Page 10 of One Sultry Summer

“Can you do me a favor? Lie down while I ask my nurse to hook you up to an ECG machine.”

“What’s an ECG machine?”

“It’s an electrocardiogram, which measures the electrical activity of the heart.It can help us monitor your status.” I help him lie down on the table, and smile at him to make him feel relaxed. I exit the room and call over nurse McDermott.

“I need you to call an ambulance, Mr. Johnson is having signs of a heart attack.”

“But that’s a thirty-five-minute drive to the nearest hospital.”

“I know that, but us standing here discussing semantics is not going to get him there any faster.”

“You’re right, Doctor.”

“Nurse Tanner. I need you to go into room eight and get an ECG reading, then give him a dose of nitroglycerin until the ambulance arrives.”

“Yes, Doctor.” With a determined gleam in her eye, she grabs the cart and glides forward with graceful speed.

I picked up the phone and called Mrs. Johnson. Since she didn’t come to the office with her husband, I knew she would want to be with himat a time like this.

“Mrs. Johnson, this is Dr. Woods.”

“Is Clay alright?” Her sweet and normally soothing voice is strained and filled with concern.

“I want to send him to the hospital. Can you come here as soon as possible? If you don’t have a ride I can get you.”

“That damn fool, I knew something was wrong.”

“Ma’am. Do you have a ride?”

“Yes, actually. Your momma was dropping off my sewing machine and she hasn’t left yet. She can take me.”

“I’ll see you soon.”

“Thank you, doc.”

“You’re welcome.” I place the handset back on the phone base and watch briefly at the flashing lights showing calls on hold. Being a small town, you eventually meet everyone, at least once in your lifetime. As for Mrs.Johnson, she was my high school math teacher and one of my mom’s best friends.

I think about my patient Clay, a 57-year-old local farmer, passionate about preserving our small-town way of life. He’s wary of outsiders and their intentions but values honesty and hard work. Unfortunately, he’ll allow his stubbornness and lack of self-care to be his downfall.

“Dr. Woods, the ambulance is on its way.”

I nodded to confirm Nurse McDermott’s statement and found myself furious at the comment about the distance from the hospital; there’s nothing I can do to remedy the situation. All I can do is give our patients the care they need until they can be transferred to the nearest hospital. Being reminded of how long it’ll take for the ambulance to arrive only stresses me out for the well-being of my patients.

I return to room eight where Nurse Tanner stays by Clay’s side. A crash cart with adefibrillator stands ready if necessary. “Mr. Johnson.” His eyes open slowly.

“Hey, Doc.”

“Mrs. Johnson will be here shortly.” Clay visibly looks relieved. “How are you feeling right now?”

“The pain has subsided.”

“That’s good, however, I still want you to go to the hospital and if anything, I want them to do a full workup.” Nurse Tanner tears off a section of ECG recording paper and hands it to me.

“No worries, I’ll follow your judgment on what’s best.” I patted him on the forearm. “I’m going to see my last patient for the day, but I will be back to check on you.“ He nodded and closed his eyes. I motioned to Nurse Tanner to stay with him so he’s not alone.

The next patient is a 35-year-old female with ear pain and dizziness. I pick up a pneumatic otoscope and peek into her ear to look for signs of infection. Upon examining her left ear, I couldsee her eardrum and observe the fluid behind it. Her right ear looks normal, and the rest of her exam shows no other concerns.

I took my pad and pen from my pocket to write her a prescription for Amoxicillin. It’s a commonly known antibiotic as the first choice for kids and adults to treat an ear infection. Inner ear infections are usually caused by a virus.

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