new to the surgery faculty, fresh out of her training. Anna was pretty sure that Linda felt the medicine practiced here in Texas could never compare with what she'd learned in Boston at Peter Bent Brigham Hospital, in the shadow of Harvard.
"Luc felt, and rightly so, that Omnilex gave the best coverage in this situation. I agreed."
Linda was like a dog trying to wrest a bone away from a rival. "But if there was any antibiotic allergy, especially to penicillin, Omnilex was almost certain to produce anaphylaxis —which it did."
"I realize that, but—"
"Let's move on." Fowler's voice was calm, but there was no mistaking the way he was taking command of the situation."There are a lot of 'what ifs,' but in the final analysis, I think there's nothing to be gained by exploring them. We can conjecture all day about how this would have turned out if you'd chosen a safer but less effective antibiotic, or if the anesthesia resident had picked up on the anaphylaxis earlier and started treatment."
Anna saw Jenkins stiffen. If Fowler saw it, he didn't react. He was already closing the chart and opening the next one."Luc, you and Dr. McIntyre made the right clinical decision based on the information available to you. Unfortunately, there was a bad outcome."
Fowler pulled a sheet of paper toward him and began reading a series of announcements, but Anna had already tuned him out. It was over. She took several deep breaths but still felt claustrophobic. She saw Jenkins slip out, and she wanted desperately to do the same. Unfortunately, the way everyone was packed into the conference room, it would have drawn attention she didn't want. As Fowler continued to speak, Anna uncrossed her legs and put both feet flat on the floor. She rested her hands on the arms of her swivel chair, ready to push up and make a quick exit when the conference finally came to an end. She'd made it through this test. But she knew there were more to come.
Nick looked around the cafeteria. It was two-thirds full of medical school staff— administrative assistants, students, residents and faculty—but he and Anna had managed to score a table with no neighbors nearby. Besides, the buzz of conversation was better than a white noise machine for protecting them from eavesdroppers.
His call had caught Anna as she was walking into her office after the conference. It took some persuasion on his part, but she finally agreed to meet him here so they could talk while he grabbed a late lunch. Thus far, she'd been about as talkative as the Sphinx—although a whole lot prettier.
"You didn't bring up the new information about Hatley?" Nick took a bite of hot dog and wiped the corner of his mouth with a paper napkin.
Anna shook her head. "I was going to mention that I'd found out he was penicillin-allergic. I figured if I didn't say something about it, Fowler would. I mean, I'd already told him about my visit with Hatley's mother. But he moved things along before I could bring it up. I got the impression he was trying to get the discussion over with." She sipped her iced tea."Maybe he was trying to protect me. Or maybe he was trying to protect the department."
"He knows that Hatley's mother told you he was penicillinallergic. But does he know about the second Eric Hatley?"
"He learned about it when he and I met with Laura Ernst and the dean," Anna said. "But I'm pretty sure none of them is going to spread that knowledge around. I was afraid that Will Fell, the resident I talked with about the fake Hatley, would be at M&M today and mention it, but he wasn't. One of the residents told me that Will just got offa twenty-four-hour shift in the ER, and I'm pretty sure he's in dreamland right now."
"So it's not common knowledge that Hatley died because someone stole his identity." Nick took another bite of hot dog and chewed thoughtfully, parsing the implications of what they knew so far. He washed the food down with coffee, wincing as the hot liquid hit his tongue. Anna
"Luc felt, and rightly so, that Omnilex gave the best coverage in this situation. I agreed."
Linda was like a dog trying to wrest a bone away from a rival. "But if there was any antibiotic allergy, especially to penicillin, Omnilex was almost certain to produce anaphylaxis —which it did."
"I realize that, but—"
"Let's move on." Fowler's voice was calm, but there was no mistaking the way he was taking command of the situation."There are a lot of 'what ifs,' but in the final analysis, I think there's nothing to be gained by exploring them. We can conjecture all day about how this would have turned out if you'd chosen a safer but less effective antibiotic, or if the anesthesia resident had picked up on the anaphylaxis earlier and started treatment."
Anna saw Jenkins stiffen. If Fowler saw it, he didn't react. He was already closing the chart and opening the next one."Luc, you and Dr. McIntyre made the right clinical decision based on the information available to you. Unfortunately, there was a bad outcome."
Fowler pulled a sheet of paper toward him and began reading a series of announcements, but Anna had already tuned him out. It was over. She took several deep breaths but still felt claustrophobic. She saw Jenkins slip out, and she wanted desperately to do the same. Unfortunately, the way everyone was packed into the conference room, it would have drawn attention she didn't want. As Fowler continued to speak, Anna uncrossed her legs and put both feet flat on the floor. She rested her hands on the arms of her swivel chair, ready to push up and make a quick exit when the conference finally came to an end. She'd made it through this test. But she knew there were more to come.
Nick looked around the cafeteria. It was two-thirds full of medical school staff— administrative assistants, students, residents and faculty—but he and Anna had managed to score a table with no neighbors nearby. Besides, the buzz of conversation was better than a white noise machine for protecting them from eavesdroppers.
His call had caught Anna as she was walking into her office after the conference. It took some persuasion on his part, but she finally agreed to meet him here so they could talk while he grabbed a late lunch. Thus far, she'd been about as talkative as the Sphinx—although a whole lot prettier.
"You didn't bring up the new information about Hatley?" Nick took a bite of hot dog and wiped the corner of his mouth with a paper napkin.
Anna shook her head. "I was going to mention that I'd found out he was penicillin-allergic. I figured if I didn't say something about it, Fowler would. I mean, I'd already told him about my visit with Hatley's mother. But he moved things along before I could bring it up. I got the impression he was trying to get the discussion over with." She sipped her iced tea."Maybe he was trying to protect me. Or maybe he was trying to protect the department."
"He knows that Hatley's mother told you he was penicillinallergic. But does he know about the second Eric Hatley?"
"He learned about it when he and I met with Laura Ernst and the dean," Anna said. "But I'm pretty sure none of them is going to spread that knowledge around. I was afraid that Will Fell, the resident I talked with about the fake Hatley, would be at M&M today and mention it, but he wasn't. One of the residents told me that Will just got offa twenty-four-hour shift in the ER, and I'm pretty sure he's in dreamland right now."
"So it's not common knowledge that Hatley died because someone stole his identity." Nick took another bite of hot dog and chewed thoughtfully, parsing the implications of what they knew so far. He washed the food down with coffee, wincing as the hot liquid hit his tongue. Anna
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