Christmas On The Children's Ward

‘It’s her pet name.’

‘Then she should save it for home. Are you going to do it?’ Nick added as she headed for the door. ‘Work Christmas, I mean?’

‘It looks that way,’ Eden sighed.

‘You need a baby of your own,’ Nick said with another grin, and Eden gave a wry smile back.

‘It’s probably the only way I can guarantee getting next Christmas off—I’d better step on it.’

‘You’d better,’ Nick responded dryly. ‘Given that they take nine months…’

‘I was referring to work, Nick,’ Eden said.

CHAPTER TWO

PRISCILLA, or Princess as her mother called her, was in for investigation into her recurrent constipation and abdominal pain, which had culminated in many trips to her local GP and a lot of absences from school. As a private patient, initially her mother had demanded a single room for her daughter, but thankfully Nick had been able to persuade Rose that her daughter would benefit from being among her peers, and after a rather prolonged negotiation Rose had finally agreed.

Even though she was in a public ward, Priscilla still demanded private patient attention, pressing the call bell incessantly, complaining loudly about the food and the lack of her own television—to the amusement of her fellow patients, who were starting to tease the little girl and calling her by her nickname of Princess, though not in the affectionate way her mother delivered it.

As annoying as Priscilla could be, as demanding as she was, despite the other nurses’ grumbles when allocated to look after her, Eden actually enjoyed looking after the spoilt little girl. Fiercely intelligent, she had a wry sense of humour. Very pretty, she was also very overweight and had her exhausted working single mother wrapped around her rather podgy little fingers. She was completely used to getting her own way—and quickly, please! Since she’d discovered that the call bell by her bed summoned attention quickly, Priscilla was abusing it to the max, despite the fact she wasn’t on bed rest. However, before Eden again explained that fact, first she had to be sure that there was nothing wrong with the little girl.

‘What’s the problem, Priscilla?’ Eden asked, smiling as she made her way over to the bed.

‘This isn’t the dinner I ordered.’ Frowning down at her plate, Priscilla stabbed at a defenceless piece of roast chicken and vegetables. ‘Mummy ticked the chicken nuggets for me—look.’ She held out the menu card for Eden, but Eden didn’t need to read it to know what was on it.

‘You had nuggets for dinner last night,’ Eden explained patiently, ‘and the previous night as well.’

‘Because I like nuggets.’

‘Do you remember that Dr Nick said you were to have more variety in your diet? Well, instead of having chicken nuggets, why not try having some roast chicken and some of the lovely vegetables?’

‘I don’t like vegetables.’ Priscilla pouted, her bottom lip wobbling, tears filling her big blue eyes, and Eden was grateful that Priscilla’s mother wasn’t there because it was at about this point that Priscilla was used to adults giving in. But Eden stood her ground, undoing the little pack of fruit juice and pouring some out for Priscilla.

‘When Mummy comes I’ll tell her to go and get me some nuggets from the take-away.’

‘You’re going to turn into a nugget one of these days.’ Nick was there, ruffling Priscilla’s hair, grinning broadly and completely ignoring her tears. ‘I told Eden that you were going to eat some veggies for me tonight, Priscilla. Now, you’re not going to make me look silly, are you?’

‘I hate veggies,’ Priscilla snarled, slamming down her knife and fork with a clatter that alerted her fellow patients to the start of yet another of Priscilla’s rather too frequent dramas.

‘Come on Princess, eat your veggies,’ Rory, a cheeky ten-year-old with his leg in traction, called out.

‘Yeah, come on, Princess,’ Declan, a five-year-old post-tonsillectomy patient chimed in.

‘Cut it out, guys,’ Eden warned, pulling the curtains and shutting out the delighted audience while Nick stood firm with his patient.

‘Roast chicken and vegetables are what’s for dinner tonight—’ He didn’t finish. Priscilla’s meal tray crashing loudly to the floor, courtesy of a flash of temper, interrupted the conversation. Her angry face stared defiantly at both Eden and Nick, awaiting their reaction as a few cheers erupted from the other side of the curtains.

‘Whoops,’ Nick said calmly, which clearly wasn’t the reaction Priscilla had been expecting. Her angry face puckered into a frown, her expression changing from fury to utter indignation as Nick calmly continued talking. ‘Not to worry. Accidents happen. Eden can ring down to the canteen and order you another dinner.’

The tears started again, angry furious tears, her pretty face purple with rage.

‘Do you need a hand?’ Becky asked, arriving with the mop and bucket as Eden picked the remains of the meal off the floor. ‘Her mother has just arrived,’ she added in a low tone to Nick as she bent down to help Eden.

‘What’s going on?’ Rose Tarrington clipped into the ward on smart high heels, her petite frame in an expensive chocolate brown suit, well made-up eyes frowning as she pulled open the curtains and surveyed the mess.

‘Priscilla knocked over her dinner,’ Nick responded calmly. ‘Sister’s just going to order her another one.’

‘But she won’t eat that.’ Rose pointed a manicured finger at the messy remains. ‘I know you want her to have some variety, but you can hardly expect her to suddenly start eating roast meat and vegetables overnight!’

‘The other children are,’ Nick broke in, staring around the ward at the other three children, all eating their dinners.

‘Look, Princess.’ Rose made her way over to her daughter’s bedside and cuddled the distraught child. ‘Why don’t you do as the doctor and nurses say? Eat your dinner and then, if you do, I’ll go over the road and get you some ice cream.’

‘Could I have a word at the nurses’ station, please, Ms Tarrington?’ Nick broke in, and Eden watched as the woman stiffened.

‘I’m just talking to my daughter.’

‘It won’t take long.’ Nick’s voice was even but it had a certain ring to it that told everyone present he wasn’t about to take no for an answer.

‘Becky can stay with Priscilla,’ Nick instructed. ‘Eden, would you mind joining us, please?’

Eden rather wished he’d allocated her to clean up the mess and sort out Priscilla. A nine-year-old throwing a tantrum she could deal with blindfolded, but a brutal dose of honesty, as only Nick could deliver it, wasn’t going to be particularly pleasant, though it was called for.

The endless talks with the nursing staff, doctors and dieticians clearly hadn’t made the slightest bit of difference to Rose or Priscilla’s behaviour and now, Eden guessed as she followed Nick to the nurses’ station, the kid gloves were off. Nick’s only priority was his patients.

‘Have a seat.’ Nick gestured to the tense woman, barely waiting till she was seated before diving in.

‘I’ve asked Sister Hadley to sit in so that we can all be on the same page,’ Nick explained. ‘For Priscilla’s sake, we all need to be taking the same approach.

‘We don’t seem to be getting very far, do we, Rose?’ Nick started softly, but Rose Tarrington clearly wasn’t in any mood for a gentle lead-in. Brittle and defensive, she stared angrily back at Nick.

‘Perhaps if you stopped focussing on my daughter’s diet and found out just what the hell the problem is with her stomach, we’d start to make some progress. Priscilla’s been in here a week now and apart from a few blood tests and an X-ray, she’s had nothing done for her.’ Rose’s hands clenched in frustration, her legs tightly crossed. She was the complete opposite to Nick, who sat relaxed and open in the chair opposite. ‘Oh, and an ultrasound,’ Rose spat, more as an afterthought. ‘We could have done all that as outpatients. I’m not asking for favours, but given the fact my daughter’s a private patient…’

‘That has no bearing.’ Nick shook his head. ‘I have a mixture of private and public patients on my list, Rose, and I can assure you they all receive the same treatment from both me and the staff on the ward. Yes, as a private patient Priscilla could, no doubt, have had all these investigations done speedily as an outpatient, but, as I explained to you in Emergency when I admitted your daughter, given that Priscilla has already missed out on a third of her schooling this year, it really is imperative that we find out what’s causing her abdominal pain and causing her to miss so much school. Which…’ As Rose opened her mouth to argue, Nick shook his head, speaking over the angry woman. ‘Which we have,’ he said firmly. ‘The abdominal X-ray showed that Priscilla was chronically constipated, the ultrasound told me that there was nothing acutely wrong and her blood work confirmed my clinical diagnosis. Priscilla is anaemic, her cholesterol is high…’ He paused for a second, only this time Rose didn’t jump in to argue, this time Rose closed her eyes as Nick gently but firmly continued. ‘Now, I could put on her on some iron tablets. However, that would only cause further constipation. To counter that, I could prescribe a fibre supplement, but I don’t think Priscilla would drink it. I could, of course, give her laxatives, but the thing is I’m not prepared to do that when all she needs is a varied, healthy diet and an increase in her physical activity.’

‘That’s all she needs, is it?’ Rose’s tired, angry eyes were bulging as she spoke. ‘You’ve seen what she’s like when she doesn’t get her own way. I work ten-hour days and, yes, it’s easier to pick up a take-away than to start cooking, but what am I supposed to do when it’s the only thing she’ll eat. I can hardly let her go to bed without eating…’

‘You could,’ Nick replied, but Rose just scoffed.

‘You obviously don’t have children, Doctor. Don’t you think I already feel guilty enough about the hours I work, without spending every evening fighting with my daughter over what she wants for dinner and sending her to bed hungry? No doubt you’ll be telling me soon to cut down my hours and start spending more quality time…’ Tears came then, choking, angry tears, her tiny, exhausted frame heaving, her hand pressing on her mouth as she tried to hold it all in. Nick still calmly sat there, not remotely embarrassed, pulling a couple of tissues from the box on the desk and handing them to her before pressing on.

‘I wouldn’t dream of telling you to cut down your hours, Rose. I’m aware that you’re a single parent. You’re doing an amazing job—’

‘Don’t patronise me,’ Rose snarled as she blew her nose. ‘Don’t try and tell me I’m doing well when you clearly think I’m an unfit mother.’

‘No one thinks that.’ Eden said, her voice a gentle interlude from the painful conversation. ‘We’re not ganging up on you, Rose, we all just want to do the best we can for Priscilla. Nick isn’t suggesting that you’re an unfit parent. If that were the case, we’d be having this conversation in an office with a case worker present so, please, let’s try and not go there.’

Standing, Eden fetched a drink of water for Rose from the cooler, a tiny nod the only response from Rose as she handed it to her. Nick waited as Rose had a drink and then continued.

‘Eden’s right. I don’t think that for a moment.’ Nick shook his head. ‘And you’re right as well. I don’t have kids, but my sister is a busy GP with three little ones and is in the process of getting a divorce. I’ve heard from Lily all about the guilt, the endless juggling and the pressures of trying to do the right thing.’

‘It’s just so hard,’ Rose choked.

‘If it carries on like this, Rose, it’s going to get harder,’ Nick said as Rose frowned. ‘Priscilla is so constipated that if the situation continues, very soon she could end up with some overflow.’ When Rose frowned, Nick clarified his words and Rose closed her eyes as he did so. ‘She could have episodes of faecal incontinence. Priscilla has already told some of the nursing staff that she gets teased at school about her weight. Can you imagine how much harder it will be for her if she starts to soil her pants as well?’

Eden half expected an argument, but all the fight seemed to go out of Rose. The hotshot lawyer was gone, leaving just a terrified mum sitting on the chair. ‘She already has,’ Rose whispered through pale, trembling lips. ‘Only once, but…it’s all my fault, isn’t it?’

‘We’re not going there, remember? We’re here to deal with the things we can change, and the past isn’t one of them.’ Nick gave a very nice smile, peeling another wad of tissues out of the box. ‘Come on, Rose, blow your nose and stop the tears and let’s work out what we’re going to do.’ He glanced over at Eden and she took her cue.

‘At the moment Priscilla’s used to getting food as a reward and she’s using it to her advantage,’ Eden explained. ‘For example, you said to her tonight that if she ate her dinner then you’d get her an ice cream.’

‘It’s all I could think of to get her to eat her dinner,’ Rose admitted.

‘How about, leaving out the “if”,’ Eden suggested. ‘Try “Eat your dinner, Priscilla, and then I’ll read to you” or “then we’ll watch a movie together” or “then I’ll help you with your homework”.’

‘Spend some quality time with her?’ Rose asked, only this time it was said without contempt.

‘For want of a word, only in this case it’s time you would usually spend arguing,’ Eden responded. ‘In the morning, you can do the same: “Eat your breakfast and then you can watch some television.”’

‘Make it non-negotiable,’ Nick said, ‘but at the same time make out it’s no big deal. Be matter-of-fact about it—she has to eat her meals, and by that I mean the meals you provide for her, not the ones she demands.

‘And I choose my words carefully, Rose,’ Nick winked, and to Eden’s amazement Rose actually managed a pale smile as he continued. ‘I’m not telling you to grow a vegetable patch and start steaming broccoli every night. Just a normal balanced diet is all Priscilla needs—you, too, no doubt. I’m assuming here that you’re not tucking into the fries and nuggets yourself?’

Rose shook her head.

‘Cheese on toast around midnight?’ Nick asked.

‘Something like that,’ Rose admitted.

‘Me, too,’ Nick sighed. ‘How about you, Eden?’

‘I’m more a bowl-of-cereal girl.’

‘Stop boasting.’ Nick grinned. ‘We’re all guilty of it, Rose. We’ve all got jobs that demand too much of us so we grab something to eat when we can or when we absolutely have to. But as you pointed out, Eden and I don’t have kids, so we can mess up our own health. Look, if you can afford it, why not get your meals delivered for a few weeks? You could choose your menus together, there are a few companies that provide that type of service.’

‘And that would be OK?’

‘Absolutely.’ Nick nodded.

‘And,’ Eden added, ‘if it makes things easier for you, for the next couple of days why not let us deal with Priscilla at mealtimes?’

‘Shouldn’t I be telling her?’ Rose asked wisely. ‘Given that I’m the one that’s going to be dealing with her at home.’

‘You should,’ Eden said, ‘but it’s going to be difficult the first few times. Priscilla isn’t going to take very kindly to the rules suddenly changing and we can take some of the strain for you, so long as you support us. As Nick said, if we’re all working as a team there’s a better chance of getting results. Why don’t you come in at mealtimes and if Priscilla starts to kick up, tell her that you’re going to the canteen for a coffee and that the nurses will ring down once she’s finished her dinner?’

‘You’d do that?’

‘Definitely.’ Eden nodded, peering over Rose’s shoulder as an orderly arrived with a fresh meal. ‘How about we start now?’

‘She’s not going to like it,’ Rose warned.

‘Good,’ Nick said, standing up and shaking Rose’s hand warmly. ‘Because I’m sure you could use a coffee and a bit of time alone to think about what we’ve just said. And for the record, Rose, I wasn’t being patronising before. You are doing an amazing job—Priscilla’s funny, intelligent and incredibly perceptive.’

‘Thank you.’ Rose blushed. ‘She really is my little princess.’ Nick opened his mouth, then clearly thought better of it. Now, perhaps, was not the time to tell Rose to curb her pet name, at least around Priscilla’s peers. ‘I’ll just go to the washroom and freshen up. I don’t want her to see that I’ve been crying.’

As Rose scurried off, Eden expected Nick to do the same, but instead he remained. ‘Thanks for your help. Hopefully some of it got through to Rose.’

‘I think a lot of it got through,’ Eden replied generously. ‘You were really good with her.’

‘Probably because I’ve had a lot of practice around tearful women lately,’ Nick said, but as Eden’s lips pursed his face broke into a slightly incredulous smile. ‘You’re really quick to think the worst of me, aren’t you, Eden? When I said I’d been around tearful women lately, I was actually referring to my sister, Lily.’

‘Oh.’ Blushing, Eden scuffed the floor with her foot. ‘Well, you can hardly blame me for assuming…’ Her voice trailed off, and Nick did absolutely nothing to fill the uncomfortable silence. Eden willed Rose to hurry back, terrified that if she looked up, Nick might catch a glimpse of the jealous feelings that seemed to choke her whenever she pictured him with another woman. However, her mouth was moving ahead of her mind and wretched emotions were taking over. Wincing inside, yet completely unable to stop herself, a tiny slice of truth came out. ‘I just don’t like seeing people used, that’s all.’

‘Used?’ She could hear the frown in his voice without looking up, and Eden knew she’d gone too far, knew that she had to pull back now before irretrievable damage was done, before Nick realised how much she was hurting. Forcing a very cheeky smile, she dragged her eyes back to his.

‘Yes, used, Nick. Just because you’re blond and gorgeous, it doesn’t mean that you don’t have feelings, too!’ And even though he smiled at her joke, it didn’t quite reach his eyes and Eden knew her attempt at recovery hadn’t quite succeeded. ‘I’m allowed to worry about you—that’s what friends do.’

The smile was back in his eyes now, and Eden gave an inward sigh of relief as Rose appeared.

‘Good luck,’ Nick called as Eden and Rose headed back towards Priscilla’s bedside, just in time to see Becky setting up the replacement meal tray.

‘Oh, look.’ Rose smiled. ‘Roast chicken—yum!’ Her tone was a touch forced, but Eden was pleased to see how hard she was trying. ‘Now, come on, eat up your dinner and then you can read to me.’

‘I’m not eating that filth!’ Priscilla snarled. Her hand moved towards the tray, but Eden was too quick for her.

‘Oh, no.’ Eden held onto the tray, holding the young girl’s angry glare. ‘There are plenty more trays down in the canteen, Priscilla. I can ring down for more all evening if I have to, but we’re not wasting good food like that.’

‘Well, I’m not eating it.’ Priscilla’s bottom lip was working overtime and she squeezed out a tear for effect. ‘Mummy, I don’t like roast chicken!’

‘That’s what’s for dinner tonight, Priscilla.’ Rose took a deep breath and Eden felt sorry for her, knowing how hard it must be for her to be firm when her daughter lay in a hospital bed. ‘Now, it looks so nice that I’m going down to the canteen to have some dinner myself. When you’re finished, Eden here will ring me and I’ll come back up.’

‘Mummy!’ Priscilla wasn’t squeezing tears out now—they were coming thick and fast of their own accord. ‘Mummy, don’t leave me!’

‘As soon as your dinner’s finished, darling, I’ll come back up.’ Hiding tears of her own, Rose turned quickly, hurrying out of the ward. Eden ran after her as Becky stayed with a shrieking Priscilla.

‘She’ll be fine,’ Eden soothed. ‘You did so well.’

‘I can’t do this every night,’ Rose sobbed.

‘You won’t have to,’ Eden said. ‘As soon as Priscilla realises that you’re serious, she’ll start eating properly. Rose, just remember that all you are asking is for her to eat her dinner, not walk on hot coals. There’s nothing unreasonable or unfair about what you’re doing.’

‘I know,’ Rose gulped.

‘Now, go and have a coffee or dinner. I promise that we’ll look after her and as soon as she’s made a reasonable effort with her dinner, I’ll ring you.’

‘And if she doesn’t?’

‘I’ll ring down for you anyway.’ Eden smiled. ‘But let’s stay positive.’

In fact, by the time Eden returned to the bedside, the tears had stopped and Priscilla was sitting upright with her arms folded pointedly, not looking up as Eden made her way over.

‘Thanks, Becky.’

‘No worries.’ Becky grinned, scooting off to check on her own patients.

‘Your mum has just gone to have some dinner,’ Eden said, picking up a rather impressive book on Priscilla’s bedside. ‘Is this yours?’

When Priscilla didn’t answer, Eden pressed on, unperturbed. ‘It’s a huge book for a nine-year-old.’

‘It’s easy.’ Priscilla bristled.

‘Well, I don’t think so—all those funny names and spells and trying to work out who the baddy is….’

‘You’ve read it?’ Priscilla blinked, curiosity overriding her anger for a moment.

‘Not this one,’ Eden admitted, ‘but I’ve read four in the series and I’m hoping someone will get me this one for Christmas.’

‘But it’s a kid’s book.’

‘So?’ Sitting down at the bedside, Eden peeled off the cover on Priscilla’s dinner. ‘Come on, Priscilla, eat your dinner and then I’ll call downstairs for Mum to come up. She said you were going to read to her tonight, and she’s really looking forward to it.’ Pretending to ignore her, Eden concentrated on the blurb at the back of the book as Eden slowly picked up her knife and fork.

‘I don’t like broccoli.’

Eden flicked the pages, deliberately not looking up. ‘Eden, I really don’t like broccoli.’

‘Neither do I.’ Eden smiled. ‘OK. How about you eat everything else? If you do that, you can leave the broccoli.’

‘I don’t like carrots.’

‘Priscilla.’ Eden’s voice held a warning. ‘If you eat all your carrots, potato and chicken, then you can leave the broccoli.’ Turning back to the book, she flicked the pages. ‘Where are you up to?’

To an onlooker, Eden knew she probably looked as if she was doing nothing but sitting on the bed as Priscilla slowly worked her way through her meal, but, Eden knew exactly what she was doing; knew she had the best job in the world. Rose had trusted her enough to go down to the canteen and Priscilla was actually eating her dinner. They might not be cutting-edge science, but tonight she and Nick had hopefully made a difference, a huge difference, in a little girl’s life.

And Priscilla did very well!

Eden’s heart swelled with pride as finally the plate was if not clean then almost so. Priscilla had even had a small piece of the broccoli.

‘Well done, honey.’ Eden grinned and picked up the tray, careful not too make too much of a fuss but also wanting to acknowledge Priscilla’s effort. ‘How about I go and ring down to the canteen for your mum?’

‘Are you on in the morning?’ Priscilla asked, and Eden shook her head.

‘I’m on another late shift. I’ll come and check on you a bit later. You enjoy reading to your mum.’

‘How did Priscilla get on with her dinner?’ Nick asked a while later, when Becky was on her supper break and Eden was giving a grumpy six-month-old named Justin the last of his bottle.

Eden loved this time of night on the children’s ward. At seven the main lights were switched off and the curtains drawn and, despite the light Sydney evening outside, the whole ward was plunged into darkness, filled with the sounds of babies’ and toddlers’ final protests as their parents or nurses soothed them off to sleep, the background drone of the television in the older children’s rooms. Usually with Donna, the unit manager, gone and most doctors long since headed for home there was a chance for Eden to take her time feeding a baby or sit on a bed and have a chat with a lonely patient or just catch up with the mountain of paperwork involved in nursing these days. It was one of the main reasons she often volunteered for the late shift.