Sandra Ball is a young actress who’s career was propelled by appearances in two spy thriller movies. As the result of an accident she is injured, trapped, and alone in a wooded area. She is rescued but faces a shattered career and a vastly altered life. Will that life be cut short by men more dangerous than the spies she faced on the screen?
Twenty minutes later she was airborne. Joan ran into Dr. Jenkins. “What was your diagnosis?”
“You tell me yours first. I want to hear it from an expert.” He smiled. He was a surgeon who listened to the information from the ER nurses. It had saved him making a mistake a couple times and he knew it. He wanted to hear what they thought at times like this.
“Circulation almost nil from about 7 to 8 cm above the knees both legs. Too many fractures to count. Knee joints and ankle joints badly damaged. Femur, tibia and fibula with several fractures each. Some nerve damage, some loss of sensory below the knew, partial loss of motor control, worse in the right leg. Doubt circulation can be fixed, at best it will be less than enough to support good healing. Muscles in back of both lower legs damaged by lack of circulation. They were cut off too long. Possible gangrene in several places. Prognosis for saving lower legs, near zero or zero. Prognosis for saving knees, almost as near zero.”
“Are you sure you didn’t listen in on our consult?”
“You know I didn’t. I was with the patient. Does that mean I am close?”
“Well.”
“That’s a deep hole.”
“I would say that you could have written the diagnosis and saved the studio four consult fees. You know we almost wound up in one very deep hole.”
“How’s that?”
“The studio attorney called. If we had amputated any portion of either of her legs the hospital and all of us would have been sued.”
“Why? It is probably the only way to help her.”
“She is a couple days short of finishing a movie. They have over nine mill in it with likely return of over ninety mill. If we amputate they flush nearly nine mill. If that happens they sue us.”
“But if she signs the consent how can that be?”
“Her consent isn’t any good.”
“You mean she doesn’t own her body?”
“In a sense, she doesn’t. The studio does according to her contract.”
“So if her doctor says it is right to do and she agrees and the studio says, “No” then the studio rules.”
“Yes.”
“That is frightening. In a sense the studio lawyers make medical decisions.”
“That’s probably not accurate but it isn’t totally wrong.”
“Do they have medical degrees?”
“No. And we have just proven an ER nurse would have made a better decision. Not putting down ER nurses, but that gives you a perspective.”
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