couple standing in front of the millhouse.
* * *
‘Thanks for seeing us, Doctor. I know we didn’t have an appointment...but Jane has been so upset since the scan.’
‘Take a seat, Mr Roberts...Jane.’ Phoebe motioned the couple to the chairs.
The last time she had seen Jane Roberts had been to confirm the young woman’s much-wanted pregnancy. Atthat time she had left the office ecstatically happy. The change of mood tonight was dramatic. Jane was clearly having trouble holding back the tears.
‘I hate to bother you, Doctor. They did explain it all in the hospital but, to be honest, I was so shocked that something was wrong I didn’t really take much of it in. I really want a natural childbirth, you see, and when they said I’d need a Caesarean... If John had been there...’ she choked thickly.
Phoebe’s sympathy was mingled with an unexpected pang of envy as the distressed young woman reached across and grasped her equally young husband’s hand. Jane obviously had total faith in her husband’s ability to help her when the going got tough. Just having him beside her was enough.
‘I was working...’ came the guilty response.
Phoebe smiled at the worried young couple and put aside the patient notes she’d already quickly read through.
‘The whole hospital thing can be a bit intimidating,’ she agreed. ‘Let’s start from the beginning. Do you understand what placenta praevia is, Jane?’
Jane Roberts glanced nervously at her husband. ‘Not really,’ she admitted. ‘But my friend said—’
‘Friends can be a great source of information, but they don’t always get it right,’ Phoebe interjected smoothly, her calm, soothing voice having a visible effect on the tense couple. ‘This is your uterus.’ She spun around the simple pencil sketch she’d just made on a jotter. ‘The placenta feeds the baby throughout the pregnancy. The scan showed that yours is growing here, over the cervix.’ She indicated the position with her pencil. ‘Now, it might move. A lot do, in which case no problem. But it might not, that’s why they want to monitor you, do frequent scans...’
‘And what happens if it doesn’t move, Doctor?’ Theyoung man asked, placing a comforting arm over his wife’s shoulders.
Phoebe nodded. ‘Well, in labour the cervix opens to let you deliver the baby. If your placenta is growing over the exit, we can’t let that happen because the placenta has a rich blood supply, there could be heavy bleeding and that wouldn’t be good news for Jane or the baby.’
‘So they’ll do a Caesarean?’ Jane asked fearfully.
Phoebe nodded again. ‘It’s the only way to ensure a safe delivery. They might decide to admit you to the ward some time before your due date to keep an eye on things.’
‘But I wanted John with me...’
Phoebe smiled and handed her an open box of tissues. She waited while the young woman blew her nose.
‘There’s no reason he can’t be if you have an epidural—a spinal anaesthetic—for the section. You’ll be awake and John here can stay with you. He’ll see the baby before you do.’
‘Really?’
Phoebe grinned. ‘Trust me, I’m a doctor,’ she replied solemnly, doing a Groucho Marx imitation with her eyebrows.
The couple both laughed.
‘Listen, in a perfect world we’d all like an intervention-free delivery.’ Phoebe paused while Jane nodded eagerly. ‘But the main thing,’ she continued earnestly, ‘is safety. For you and the baby.’
‘That’s true,’ John agreed.
‘And you have to remember,’ Phoebe reminded them, ‘that this is the worst-case scenario. Things could very easily rectify themselves.’
It took Phoebe half an hour or so to finish up her notes once the Robertses had left. Her weariness didn’t diminish the pleasant glow of satisfaction—it was always goodwhen patients left feeling happier than when they’d arrived.
The waiting room was empty as she walked past, but though the hour was late Sally was still
* * *
‘Thanks for seeing us, Doctor. I know we didn’t have an appointment...but Jane has been so upset since the scan.’
‘Take a seat, Mr Roberts...Jane.’ Phoebe motioned the couple to the chairs.
The last time she had seen Jane Roberts had been to confirm the young woman’s much-wanted pregnancy. Atthat time she had left the office ecstatically happy. The change of mood tonight was dramatic. Jane was clearly having trouble holding back the tears.
‘I hate to bother you, Doctor. They did explain it all in the hospital but, to be honest, I was so shocked that something was wrong I didn’t really take much of it in. I really want a natural childbirth, you see, and when they said I’d need a Caesarean... If John had been there...’ she choked thickly.
Phoebe’s sympathy was mingled with an unexpected pang of envy as the distressed young woman reached across and grasped her equally young husband’s hand. Jane obviously had total faith in her husband’s ability to help her when the going got tough. Just having him beside her was enough.
‘I was working...’ came the guilty response.
Phoebe smiled at the worried young couple and put aside the patient notes she’d already quickly read through.
‘The whole hospital thing can be a bit intimidating,’ she agreed. ‘Let’s start from the beginning. Do you understand what placenta praevia is, Jane?’
Jane Roberts glanced nervously at her husband. ‘Not really,’ she admitted. ‘But my friend said—’
‘Friends can be a great source of information, but they don’t always get it right,’ Phoebe interjected smoothly, her calm, soothing voice having a visible effect on the tense couple. ‘This is your uterus.’ She spun around the simple pencil sketch she’d just made on a jotter. ‘The placenta feeds the baby throughout the pregnancy. The scan showed that yours is growing here, over the cervix.’ She indicated the position with her pencil. ‘Now, it might move. A lot do, in which case no problem. But it might not, that’s why they want to monitor you, do frequent scans...’
‘And what happens if it doesn’t move, Doctor?’ Theyoung man asked, placing a comforting arm over his wife’s shoulders.
Phoebe nodded. ‘Well, in labour the cervix opens to let you deliver the baby. If your placenta is growing over the exit, we can’t let that happen because the placenta has a rich blood supply, there could be heavy bleeding and that wouldn’t be good news for Jane or the baby.’
‘So they’ll do a Caesarean?’ Jane asked fearfully.
Phoebe nodded again. ‘It’s the only way to ensure a safe delivery. They might decide to admit you to the ward some time before your due date to keep an eye on things.’
‘But I wanted John with me...’
Phoebe smiled and handed her an open box of tissues. She waited while the young woman blew her nose.
‘There’s no reason he can’t be if you have an epidural—a spinal anaesthetic—for the section. You’ll be awake and John here can stay with you. He’ll see the baby before you do.’
‘Really?’
Phoebe grinned. ‘Trust me, I’m a doctor,’ she replied solemnly, doing a Groucho Marx imitation with her eyebrows.
The couple both laughed.
‘Listen, in a perfect world we’d all like an intervention-free delivery.’ Phoebe paused while Jane nodded eagerly. ‘But the main thing,’ she continued earnestly, ‘is safety. For you and the baby.’
‘That’s true,’ John agreed.
‘And you have to remember,’ Phoebe reminded them, ‘that this is the worst-case scenario. Things could very easily rectify themselves.’
It took Phoebe half an hour or so to finish up her notes once the Robertses had left. Her weariness didn’t diminish the pleasant glow of satisfaction—it was always goodwhen patients left feeling happier than when they’d arrived.
The waiting room was empty as she walked past, but though the hour was late Sally was still
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