Of Shifting Blames

HOURS EARLIER THAT DAY

Scalpel" She said and extended her hand out to the nurse beside her. The nurse handed her the instrument and she made a precise incision on the patient's chest, rightly on his sternum.

Her emotions were unreadable but her hands moved with a speed that bellied her inner turmoil. The beeping monitors punctuated the somber mood in the operating theatre.

A cell phone began to ring and it's vibrations noticed to be from Francine's scrub pocket.

She paid no attention to it, focusing on the heart bypass surgery she was set to perform on the patient lying unconscious before her.

She had to get through with the surgery, successfully and at all costs. It was the only thing that could save her from the impeding doom laying in wait for her.

The smell of antiseptics filled the air mingling with the scent of blood flowing from the patient's belly.

The surgical teams focused expressions could not be mistaken as each one kept silent, fearing what she might do what would put their licenses in jeopardy.

Francine's cell phone began to buzz again and just like before, she paid no attention to it.

Her surgical team members exchanged uneasy glances with each other.

It was unlike her to bring her phone into the operation theatre, let alone have it on.

The buzz ceased and Francine thought the stage had been over and her worries had been mere assumptions, but almost immediately, it got replaced by her alarm clock. The phone began buzzing with another call and this time, she knew the reason for it.

She lost focus and faltered and the scalpel in her hand pricked on her palm through her gloves.

She immediately let go, causing the scalpel to fall to the floor while she took a few steps back.

"Take over the surgery" she said while removing her face mask and gloves.

"Dr. Dre, you're familiar with the procedure"

Her team watched in stunned silence as she shed her surgical gown and goggles.

"Where are you going to?" Her assistant in the surgery mustered up courage and asked.

He didn't want to get caught up with whatever she was planning, especially the surgery that had a fifty -fifty survival rate.

"Why are you asking? You're a doctor. Take over the surgery in my name and ensure that it is a success at all costs" she replied non-challantly just before jetting out of the operation theatre even before the surgery could start nor end.

The head nurse, Elizabeth rushed after her, hoping to be able to convince her to stay. They needed her to stay.

"Dr.Dre can handle it. He can continue the surgery from where I stopped, in my name. It's no big deal. It's just a heart bypass surgery"

"It's not just a simple heart bypass surgery Dr. Francine. He is the Governor's only brother. The coronary artery bypass grafting is going to be a tough and Dr Dre won't be able to handle. His COPD would complicate the procedure!!" Nurse Elizabeth persisted.

"I don't care Elizabeth! There should be other doctors on seat. Find someone else then"

"This isn't about your beef with the chairwoman Francine" the elderly woman began to speak up again.

"The patient is yours and you've already opened him up. Now you're leaving without performing surgery on him? You didn't even close him up. Do you know what this costly mistake you're about to commit might cause you? You could be suspended or worse ,your license revoked. Don't do this Francine,don't do this to your self and career" she added hoping she would see reasons with her words.

But Francine was adamant. She wasn't interested in staying back and neither did she want to waste any minute further listening to the unsolicited advice the head nurse was giving to her.

Something worse than the damned surgery she was to perform was about to happen and she needed to put an end to it. To stop it before it does.

The unstopping beeping of the monitor that came from the operating table broke the silence that seemed to envelope them for a split second.

"Code Blueee" a voice shouted from the operating room.

The nurse turned back to rush into the theatre, calling out to Francine who didn't even stop as she ran in the opposite direction.

"Administer two doses of epinephrine. I'll close him back up and book him for surgery another day. He can't die and definitely not under my care. I'll be so done for if anything happens to him " Dr Dre said frantically as he paced back and forth the operating theatre.

The head nurse on duty immediately administered what she had been commanded to, not a second after she was done did another nurse voice out a worry.

"The patient in his record was said to be allergic to epinephrine. We made a mistake administering that to him"

"Anaphylaxis!!!!!!!!!" The anaesthesiologist screamed noticing how difficult it was becoming for the patient to breathe.

Dr Dre immediately left his lower body he was at and rushed on top the stretcher.

"I'll perform CPR. Get the defilbrator immediately! "

"He's showing signs of bronchospasm!"

"Here are the defilbration machines"

" Prepare for sepsis"

"We should prepare for a cardiac arrest instead,we can't lose him at our hands." The head nurse added to the confused team members.

"Are you the doctor in charge here? I am in charge. Do what I command you to!" Dr Dre boasted and others had no choice than comply with his orders.

"The defilbrator! The ..... Defibrillator! Cardiac arrest, cardiac arrest" Dr Dre screamed as he alighted from the stretcher he had been on performing CPR.

His hands were shaky even as the defilbrator was brought to him and the head nurse had no other choice than to begin resuscitation herself.

"Defilbrator. Charge to 200 joules!!!"

The machines beeped and she immediately placed the paddles on the unconscious man's chest.

"Clear!!"

A burst of energy shot through his body but his heart remained unresponsive.

"Shock delivered,no pulse!"

The anesthesiologist began chest compressions. "Oh God, please...." He muttered inaudibly as he did.

"Still in V-fib let's shock him again"

The defilbrator charged once more

"Clear!!"

Another jolt coursed through the body but there was still no signs of a pulse.

Seconds turned into minutes as she continued charging him up hoping to be able to resuscitate him, even if it were going to be a single heartbeat found, even if they had to put him on life support.

But as she hastely tried her best, it seemed as if the universe had been against them.

"You have to call the time of death sir" the second nurse said to Dr. Dre.

He said nothing.

"I didn't kill him. Francine did. She asked me to perform the surgery in her name. I didn't cause his anaphylaxis. I was just the assistant doctor" he began ranting shakily.

"It's true. This wouldn't have happened if Dr. Francine hadn't been so proud of herself and left the operating theatre with her patient opened. This all happened because of her and she is to be blamed" the second nurse added, seeing reasons with him and why Francine was to be blamed and punished.

"Francine never left the theatre. She was the one that performed the surgery. She was the one that administered the epinephrine" Dr Dre said again and the others, including the other nurse that had spoken before paused for a while to reflect on his words.

Noticing the puzzled looks on their faces, he continued to explain things to them as everyone was scared of what might be if what happened at the operating theatre was to be found out.

"The head nurse left the operating theatre with Francine, abandoning the opened patient. Am I right or wrong? What actions do you think would be taken against you if the medical council were to find out what you did? It doesn't matter that you came back. You left an opened patient and left. Did you or did you not?" He quizzically asked the head nurse.

"You didn't brief us on his medical records. You didn't say he was allergic to epinephrine. Was that not an oversight on your path and punishable by the medical council?" He looked at the second nurse.

He said nothing to the anaesthesiologist but they exchanged glances with each other.

"Francine never left the operating theatre. If we want to protect ourselves from what might be upon us, then we would have to answer that and make her take all the blame" he said with a tone of finality even though he didn't just want her to be punished.

Facing a lawsuit and potential termination of her medical license was ideal and had sounded all pleasant to him to punish the haughty Francine with.

But because he himself had committed another grave mistake that would get him punished and blamed by everyone and not just the medical council, saving Francine from her own mistake was the only option left for him.

Of course he was saving her from her mistake for her to suffer his.

The sighs that came from his mates was all it took for him to know they were in unison with the plan.