His First Obsession

Chapter 6: Doctor's Duty

Dale's POV

"Doctor," I automatically turn my gaze when someone called me. I saw Sean with a worried face in my office entrance and gasping for his breath. 

"Mrs. Delantes need the surgery right away," he said between his breath. I automatically closed my laptop and took my coat over my swivel chair. Nilapitan ko kaagad si Sean atsaka sabay kaming naglakad sa mahabang pasilyo dito sa ospital.

"Speak all the information," I said while fixing my coat sleeve. 

"Her tumor attached in the fetus grew rapidly this time and if we can't remove it right away, I'm afraid she and her unborn child will die." Napahinto ako at napatingin sa kanya ng deretso. He swallowed really hard when he looked me in the eye.

"W-What should we do?" he asked feeling uneasy.

"Prepare the surgery and call Dr. Melendez. Tell him it's code red," I said. He automatically nodded his head as he responded and obey my commands right away.

Napatingin ako sa aking relong pambisig at kaagad na tinahak ang pasilyong papunta sa kwarto ng aking pasyente. It's quarter to 7 and its supposedly my time for dinner but this is urgent, my patient needs my service right away.

"Doc, may problema ho ba?" bungad sa'kin ng asawa ni Mrs. Delantes, the mayor of this town, Mr. Frederick Delantes. 

"What about our child? My wife?" sunod-sunod niyang tanong. I looked at him and distress was written all over his face. Simula noong isinugod ang kanyang asawa dito sa ospital, apat na araw na ang nakakaraan, ay halos wala na siyang pahinga. 

Despite all his workloads as a Mayor, he still finds his way back to the hospital where his wife is admitted. 

"Is there's something wrong?" Napalingon kami ng sabay sa babaeng kakagising lang mula sa pagkakaidlip. Kinusot niya ang kanyang mata at dahan-dahang bumangon. Her husband assisted her right away and helped her lift up slowly like a fragile object.

"Mr. and Mrs. Delantes, I need both of your decision right now to perform the surgery or not," I said while facing them. Nagkatinginan ang dalawang mag-asawa at hindi maitatago ang pagkabahala sa kanilang mga mukha.

"Just do everything to save my baby," Mrs. Delantes uttered, almost pleading. 

"The surgery will not be easy, and because of your Antiphospholipid Syndrome, it makes a long surgery extremely dangerous. There's a high chance for blood clots along the process and could make the surgery more complicated," I explained the possible outcome thoroughly. Mas mabuting alam nila ang panganib na kanilang haharapin.

"We are willing to take the risk," Mrs. Delantes said without even thinking twice. Napalingon naman ng deretso ang kanyang asawa sa kanya.

"Just so you know Mrs. Delantes, saving the fetus will not do any good if the mother dies during the process." 

"Nathalie, why won't we just try it again? I-I can't afford to lose you," the mayor said to his wife, stuttering. I can feel his nervousness from my distance.

"At hahayaan mo na lang na mamatay ang anak natin? 'Yan ba ang gusto mo?" Napayuko siya sa sinabi ng kanyang asawa.

"Doctor, I want you to perform the surgery. This is my body and I have the full right to decide on my own. If anything happens during the procedure, I want you to save my baby's life. I might as well die if I lose this again."

The mayor's wife had already 2 miscarriages in the past 2 years based on her medical report. This is the first fetus that reaches the second trimester of her pregnancy but unluckily, a tumor was found attached to it.

Wala nang nagawa ang kanyang asawa kaya hinayaan na lang niya itong magdesisyon.

"I will call someone to assist you in the operating room, Mrs. Delantes," I said. Sabay namang tumango ang dalawa kaya lumabas na ako ng silid upang masabihan ang aking grupo sa kung ano man ang dapat gawin.

"Dr. Sieberg!" Napahinto ako sa paglalakad at hindi nilingon sa likuran ang taong tumawag sa'kin. I heard his footsteps approaching my direction in a speedy manner. 

As the sound of his every step echoed in my ear, I automatically started to walk but at a slower pace for him to catch up on me. 

"Doctor, I'm done doing the scut work as what you've said," he uttered while panting. Bakit lahat nalang na sumalubong sa'kin ay hinihingal?

"Dr. Ravore told me what happened, are we really doing it now?" I stopped and faced him.

"If you are hesitant to do this surgery, I can always ask Dr. Ravore to assist me and make him my number 1," I said bluntly.

"H-Hindi naman sa ganon doc," ani niya. Naglakad ulit ako sa pasilyo atsaka kumanan kung nasaan ang operating room.

"If you don't have any questions, let's just do our job right now." Iniwan ko siya sa labas atsaka pumasok na sa loob. 

As I wash both of my hands, a nurse interrupted and informed me that Mrs. Delantes is already in the room. I nodded at her and finished what I did. This surgery will not be easy, 2 lives are at stake in this situation, and if I can't do this perfectly I'll lose them both.

Nurses suddenly approached me and put on my PPE. Nagkasalubong naman kami ni Melendez sa loob ng operating room at pareho na kaming nakahanda para sa isasagawang operasyon.

"She had an Antiphospholipid Syndrome, what if a blood clot will occur during the operation?" tanong niya sa'kin.

"We could control the clotting risk pre-operatively with an infusion of unfractionated heparin. As for your possible second question, I just read several techniques for transesophageal echocardiography monitoring a few minutes ago. So if there's a cardiac issue, it would give us warning." He suddenly froze for a second after hearing what I said. 

*Monitor beeping sounds*

"Patient's status?" I asked.

"Stable," one of the assistants uttered.

"Fetus?"

"Stable."

"Let's all begin, knife," I ordered. I cut the patient's lower abdomen horizontally, while Dr. Melendez suctioned the insides.

*Suction hissing*

"Retractor," as I took the tool, I opened the abdomen and placed the retractor to hold the incision open. 

"Cutting into the uterus," I said as I look at Melendez. He nods his head as a signal and started to cut the uterus open using the tool he's holding.

*Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!*

He stopped the cutting when the alarm suddenly starts to beep rapidly.

"T.E.E. is showing anterior wall hypokinesis," Melendez said while looking at the monitor.

"Systolic pressure 90," one of the assistants said.

"I.V. functioning is starting to low, she's having a start attack," I said and cursed at the back of my head. 

"I need you to close the incision right away," I told Melendez that he automatically does. 

"Give me a needle driver," some of the assistants are rushing to get the tools I mentioned.

"Get a fluoroscope in here, I need to prep her for a balloon pump," I said while doing my part in the operation.

This is harder than I imagined.

DR. MELENDEZ and I waited for Mrs. Delantes to regain her consciousness inside her private room. I already told her husband about what happened during the operation earlier and as expected, after knowing the incident, he couldn't hold back his tears.

"Nathalie, gising ka na." Napalingon kaagad ako sa direksyon ng mag-asawa. Tumayo ako mula sa aking kinauupuan atsaka sila nilapitan. 

"Is the operation done?" Mrs. Delantes suddenly asked when she saw me standing behind her husband. 

Napailing ako bilang sagot. "There was a complication during the surgery. You had a heart attack caused by a blood clot that blocked the artery in your heart, but we were able to catch it on time," I explained.

"The baby is stable, so you don't have to worry about it," Melendez uttered, giving her assurance.

"That's good to hear, then we just have to start it again," Mrs. Delantes said. Napatingin naman ng deretso sa akin si Melendez.

"Ma'am, you just had a heart attack." Tiningnan ng aking pasyente si Melendez ng bigla itong magsalita.

"Wala akong pakialam." I can completely sense her eagerness to save her unborn child no matter what happens, even if it costs her own life.

"There isn't any other choice at this point. If we don't terminate the pregnancy and the fetus dies in the womb, the impact on your heart and brain will be tremendous," Melendez stated trying to enlighten the patient's risk factors.

"That is precisely why we must try it once again." We automatically turned our gazes to Mr. Delantes when he speak all of a sudden. 

"What are you talking about?" I asked him. He faced me and looked directly into my eye. I can sense doubtless the way he looks at me. Kung kanina lang kabadong-kabado siya sa mga nangyayari, ngayon bigla nalang nag-iba ang ihip ng hangin.

"You need to remove the tumor. Either you do it, or she dies."

I AM in my office once again searching, reading, and looking for any possible method to conduct this fetal operation again without killing both of them. I removed my eyeglasses and massage my nose bridge as I leaned back in my chair. 

I looked at my digital clock on my desk and spin the pen in my hand. It's already half an hour before 10, I must find a solution before this night ends. 

"Come in," I said as I heard a knock on my door. Sean entered my office with a cup of coffee in his hands.

Lumapit siya sa direksyon ko at nilagay ang dala niya sa ibabaw ng aking lamesa. "Thanks," I said and took the coffee.

"Hunter told me everything during the operation. Mukhang isa ata 'to sa mga nagpapahirap sa'yo ngayon bilang doktor, tama ba ako?" I sipped the coffee before turning my gaze at him.

"Why won't you maintain your composure like this whenever you talk to me? Minsan kasi mukha akong nangngagat sa paningin mo katulad na lang kanina. You seemed very uneasy when I look at you." Napangisi siya at napailing ng dahil sa sinabi ko. 

"Nakakatakot ka naman talaga tignan. You're very intimidating as hell," he said and leaned his back on my sofa.

Sean Ravore is the son of Dr. Timothy Ravore, one of the board members here in the hospital. He wanted to stay low in order not to give his dad high expectations. Being a doctor is not his passion so he didn't really put too much effort into it.

Isa rin 'yan sa mga rason kung bakit minsan ko lang siyang ma-assign bilang numero uno kong doktor sa tuwing may isasagawa akong operasyon. As the chief doctor of my team, it is my duty to manage and lead the group. 

"I heard Mr. Hue's daughter will arrive in the country next month from her medical research in London. Aren't you excited?" Sean said while playing my rubrics cube. 

I get back in my work and continue to search for some safety procedures and techniques to perform the surgery well. 

"No, not at all," I said while scrolling on my laptop. 

"Oh come on, you two hooked up each other the last time she was here in the Philippines."

I can totally see Sean's face behind my laptop screen and I guarantee that he's grinning from ear to ear. Not even a single excitement flows in my nerves this time.

"By the way, remember the girl you rushed into the ER earlier? I guess Hunter knew her," I stopped scrolling for a second after hearing what Sean said.

"Nakita ko kasi silang nag-uusap kanina bago umalis 'yong babae at habang ginagawa ni Hunter ang scut work niya na inutos mo." Tiningnan ko na naman ang makapal kong libro at binuklat ang ilang pahina neto. 

"Narinig ko rin na narevive daw ni Melendez ang ama nong babae dalawang taon na ang nakakalipas. I presume that was the time Hunter became part of our team right?" pagpapatuloy ni Sean habang nilalaro parin ang aking rubrics cube. I never knew he likes to eavesdropp on someone else's conversation.

Hunter revived someone in the ER and because of his heroic doing, he was honored by this hospital and became a part of my team. 

I suddenly stopped scanning my book when an idea come to my mind.

Revive... 

Restoring someone to live... 

Regaining someone's consciousness...

That's it!

I just need to regain Mrs. Delantes's life after the operation and in order for me to successfully do that, I need to stop her heart. In that case, I can operate on her without the trouble of having another heart attack during the process.

"I guess I need to thank that talkative mouth of yours, Dr. Ravore," sambit ko. Napatingin naman ng deretso sa aking direksyon si Sean na tila nagugulohan. 

I closed my book and began searching on my laptop for the exact technique that I need to do.

"Bingo," I said and look at my colleague's face. A smirk plastered on my face before ordering Sean to prepare for the surgery again. 

"You mean, now?" he asked with a puzzled look.

"As in right now," I said and took the last sip on my coffee before wearing my coat.

"Care to tell me what's in your mind and why did you decide to perform the surgery at this hour?" Sean asked once again while we are walking towards the private room of my patient.

I stopped and looked at his eyes directly with my usual expression. At that moment, I can feel his body stiff for a few seconds.

"We will kill her first before she kills herself."