if someone had offered to punch her in the face.

‘Yes,’ Dr Cheadle said.

‘But that means I have to get there! It’s all the way out at Kendal!’

‘Generally it is quite useful for the subject of a scan to be there, yes.’

Flo folded her arms stubbornly. ‘I can’t get to the hospital.’

‘Come, Florence,’ Dr Cheadle said. ‘If I didn’t know better, I’d say you were being deliberately stubborn because you don’t want to go.’

‘Isn’t there anyone who could take you?’ Ottilie asked.

‘Plenty of people,’ Dr Cheadle said in a sceptical tone.

‘Everyone’s busy,’ Flo replied.

‘I’m not,’ Ottilie said brightly. ‘If it means you go, then I’ll take you.’

‘You don’t even know me!’

‘What, so I can’t drive someone I don’t know to a place? However do taxi drivers manage? And bus drivers must have a nervous breakdown every time they look at the passengers queuing at a stop.’

Ottilie shot Florence a challenging look. She could give as good as she got, and Flo was going to find that out.

‘I’ve put the request in,’ Dr Cheadle said. ‘You’ll get an appointment in the post in the next few days, Florence. I’m sure you’ll find a way to get there.’

Looking like a sulky teenager, Flo nodded nonetheless. Ottilie didn’t care how much she complained as long as she went for the tests, and she’d say so too. She’d start as she meant to go on – she was the local nurse, which meant she was everyone’s nurse, including Florence, and she took that responsibility seriously. If that meant annoying one or two people to keep them safe, then she’d deal with the fallout.

She turned to Dr Cheadle. ‘If you have time, I’d love to run some ideas by you. I know it’s early days and I haven’t even started work yet, but?—’

‘I was going to suggest a working supper,’ Dr Cheadle said. ‘I was meaning to contact you before next week anyway, so it’s good that you’ve come to see me. When are you free? I expect you haven’t had much time to unpack and shop and such, so how about a spot of something to eat at my house? You’re not vegan, are you?’

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