Living with my greatest fear.

~ Chapter 50 ~

Grant's POV:

Ellie's been upstairs for most of the evening, so I decided to sort out some stuff from the office that I haven't had a chance to do recently. Just paperwork, notes and checking my schedule for tomorrow.

As I was checking through my schedule for tomorrow, I came across an old patient of mine that I haven't seen in a while - 4 years. I assumed she'd just gone to a different dentist as it was easier for her, but I guess she just hadn't come for a few years. When a patient hasn't seen me for a while, a more extensive check-up is needed - to fully assess the situation and also to get an understanding as to why they haven't been seen for so long. It happens fairly often, so I never get too surprised about seeing it, as it is normally just a lack of time, so they've sacrificed their dentist appointment for other, possibly more pressing, matters. Although that isn't a great idea, I understand why people do it - it's not always easy getting time off work, and it could be an expensive appointment.

However, I don't think Sarah's situation is going to be all due to a lack of time. She has been a patient of mine for about 7 years, and even when she came to me, she only came semi-regularly. Sarah used to book an appointment with me every time she came for 6 month's time, but a few days before her appointment she used to cancel them. I believe that this was down to anxiety and stress centred around the dental environment, as her children's appointments would have the same situation too.

Sarah's appointment is scheduled for 9:30 tomorrow morning as just a routine check-up. I quickly add to her notes for this appointment that it'll be an extensive check-up and I do want to have a chat with her as well, and I'm not sure how busy I'll be in the morning, so I may be rushing around and forget about it. I check my appointments scheduled for after Sarah's to see if I've got another consult straight after - luckily, I don't, so I should be able to use my office to talk to Sarah rather than just my exam room, which should put her at ease a little whilst talking to me.

I find it fairly easy to talk to distressed patients or just patients that are not at ease as Ellie has always been one of them, however, with Ellie it is easier because we can come at a different time, or I can give her a hug or sit on the chair with her, but obviously I can't do that with everyone else, so I have to rely on verbal communication which can be really tricky.

I finish up with looking at Sarah's file and have a look at the rest of my schedule for tomorrow seeing that Sarah's children are also booked in, but are booked in for later in the day. I've got a pretty full day tomorrow so I can't really move anyone around to make it easier for them.

Just as I finish looking at everyone's files for tomorrow, Ellie comes downstairs.

"Oh, hey, E. Are you okay?" I say, turning to face her and smile.

"Yeah, I'm okay. I was just coming down as I've finished all my work now," She smiles as she replies.

"Oh, that's so good! I've just been looking at stuff for tomorrow and it looks like we're both going to have very busy days tomorrow!! I think all but 2 of my slots are full!"

"Really? I'm going to be so tired after tomorrow and it's only my second day!"

"That's what you get for working in healthcare, E! It'll be fine, and I know you can get really tired, so I can tell Emily and you can just go and sit in my office or in the staffroom when you get super tired and just chill for a while and I'll come and check on you throughout the day, okay?"

"Yeah, that sounds good, thank you," she says, coming over to me and giving me a hug.

"Anything you want to do or watch?"

"Ummm...maybe we can watch something?"

"Sounds like a good idea to me!"

*THE NEXT MORNING*

I get up fairly early as I always do, and sort myself out before going downstairs to start making breakfast and lunch for Ellie and I. Once I've made the breakfast, I sit down at the breakfast bar and open my laptop to write an email to Emily, just so she is aware that Ellie can become very tired, so may need to just relax for a little, mainly so she isn't burned out and she can continue her work experience.

I know my day today is going to be pretty busy, so I'd like to get to the office a little earlier than normal, so I can make sure everything is set up as I am not going to have much time between patients.

Ellie comes down just as I am sorting my bag out.

"Good morning, princess. Did you sleep okay?"

"Morning, Grant. Yeah, I slept okay. I'm pretty tired already though. I'm not really sure if I am going to be able to do the whole day..." She says, yawning.

"Okay, sweetheart. I emailed Emily earlier, so she will see it when she gets in, but don't push yourself too hard, okay? If you need a break, take a break. You can go to my office if you need somewhere quiet - just knock before as I may be in a consult or talking to a patient."

"Okay, I'm going to try to do as much as I can though, as I kind of enjoy this job."

"That's really good, E! I'm glad it's not as bad as you thought. Anyways, I'd like to get to the office a little earlier today, just so I can make sure everything is set up and where it should be as I won't have much time to sort anything out today."

Ellie just nods and goes back upstairs with her breakfast to finish getting ready.

I haven't spoken to Ellie about it, but I'm thinking of making an appointment with Andrew to see if he can suggest anything for her tiredness, as it really hits her hard.

*AT THE OFFICE*

Eliie's POV:

Working with Grant isn't too bad. I don't think I mind working in a doctor's or dentist's office, as long as I don't have to be the patient. That's something I don't think I'll ever get over, as much as Grant tries, and I know he won't stop trying out of the goodness of his heart.

Grant's POV:

Once Ellie and I part ways, I go into my office and check my schedule again for today, as some things can change and I always need to refresh my mind anyways. There's a gap around 4pm until 5pm today, and it immediately springs into my mind that I never told Andrew a time for him to come and see me, so I quickly message him just to see if he has free time around then.

G - Hey mate, sorry this is such short notice, but I've only just remembered that you asked me to find a time for you to have an appointment with me - this week has just been so busy! I have an opening today, from just before 4pm and to around 5pm, does that work for you? If not, don't worry. I can stay later one day and you can come once you've finished worm if that is easier for you. You can always bring Chloe with you too if you like.

I quickly just pencil in an appointment for Andrew, so Emily can't create an appointment for someone else in the meantime because Andrew may be busy for a little while.

Once I've sorted everything else in my schedule for today, I make sure I've got all the equipment I'm likely to need for my first patient. I have just a quick follow-up after a tooth removal from a couple of weeks ago - these only take around 10-15 minutes, so I should still be running on time for when Sarah comes in.