Monday nights were usually crazy busy at the Slate Quarry Volunteer Ambulance Company. Shay McDowell had a gut feeling tonight would be no exception. When the first call came in, she’d barely finished going over the equipment check sheet. Once the clipboard was stowed in the cabinet, she climbed up front into the passenger seat. On the other side of the windshield, Joanna slapped the big red button and opened the bay door. Whirring noises from the mechanism filled the garage while her partner yanked the charging cord from the side of the ambulance. By the time the door was all the way up, her partner had jumped into the driver’s side and clicked her seat belt.
Northeastern Pennsylvania Dispatch relayed the information, and Shay started the call sheet on a non-responsive diabetic. Sometimes a person with diabetes didn’t realize until too late that their sugar level was low. At that point, they couldn’t help themselves. First, the patient began to sweat, and then confusion took over. If left untreated, the diabetic could have seizures and even die.
“Hopefully, someone on the scene has glucose gel or a glucagon injector.” Joanna adjusted the mirror, hit the lights, and pulled out.
Zach stood by the side of the door, ready to close it behind them.
“Does he ever go home?”
“Nope, at least not very often.” Shay glanced out her window and down the road. “It’s clear this way.”
Joanna pulled the rig out into the chilly October day. At the stop sign she made a left after a pickup blew through, disregarding the ambulance’s lights and sirens. “Jerk.”
By the time they got to the scene, the patient did indeed have glucagon. He was sitting up in the chair, talking to another first responder.
“Sorry for the trouble.” The patient gave a sheepish smile
It’s no trouble,” Alex replied, stowing away his gear. “Are you sure you don’t want to go and get checked out?”
“Hey, Alex.” Shay stooped next to the chair while tucking a stray piece of chestnut-brown hair behind her ear. “What’s going on?”
“This is Mr. Peters. He was busy and forgot to eat, so his glucose levels dropped. Luckily, his wife was with him and dosed him with glucagon. He’s declining medical treatment at this time.”
The man’s color was good, and he wasn’t sweating. She turned from her assessment when his wife entered the room with a glass of orange juice and some cheese and crackers. “You’re sure about us not taking you in for a quick look over?”
“I’m sure. Sorry for the trouble, but my wife and I can handle this. Thank you for your service, but we’re good .” Mr. Peters glanced over at his wife and she nodded in agreement.
“Seems like you have it under control.” She gave the wife a smile and wink. “And you’re in capable hands.”
“We’ve done this before.” The woman set the tray down on a nearby table and placed a hand on her hip while glowering at her husband. “He gets wrapped up in his projects and doesn’t listen.”
The room was filled with Christmas decorations in various stages of assembly.
“This is amazing.” Shay stood and walked over to where blow molds of penguins stood in a line near a manger. “I guess you guys have a thing for the holidays.”
“You should come back after Thanksgiving when it’s all set up.” Mr. Peters beamed. “I set up an outside display. Folks come from all over to check it out.”
Mrs. Peters rolled her eyes. “You should check out our electric bill too.”
The room filled with good-natured laughter. This couple was a riot.
Once the paperwork for refusal of transport was complete, she and Joanna said goodbye to Alex and headed back to base. “How about a quick stop for coffee. I have a funny feeling it’s going to be a long night.”
Her intuition was right. They’d finish one call, and then another came in on its heels. First up, a man who was short of breath. Then a child fell, fracturing his collarbone. The last alert was a fender bender on the highway exit ramp. It was almost two a.m. by the time they finally made it back to the squad house.
Shay flopped onto the couch. Not even thirty seconds later, the sound of dispatch blared again. Unknown problem at a familiar address.
Joanna moaned, “Really. Tonight?”
“Come on. No rest for the wicked.” Shay hauled Joanna to her feet. “Let’s go, Millie needs a friend.”
This time Joanna was happy to let Shay drive while she catnapped in the passenger seat. Shay smiled, thinking about her next patient.
Millie St. Clair was an elderly woman who lived alone with her two cats, and an ancient pug named Willis. Every couple of weeks, when she couldn’t sleep, she decided she was sick and called the ambulance. Millie was a sweet old lady, and usually they didn’t mind reassuring her. The trip to the ER was always an easy and amusing run. Millie would chat away about her past or her pet’s antics. When they turned her over to the nurses, her grandson was usually waiting to take her home.
“Joanna, wake up.” Muscles knotted in Shay’s neck. Millie wasn’t standing at the front door waving to meet them as usual. She hit the brakes and slammed the lever into park. When the rig came to a halt, Shay threw the door open, jumped out, and ran to the house while Joanna grabbed their equipment. After knocking and not getting an answer, she tried the doorknob. It opened.
“Millie?” she called. As concerned as she was, she knew better than to not be cautious. “It’s Shay and Joanna. Millie?”
The semi-dark hallway glowed with light from a small lamp. Nothing looked amiss as she waited for Joanna to catch up. You never went into an unknown situation without backup.
Red-and-blue lights shone through the window from a police car entering the street.
A groan came from the back of the house as Joanna came up behind her. No more waiting. Still, they moved with caution. Reaching the entryway of the kitchen, Shay paused and scanned the room. The elderly woman lay crumpled on the floor. “Millie, what happened?”
“Careful, Shay,” she mumbled. “Willis spilled his water. The floor is slippery. That’s how I fell.”
Skirting the puddle, Shay reached for Millie’s outstretched hand. It was so cold. “How long have you been on the floor?”
“Since right before dark. It took me a while to get over to the phone.” Millie groaned again. “I couldn’t get up. I dragged myself over so I could reach it.”
“You poor thing.” Shay patted her hand. “We’re here now.”
When Joanna asked someone behind them to get a blanket, Shay glanced up from her assessment.
Michael Machu, a policeman, poked his head in the door. “Hey, Shay.”
“Hey, Michael.” With a nod she went right back to her patient. “Where is the most pain, Millie?”
“My leg, near the top, is the worst, but my wrist hurts too.”
Moving from top to bottom, Shay took extra care running her hands over the older woman’s frail body. Her partner obtained their patient's vital signs, gathering the blood pressure reading and then pulse rate.
When Shay palpated the patient’s wrist, Millie cried out. “Sorry, Millie.” She winced. “Michael, we’ll need a splint.”
Then she touched lower. Millie’s right leg rotated out, and it was significantly shorter than the left. Millie had most likely fractured her hip as well when she fell. “We’re also going to need the longboard. How are her vitals?”
“Blood pressure is a little low, and her heart rate is up.” Joanna got an oxygen mask ready. “Millie, I’m going to place this over your head and give you a little more air. Ok, sweetie?”
Michael returned with the longboard, loaded on the stretcher with blankets and the splints. “Here, I grabbed a bunch.”
“Millie, I have to talk to the paramedics for a minute. I’m not going to leave you.”
While Jo splinted the injured wrist, Shay reached up and keyed her mic. When the medics responded, she filled them in on the situation and patient vitals. “Patient is a little shocky but seems stable.”
Done with the report, she returned her attention to Millie. “Here’s what’s going to happen. The paramedics will be here in a few minutes and start an IV to give you fluids. They will attach electrodes to monitor your heart.”
“Is something wrong with my heart?” Millie’s eyes opened wide, and she trembled.
“No, sweetie,” Joanna piped in. “That's normal procedure. Don't you worry.”
Millie calmed.
The woman trusted them.
“The medics will look you over, too. Once the IV is in, we'll move you onto the big board over there, so you don’t get jiggled around. It’s not going to be comfortable, but we’ll try our best to make you as pain-free as possible.”
“What about my pets?” Millie’s voice quivered.
“Don’t worry. When you get to the hospital, they’ll call your grandson. In the meantime, the officer will put them in your bedroom so they don’t get out,” Joanna reassured her.
“I’ll take good care of them, ma’am.” Michael had already scooped up one of the curious cats. “I have my own dogs.”
Joanna crawled under the table where Willis, the cause of all the trouble, lay chewing on a rawhide. “Come on, you rascal. Time for bed.”
The pug was nonchalant about the whole thing. He didn’t give Joanna any trouble, even when she dragged him out. “Be right back.”
With her good hand, Millie patted Shay’s arm. “I pray and thank God for you girls every night before bed. I ask Him to watch over you and keep you safe.”
“Thanks, Millie, we need all the prayers we can get.” Shay smiled at her.
Joanna and Michael re-entered the kitchen, followed by the paramedics.
Millie was soon hooked up to the ECG machine, and the IV started.
“Ouch,” Millie called out when they moved her to the board.
“Easy, Millie. Don't try to help.” Shay stroked the wrinkled forehead. “Let us do the work. Okay?”
Rolled towels and pillows were placed to support the injured woman’s wrist and under her knees. During the ride to the hospital, Millie, exhausted from her ordeal, was quiet, in too much pain to talk.
Shay withdrew into her own thoughts. It must be hard growing old alone. Millie had her grandson, but he was the only family member who looked in on and helped her. Such a lonely existence. After splitting from Nick, Shay worried that she too would grow old alone.
When they arrived at the hospital, Millie’s grandson stood waiting by the ER entrance. “Nana, the neighbor called me. Are you ok?”
Jen, one of the nurses, came to meet them as they entered through the sliding glass doors. The ER hummed with activity. Machines beeped and voices blended in making a cacophony of noise.
Shay gave Jen the report and transferred Millie’s care to her. Knowing the elderly woman was in good hands, she and Joanna waved goodbye. They stopped near the sliding glass doors to the ER. They remade the stretcher, restocked supplies, and headed to home base.
The sun lit the horizon in pinks and purples, chasing away the dark blue of night. It was almost time for them to turn the keys over to the day shift.
Joanna snored lightly from the passenger side.
Shay yawned. After the long night, she was tired. But it was a good tired, knowing she made a difference in people’s lives.