Code Blue

Chapter 2 | Kids Ward

(The Next Day)

Sophia's POV:

I wake-up to the sound of my alarm. Alright! Time to face another day! I brush my teeth, shower and get dressed.
"Alright! I look just right." I mumble. With everything out of the way, I am off to work.

(30 mins later) The Hospital

At the hospital, I walk into the supply room to find Leona sobbing.
"Are you...okay, Leona?" I ask her, concerned.
"GET THE HELL AWAY FROM ME!" she shouts at me, before leaving the place.
Completely shocked, I leave for the hallway and spot Cooper talking to a distressed group of people. Just then, Cooper happens to see me and calls out my name.
"Will you help me out?" he asks me eagerly.
"What's the case?" I ask away.
"Three kids from the local daycare. Their parents brought them in, after they clammed up with a high fever. One of them had a seizure before coming in, but she's stable now." he explains.

I instantly rush to the Pediatrics ward. Just as I walk in, the children perk up to see me.
A little girl approaches me and says "Are you my doctor? I'm Katie and I want to be a doctor, when I grow up!"
I try bonding with her, "You will be a great doctor! I can tell."
Katie blushes and hides her face.
Nurse Young rattles on, as the kids examine me with curious eyes.
The parents come in looking stressed but smile at their kids. I reassure the parents before taking their leave.

As I go about my day, I bump into Cooper.
"Well, Hello there! I was right, wasn't I, about the dysentery?" he continues, "That daycare must be FILTHY."
I suggest him, "We should wait for tomorrow's report. It could be ANY sort of flu, really."
The two of us decide to check upon our little patients again.

When I approach the ward, I see Olivia. She looks worried...
"Thank God, you guys are here! I'm not cut out for Pediatrics." she exhales.
I tried to calm her down, "Liv, deep breaths. What's wrong?"
"We had another patient admitted to the ward and..." Olivia continues, "Oh God! Sophia, he's showing the same symptoms as the other kids!"
"He came in with chest congestion!" she says, worriedly.
"Are you talking about a contagion? We cannot admit anymore kids, until we help these guys first!" Cooper speaks in dismay.
Olivia rushes to Dr. Dominic with the reports and Cooper takes charge of the patients.

A little into the night, and the four children show symptoms ranging from high fever to severely low blood pressure.
"Cooper! What do you think these kids have in common?" I ask him, concerned.
"We need to figure that out, and fast! They are running out of time." he replies, tensed.
I think to myself, "It's a sure sign of a virus. We need narrow spectrum antibiotics here."
"Cooper, there are only two antibiotics that could work right now.", I continue, "Vancomycin and Aztreonam. We should..."
Olivia interrupts me, "Drip both into the kids. The double action might speed up the recovery process."
Cooper sounds alarmed, "Are you crazy, Olivia? That's one of the most irresponsible ideas I've ever heard!" he continues, "If we're doing this, we'll have to give the kids different drips. And then we continue with the one that works."
Cooper informs the parents and calls for the respective drips. Katie will be administered with the Aztreonam.
As I prepare her drip, she stirs and groggily looks at me smiling, before going back to bed.
Me and Olivia drive back home, later that night.

The next day, I'm back at work and the first place I go to is the Pediatric ward... something's not right.
"Sophia... Aztreonam wasn't the right drug. Her kidneys nearly shut down. It isn't your fault though!"
I feel guilty, "Where is she?"
Olivia informs me, "She's fine! Just exhausted. I've asked for a whole body checkup, just in case."
I feel a bit relieved, "Thanks Liv. I'd like to take a look at her reports, when they are ready."

I go about my day, eager to meet Katie, whose reports reach me by afternoon.
"My dysentery pitch wasn't too far off." Cooper speaks confidently.
"But the reports are saying that Katie has a weak heart..." I reply, sadly.
Cooper goes through the reports of the other patients and I realize what's actually going on here - a Heart Virus.
"How did this happen? And they aren't even related... Aren't these kinds of things usually genetic?", Cooper thinks deeply.
I think I know what it is... "That's it! We could be dealing with Echovirus 11." I say, confidently.
A familiar voice interrupts us, "You are absolutely correct, Dr. Sophia." It's Dr. Dominic, he continues, "Cooper! You were of no help here."
"Sophia, good job diagnosing this. I went over the paperwork last night and realized what we were dealing with." Dr. Dominic beams at me and I experience a flutter in my stomach.