Page 22 of Deprivation

I walk around the corner toward the physicians’ work area and find Jake looking exhausted.

“Hey, Kat, you’re a doll. Thanks for getting here so fast,” Jake says, appearing relieved.

“Oh, thank goodness, Kat,” Dr. Silver says. “Could you sew up the guy in room five? He ran a drill bit through his arm. The X-rays are good, but he needs to get cleaned out really well and closed.” Any other day I’d want to strangle him for trying to punt his patients to me, but today I’ll give him a break.

“Sure, I’ll put him at the top of my list,” I say as I leave the area to gather supplies and introduce myself to the patient.

* * *

A few hours later, we’ve managed to get the ER under better control, so I venture to the physicians’ lounge for a much-needed cup of coffee. I admit to myself during my short walk that I haven’t felt the need for liquid caffeine this morning as I usually do. I’m sure it’s too early to know if the prescription sleep aid is making that big a difference, but I’m definitely hopeful. I swipe my badge and swing the door open to see a couple of pastries sitting on the counter from this morning’s breakfast.Score!I grab a cup of joe and head back to the ER clutching my sweet roll to my chest.

“Whatcha got there, Kat?” I hear Jessica inquire, trying to peek around my hand.

“Oh, nothing,” I tease, knowing I’ll never get away with eating this on my own.Does this woman have a food tracking device?“I found some leftovers in the doctors’ lounge. It’s probably stale,” I say, trying to look nonchalant.

“Sure, it is.” Jess laughs. “If I promise not to steal your sticky bun, will you look at something for me?” She appears more solemn than I’m used to seeing her.

“Of course, Jess, what is it?”

I follow her into an empty exam room across from the breezeway. She steps back from the door toward the corner of the room and pulls her scrub top down to demonstrate a mild rash across the tops of her breasts.

“What do you think?”

“I don’t know Jess, I usually like my breasts a little bigger. They are pretty perky, though,” I reply with a wink.

“Oh, god,” she groans and walks swiftly away.

As I follow her out of the room, smiling, I make eye contact with Dr. Barnes who has one eye brow raised at me.What is he up to now?I don’t have time for his shenanigans today.

After I track down Jessica to reassure her the rash is nothing to be concerned about, and let’s be honest, give her half of my pastry, I return to my work station to see who’s on the board waiting to be seen. Luckily, my area is free of trespassers, so I sit and enjoy my coffee and half of a sweet roll while I look at my options.

There’s a nineteen-year-old here to get a pregnancy test. Apparently, she’s unaware they sell these in drug stores. I see a young lady is here with a rash. Oh, and Katrina is back. I assign my name to all three and head toward the front of the ER. The evaluation of the possibly pregnant young female is completely normal. Now, we just await her urine sample so we can run the test. The rash is a rather odd presentation, so I make a note to ask Jake if he can look at it for me. Lastly, I stop in to see Katrina.

“Hey, Katrina. What brings you in today?” I ask on autopilot, much like how I’ve asked her with every visit over the last six months. Katrina is a sad little thing. She’s tiny with unruly blonde hair trimmed short like a pixie. I suspect she cuts her own hair. She reminds me a bit of Emma Roberts with her petite frame and big smile that captivates you in spite of her obvious antics and frequent ER visits. I’m torn on my opinion of this girl. She’s young, only twenty-two. She never brings anyone with her on her visits. The ER staff is suspicious she’s addicted to narcotics, as all of her visits have a complaint that ends in pain: back pain, dental pain, abdominal pain. But I fear she could be selling the drugs, as her drug screens are usually negative.

“Hey, it’s my twin.” She beams at me. She’s often proclaimed that Katrina Knowles and Katarina Kelly were too alike not to be considered “twins.” Although she’s tiny and blonde and I’m older, taller, and brunette, I’ve learned to just go with it. “I fell down the stairs and I’ve really messed up my back this time. I can barely walk.” Her face suddenly morphs to demonstrate utter suffering.

“I don’t see any bruises or abrasions, so that’s a good sign,” I say flatly. “Is it your neck that hurts or your back?” I question. “Why can you barely walk?”

“The pain. It’s so bad. It is like twelve out of ten on the pain scale,” she exclaims, but her facial expression suddenly softens from one of extreme distress to one I can’t decipher as I notice Huggie and Jamie now at the door. I realize they’re dropping off the EMS report for her transport to the ER.

“Thanks, Hugs,” I state as I take the report, watching closely as Jamie stares at Katrina with an air of unease.Is he annoyed at bringing her back here?This is the most emotion I’ve ever seen on this man’s face.

As they depart, I return to questioning the patient plagued by mishap before me. “What type of steps were they? Indoor, outdoor, carpeted?”

“They were indoor, and I fell down about five or so.”

“Did you hit your head? Did it knock you out?”

“No, it’s just my back that hurts. I can barely walk because of the pain.”

I examine Katrina and realize her pain is located over the large muscles of her lower back. She has no spinal tenderness. She’s come to the ER so often over the last few years I’d prefer to avoid X-rays if possible to limit any additional radiation. I order her some Tylenol, as she does not have anyone driving her home. I learned long ago not to give sedating medications to people unless I knew someone would look out for them. Giving someone pain medicine and then placing them into a cab or Uber with someone who could take advantage isn’t safe. I’ve tried offering anti-inflammatories in the past, but she states she has an allergy to them, so I go to get her an ice pack when I see Jake in the hallway.

“Jake, can you look at the girl’s legs in room three?” I ask.

“Why, are they pretty?”

“Yes,” I tease. “She has an odd appearing rash, and I just wanted your opinion.” As I walk past him to look at the results of the pregnancy test for room four, I notice Dr. Barnes is now standing about ten feet away, rubbing the back of his head.Is he having an aneurysm?No time for that now. I review the results and walk toward the couple about to learn they have become teen parents.

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