female staff… but it seemed consensual, at least as far as I know,” I admitted. “You know how it is in the hospital, Diane, and I’m sure you’ve seen your share of liaisons through your career.” She said nothing. “Like I said, you know how difficult it would be to make a formal complaint about Doctor Linder with just a single complaint.”
Diane did. She had worked in the industry much longer than I. Not long ago, nurses had even less power than we had today. I also knew that Diane always did whatever she could to back up her nurses. I eyed the papers in her hand and frowned.
“Okay,” she sighed. “Just between you and me, these write-ups are going in the round file.”
The round file. The trashcan. I glanced at Diane in dismay. She was breaking the rules. She saw my expression and lifted a hand.
“Just this once,” she said. “I'm going to talk to Drake and get his side of the story, but as far as I'm concerned, this is a frivolous complaint, especially since you two were off duty. However, it did occur on hospital property.” She said nothing for several moments before speaking. “I'm not getting involved in your private life, Jessica, but if you want to see Matt Drake on a personal level, you'd better make sure that you do it outside of this hospital and off hospital property from this moment forward.”
I nodded in understanding. I didn't want to put Diane in the middle of this. Hospital employees dating one another was generally frowned upon, but as long as those relationships didn’t disrupt the working of the facility, the hospital had little to say what when on outside of the workplace. I knew that some hospitals had strict rules and regulations in their policy and procedures manuals regarding dating, but this hospital didn’t. It was generally considered a given.
“I've heard rumors about Doctor Linder's behavior, and while I certainly don't condone it, but unless formal complaints are lodged, there's little I can do,” Diane muttered. “And we both know that those complaints better be solid or they’re just going to disappear as they make their way up the chain of command.”
I nodded. I knew how hospital politics worked. Unfortunately, doctors often got away with bloody murder, and I wasn't saying that lightly. In some ways, the medical profession still operated under the “old boy’s club” mentality, and while policies had improved greatly over the past decade, claims of sexual harassment in the workplace were still frowned upon—off the record of course. Proving that comments made by some doctors against female nurses could be incredibly difficult to prove, unless of course you walked around with a tape recorder in your pocket all day, which I wasn't about to do.
“I can handle Doctor Linder,” I said, standing. “I’ve been careful and usually manage to leave before I say something I might regret.” I gestured toward the papers Diane held. “Most of the time, anyway.” Diane nodded.
“You have one more ride along today with Matt, and then you can sign him off. We'll see whether he'll fit best in the emergency department or in the ICU. Has he made any indications of preferences to you?”
I shook my head.
“Well, you guys have a good shift.”
I nodded, making my way toward her door.
“Try not to run into any more burning buildings, okay?”
I glanced over my shoulder at Diane, saw her smiling at me. I smiled at her in return and nodded. “Not if I can help it.”
I left Diane’s office and walked down the short hallway toward the break room. Inside, the television was turned to a news station, the volume low. A couple of nurses I didn't recognize sat at one of the break tables, eating salads and occasionally glancing at the screen. I had a few minutes before Matt was to arrive, so I thought to get myself a soda. As I stood in front of the soda machine, making a decision between diet and regular, an image from the television caught my attention.
My heart
Diane did. She had worked in the industry much longer than I. Not long ago, nurses had even less power than we had today. I also knew that Diane always did whatever she could to back up her nurses. I eyed the papers in her hand and frowned.
“Okay,” she sighed. “Just between you and me, these write-ups are going in the round file.”
The round file. The trashcan. I glanced at Diane in dismay. She was breaking the rules. She saw my expression and lifted a hand.
“Just this once,” she said. “I'm going to talk to Drake and get his side of the story, but as far as I'm concerned, this is a frivolous complaint, especially since you two were off duty. However, it did occur on hospital property.” She said nothing for several moments before speaking. “I'm not getting involved in your private life, Jessica, but if you want to see Matt Drake on a personal level, you'd better make sure that you do it outside of this hospital and off hospital property from this moment forward.”
I nodded in understanding. I didn't want to put Diane in the middle of this. Hospital employees dating one another was generally frowned upon, but as long as those relationships didn’t disrupt the working of the facility, the hospital had little to say what when on outside of the workplace. I knew that some hospitals had strict rules and regulations in their policy and procedures manuals regarding dating, but this hospital didn’t. It was generally considered a given.
“I've heard rumors about Doctor Linder's behavior, and while I certainly don't condone it, but unless formal complaints are lodged, there's little I can do,” Diane muttered. “And we both know that those complaints better be solid or they’re just going to disappear as they make their way up the chain of command.”
I nodded. I knew how hospital politics worked. Unfortunately, doctors often got away with bloody murder, and I wasn't saying that lightly. In some ways, the medical profession still operated under the “old boy’s club” mentality, and while policies had improved greatly over the past decade, claims of sexual harassment in the workplace were still frowned upon—off the record of course. Proving that comments made by some doctors against female nurses could be incredibly difficult to prove, unless of course you walked around with a tape recorder in your pocket all day, which I wasn't about to do.
“I can handle Doctor Linder,” I said, standing. “I’ve been careful and usually manage to leave before I say something I might regret.” I gestured toward the papers Diane held. “Most of the time, anyway.” Diane nodded.
“You have one more ride along today with Matt, and then you can sign him off. We'll see whether he'll fit best in the emergency department or in the ICU. Has he made any indications of preferences to you?”
I shook my head.
“Well, you guys have a good shift.”
I nodded, making my way toward her door.
“Try not to run into any more burning buildings, okay?”
I glanced over my shoulder at Diane, saw her smiling at me. I smiled at her in return and nodded. “Not if I can help it.”
I left Diane’s office and walked down the short hallway toward the break room. Inside, the television was turned to a news station, the volume low. A couple of nurses I didn't recognize sat at one of the break tables, eating salads and occasionally glancing at the screen. I had a few minutes before Matt was to arrive, so I thought to get myself a soda. As I stood in front of the soda machine, making a decision between diet and regular, an image from the television caught my attention.
My heart
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