A Time of Healing and Change
Part 18
By Cari
cxcarleo@naz.edu

Wow, Part 18 of this series. I never imagined that it would get this long, and each day that I come up with a new story line, it seems to get even longer.

This starts on Saturday, just two days after the last one ended. In this piece, you will meet Rosemarie Phillips and Leonard Ferraro. Rosemarie Phillips is a nanny that Doug had hired upon the recommendation of Haleh. They hired her so quickly because Haleh had used her for years, it was just now that her kids were older and they did not need a nanny. Leonard Ferraro is the Chairman of the Hospital Board. I don't know if this person ever has a name on the show, and if he does, I cannot remember it, so I made this one up.

Notes: Those of you who read a version of this story prior to July 25, 2000 will notice that I have changed the format a little to make it easier to read. The story has changed slightly as I found a few things that needed to be fixed, but the overall story is still the same.

In addition, I have been alerted that Ripley's may be an Americanism unfamiliar to foreign readers. What it refers to is a chain of museums that have unbelievable things that carries the name Ripley.

Lucy is still alive. That is why she's mentioned here.

This one is rated PG for sexual references, although there is no sex.

Songs: Forever and Ever Amen by Randy Travis

Thanks go to Rachel for allowing me to bounce ideas off her. Please e-mail me with any feedback that you may have.

As always, I do not own any of the characters and make no money from their use.

Doug is sitting in the rocking chair in their bedroom, holding Carol, who had been crying for the better part of an hour and a half. She was no longer sobbing, but crying lightly. She had developed a migraine on top of the side effects of chemo, and was miserable. Doug had done all that he could think of to help her, and it had not worked, so finally an hour or so earlier; he had placed a call to Dr. Jurney


FLASHBACK


Doug said, "Hi Dr. Jurney, this is Doug Ross, Carol's husband."

"Hi how are you? How is Carol doing today?"

"Not great. She has a migraine, so the nausea has started all over again. I am worried about dehydration."

"That's definitely something to be concerned about, and normally I would recommend admitting her for a day or two to buff her up, but I know she doesn't want to be here. What if I sent a messenger over with IV saline, and the necessary supplies? Would you feel comfortable administering that?"

"Of course. You don't need to send it via messenger. You can bring it down to the ER and ask Dr. Lewis to bring it home with her."

"I will do that. I will also fill a a new prescription for Compazine, at a higher dose and give
that to Dr. Lewis as well. I hope that these will work. If not, call me in the morning and we may have to admit her."

"OK, thank you for your help."


END FLASHBACK


Just then, Susan came into the darkened room. Doug had turned off the lights in an attempt to help Carol's headache, so the only light was provided by the fading daylight outside.

"How is she?" Susan whispered.

"Not great. She developed a migraine on top of every thing else."

"Oh poor baby."

Doug whispered to Carol, "Susan just got here with the meds. How do you want to do this?"

"Is the Compazine going in the IV?"
Susan shook her head no and said, "Dr. Jurney considered it but thought you might not want an IV each time you needed the Compazine."

"OK." Carol shifted slightly to allow Doug to give her the Compazine. After he gave it to her, she said, "Let me get in bed before you put the IV in, it will be easier that way."

Susan pulled down the sheets as Doug laid Carol in bed. "It doesn't matter to me which of you does it, but will the other hold my hand?"

"I'll be the bad guy," Doug said, prepping Carol's arm with an alcohol swab.

Susan took Carol's other hand and said, "Squeeze if you need to."

Carol said, "Thanks so much for bringing this all home."

"You're welcome. I was surprised when Dr. Jurney brought it down, but glad to be able to help."

"Oww," Carol said, fresh tears coming to her eyes.

"All done, I just need to tape it," Doug said.

After Doug taped it, Carol said, "Thanks guys."

"You're welcome."

"Why don't you guys go eat?"

"You don't need us to stay?"

"I'll be ok. I'm going to fall asleep in a few minutes, and you guys need to eat and get the room ready. But thanks for all you have both done. I know all I need to do is call for you and you'll be right here so you don't need to stay right in the room."

Doug gave Carol a kiss and said, "I have Emma's old monitor with me, and I put the other end here. So just say something if you need us."

"OK, I will."

"I'll come check on you in a few minutes."

Doug and Susan headed to the kitchen and made sandwiches for dinner. "How was work today?"

"Not bad. Pretty quiet. How was your day? Was Suzy good for you?"

"Of course. She went to bed right on time without any trouble because she knew I needed to take care of Carol."

"She told me she was going to help you however she could."

"She did. She even cleared the table after lunch. I'm glad that Ms. Phillips can start tomorrow. I feel better not having them in day care all the time. Plus Carol wanted to have Emma around while she was home but knew there was no way she could take care of her full time."

"This works out really well. Suzy was nervous at first because she thought it meant she couldn't go to school anymore. But once I explained that she still would, she was so happy."

"I'm glad. And this makes things easier for you too. I really appreciate you taking care of Emma so much this past week."

"It was no problem. After all that you two have done for me, it was the least I could do. Did you want to get Ms. Phillips' room ready?"

"Sure," Doug started to say but he was interrupted by the telephone.

The screen splits as Doug answers the telephone.

"Hello"

"Hey Doug, it's Kerry. How are you? How is Carol?"

"I'm OK. Carol had a rough day but she is doing better now."

"That's good to hear. I won't keep you long, I just wanted to let you know the Board hearing
is scheduled for Monday at 9 AM."

"I can't believe they even agreed to hear the case."

"Neither can I. But rest assured that you have the full support of everyone down here. I have
everything prepared to document that we were more than adequately staffed."

"Thank you. I want to forewarn you that if the Board acts against me, I'm going to quit."

"I would not blame you. I don't think you will have anything to worry about."

"Thanks for your support."

"You're welcome. Have a good rest of the weekend."

"You too."

Doug and Susan started to prepare the room that Ms. Phillips would use. There was already a full bedroom set from the previous owners, so Susan and Doug just put fresh sheets on the bed and placed a few drawings that Suzy had made for Ms Phillips on the dresser. They also put fresh towels in the bathroom.

Susan asked Doug, "What time is she due to arrive tomorrow?"

"Around 11:30 AM."

"OK, I get off at 4 so I'll be home around 4:30."

"That's good timing because we invited Mark and Elizabeth for a barbecue at 5."

"Oh yes, Elizabeth mentioned that she had some news to share with us. I hope Carol is up to the barbecue."

"I think she will be. Most of the side effects have passed; today she just got an awful migraine. Being out of Compazine did not help the situation at all. Even if she isn't totally feeling better, she will still be OK."

"If I had known, I would have come home on my break and brought that, if not the IV fluids."

"It didn't get bad until about two hours ago. She was getting dehydrated and that's what was making it worse. I'm just glad she didn't have to be admitted, she doesn't want to be in the hospital."

"I don't think she will need to be admitted, having two doctors in the house. Dr Jurney sent over 6 or 7 saline bags so that should be more than enough to hydrate her until the Compazine takes effect."

It is around 11:15 the next morning. Carol is sitting at the breakfast table holding Emma. Emma has taken hold of Carol's finger and is gumming it to death. "I think she's starting to teethe," Carol said to Doug.

Looking over from doing dishes, Doug commented, "Either that, or your finger just tastes really good."

"I have never heard you complain before about how my finger tastes," Carol said with a smile.

"And you never will," Doug said coming over and kissing her seductively on her neck.

"Be good, Suzy is in the other room," Carol said, smiling, as she returned his kiss.

Right then Suzy, who had been watching for Ms. Phillips out the window, came bounding into the kitchen, "She's here, she's here."

"OK, kiddo," Doug said. "Why don't we see if we can help her with her stuff?"

Doug, Carol (holding Emma), and Suzy all walked out to meet Ms. Phillips. "It's good to see you again, Dr. and Mrs. Ross."

"Doug and Carol, please," Doug said, reaching for one of her suitcases.

"Only if you'll call me Rosemarie."

"It's a deal."

"What should I call you?" Suzy asked.

"How about Mrs. P?"

"That sounds good."

Because lifting the suitcases would be too much for Carol, she showed Rosemarie to what would be her room. "I hope you like it," Carol said. "We can change some things if you prefer."

"It is perfect the way it is," she said, putting one of her bags on the bed. "How are you feeling? I was so sad when Haleh told me that you were ill."

"I'm doing ok, thanks. The surgery went well, and I had one round of chemo last week. I knew I would need some help with Emma and Suzy because I don't have all my strength."

"I was glad to be available. I'm sure we will have a lot of fun."

By now, Doug and Suzy had brought in most of Rosemarie's stuff. Carol said, "We will leave you to get unpacked and settled in. And then we can show you around the house. Does that sound good?"

"Perfect. Suzy, would you like to keep me company while I unpack?"

"Sure."

Doug and Carol headed to the living room, where Carol put Emma in her playpen for a nap, and then snuggled next to Doug on the couch. "How do you feel?"

"OK," she said, resting her head on his shoulder. "I'm just tired, and my head still hurts a little. But I feel a lot better than yesterday."

"I'm glad. I felt so bad because I didn't know what to do to help you."

"There wasn't anything. I just hope I don't have too many days like that."

"I hope so too, but we'll get through them if you do. We now know the higher dose of Compazine is better and that the IV fluids help, so maybe next time we can head it off before it gets really bad."

"Yeah. I am sorry I was such a baby about the IV, it did not hurt that much. I was just in a 'mood'."

"It's OK. You've been stuck so many times the past week or so you have every right to hate needles."

Carol shifted her position, and he lifted her into his lap. "More comfy?" he asked.

"Yeah, my neck was getting stiff the other way." She lay her head against his chest, and he started to rub her back. "Do you want to know what, of all the things you have done in the past two days, made me feel the best?"

"Sure."

"It was earlier, when Emma was making a meal out of my finger, and then you came over and kissed me the way you did. It made me feel very special. I hadn't been feeling very good about myself since the surgery, but you made me feel very good. I needed that. I know you have always said you will always love me, no matter what I look like, but I needed to feel it. And that kiss did the job."

"I haven't just said it, I have meant it. You will always be my girl, no matter what. Do know the song Forever and Ever, Amen by Randy Travis?"

"Yeah, you used it in the TV Special."

"That's right, and one of the lines goes like this:

They say time takes its toll on a body
Makes a young girl's brown hair turn gray
Well, honey, I don't care
I ain't in love with your hair
And if it all fell out I'd love you anyway

And that is exactly how I feel. I'm in love with this," Doug said, pushing his finger lightly against Carol's heart.

"Thank you."

"And you'll always be beautiful to me."

It is now a little after 5:00, Susan had gotten home, and Mark and Elizabeth had come over. They were all sitting on the back patio. Mark and Doug were playing chef for the night, while Susan, Carol, Elizabeth, and Rosemarie were sitting and talking. Suzy was sitting at the table coloring, and Emma was in her swing.

Susan said to Elizabeth, "So I hear you have some good news to share?"

"As a matter of fact, I do. Hey Doug, listen for a second."

"OK." "OK, well on Thursday I had a doctor's appointment, and I found out that around January 26th, 2001, Mark and I will become parents."

"Congratulations," Susan said, hugging Elizabeth.

Doug came over, gave her a hug and said, "So that's why you didn't have any of the beer the other night."

"Yup. I was wondering if you'd guess."

"I had no idea. But I'm very happy for both of you. We'll toast when dinner is ready. I think we have some sparkling cider in the fridge."

"Sounds like a plan."

Susan said to Carol, "You don't seem surprised at all."

"That's because she already knew," Elizabeth offered. "I figured she could use some good news so I told her the other night."

Susan asked Rosemarie, "Is it weird to go from living with one hospital family to another?"

"It's kind of funny the way it worked out, but I'm glad."

"We're definitely glad to have you, and Suzy has already pronounced you to be 'cool'," Susan said with a laugh.

"I'm honored. This worked out very well because I didn't want to leave Chicago but knew I would have to if I didn't find another job. So I'm glad for this opportunity."

It is now around 10 PM, and Mark and Elizabeth had left. Suzy and Emma are in bed, and Susan, Doug, Carol and Rosemarie are sitting around Doug and Carol's kitchen table.

Carol said, "I'm not sure how you worked your schedule with Haleh's family, but is there any particular way you would like to do it here?"

"I am flexible. The only thing I would like is to have time to attend Mass either on Saturday evening or Sunday mornings if that is possible."

Doug said, "That's fine. Do you want to make Sunday your off day so you can take care of other things if the need arises?"

"That sounds great. Most weeks I would not need more than a few hours, but this way I have it if I need it."

Carol said, "I will be home most of the time, at least for awhile, so I'll be around to help you. It's just that I can't manage full time caring for Emma with being sick because I tire easily."

"That's understandable. If you need help with anything, just ask and I will be more than happy to help you."

"Thanks. I appreciate that. We have Emma's baby monitor in our room, so as long as one of us is home at night, which should usually be the case, you won't have to get up with her."

"I would not mind doing it from time to time. Is there anyway to get another monitor so I can hear her?"

Doug said, "Sure. I will take care of that tomorrow."

"Now what time does Suzy have to be at school in the mornings?"

Susan answered, "School starts at 9, but they like the children to all be there by 8:45, if possible. It usually takes about 20 minutes to get there with the traffic at that time. Then school gets out at 3:30."

"OK. Do either of the girls have any allergies to food or anything?"

Doug said, "No. But speaking of food, please feel free to eat whatever food you like at any time. We rarely have dinner planned out ahead of time, but just let us know foods you like and we can make them as well."

Susan said, "And you are more than welcome to anything in my kitchen as well."

"I can take care of preparing meals if you like."

Carol said, "That's not necessary. We can all take turns though."

"That sounds like a good plan."

It is the next morning around 7:15. Doug is getting ready to leave for work. He is nervous about how the hearing will go and about leaving Carol. He sits on the edge of the bed, and this causes Carol to wake up. "Hey," he said softly, giving her a kiss. "I have to leave in a few minutes for work. Will you be ok?"

"Yes, thanks. I'm going to sleep a little while longer, and then I will get up."

"There's no rush, Rosemarie is up with Emma and getting breakfast ready. She will bring Emma with her when she takes Suzy to school, so you can sleep as long as you want."

"I know. It just looks nice out and I don't want to spend the whole day in bed. I was thinking about going to the nursery and getting some plants and flower pots for the front steps."

"That will look very nice."

"Call me after the hearing to let me know how it goes?"

"I will, and you call me if you need anything."

"I will, love you."

"I love you too."

A few minutes before 9:00, Kerry, Doug and Mark headed up to the Boardroom. Already seated in there were Romano, Anspaugh, and the Board chairman.

Chairman Ferraro said, "Since we are here, we can begin. I have to say, it is a welcome relief, Kerry and Doug, to see the two of you on the same side. I believe this may be a first."

Kerry said, chuckling, "Should we call Ripley's?"

Romano said, "Can we please get down to business here. Some of us have work to do."

Chairman Ferraro said, "Certainly. Now I understand you were the one to request the first part of this hearing. Would you like to present your case?"

"Thursday evening, slightly before 11 PM, Doug was in the lounge doing charts and preparing to leave for the night. I came into the lounge and asked that he stay longer to make up for the time that people had covered for him since he had been off since Saturday. He said he was not going to stay, and so I called for this hearing."

"Doug, is this correct?"

"Yes. One thing that I would like to add is that we were more than adequately staffed Thursday
night. Susan was on until midnight, Mark was on all night, as were Carter, Dave Malucci and Lucy. There was no reason for me to have to stay. I wanted to be home with Carol to see that she was ok, but I would have stayed if it had been necessary."

"Kerry, do you have the computer printout of who was on that night?"

"Yes I do and it verifies what Doug said. In addition, I was on call that night so I could have
come in if the need had arisen."

(Brief pause while Chair looks over Kerry's documents)

"With all due respect Robert, I have no idea why we are even here. The ER was adequately staffed, and there was no reason for Doug to stay."

"Why should people stay through the night when Doug, who had worked one shift since
Friday night, got to go home. I am sure Carol is quite capable of taking care of herself. She is a nurse."

Anspaugh commented, "If I may add something. Chairman, you may not know the circumstances, but Carol just underwent a masectomy and is undergoing chemo, which I believe she had received her first dose of that morning. It is understandable that Doug would want to make sure that she was ok. If they needed someone else in the ER, I would have gladly come in to allow Doug to go home and check on Carol."

Mark added, "And I would not have wanted Doug to take my shift. If I were in his situation, I would want to be home as well. I know he would have worked extra hours if the situations were reversed, and I didn't mind at all. "

The Chairman asked, "Robert, were you aware of this?"

"Yes, and it does not change my view. She is a nurse, and she can take care of herself. If she needed supervision, they would not have released her."

Doug, getting frustrated said, "That is beside the point. She was well enough to be released, but she had awful side effects that afternoon."

The Chairman interjected, "I completely understand what you are saying Doug, and I agree with you. Other than Robert, does anyone here disagree?"

(A Pause)

"OK Doug, I am ruling in your favor. You did nothing wrong. Robert, I suggest you think a
little more before you waste our time with hearings of a frivolous nature. Now, who here has business pertinent to the second hearing?"

(Kerry, Mark, and Don Anspaugh raise their hands).

The chairman asked, "Doug, can you stay to represent Carol since she is unable to be here?"

"Sure. I thought she had been told that the Board would not hear her complaint unless she was
here."

"We waived that requirement given the circumstances. I'm sorry that follow up message never got to her. I have her notarized statement, so we can still proceed. Mark, you are here for yourself or for Elizabeth?"

"For Elizabeth."

Romano asked angrily, "Now what exception was she granted that she didn't have to be here?"

The chairman asked, "She was supposed to be here, and you knew she would be. Isn't it coincidental you gave her an appendectomy to do? Robert, I'm going to be blunt with you, you know we have been looking for a replacement for you for some time. These recent allegations against you don't help your cause at all. "

"This is ludicrous. Just because people are hyper sensitive…"

Kerry spat, "This goes far beyond being sensitive, and you know it. The way you treat people is horrendous."

"Robert, do you deny making these statements?" Chairman shows Romano Carol and Elizabeth's
statements.

"Well…."

"Yes or No"

"No"

"Consider yourself suspended on grounds of harassment. The Board has unanimously approved a suspension of 60 days. By that time, a replacement will have been hired. Therefore, I would suggest you find yourself a new job."

"I will see your ass in court for this."

(He storms from the room.)

Then the Chairman said, "Now that that is taken care of. Kerry, as we discussed earlier, would you consider the position of acting Chief of Staff pending the Board's confirmation of you as permanent Chief?"

"Yes that's fine. How is the search for a new Chief of ER Medicine going?"

"Very well. We have it down to 10 possibilities. I was going to ask you and Mark each to
take a few of the resumes to look over and maybe schedule appointments with them if your schedules permit. Doug, you'll be happy to hear that at least two have focused a lot of time in pediatrics. I thought you might want to look at their qualifications and meet with them. Once the three of you have done that, I'd ask you to choose one. Then the Board can meet with the three of them and make a decision. Does that work for all of you?"

Each of them indicated that was fine.

"Unless anyone has any other business to discuss, we can adjourn for the day."

(A pause as he listens for anyone to comment)

"Very well. Doug, please tell Carol that I hope she is feeling better. She doesn't have to rush back under any circumstances, as her position will be held for her as long as she needs."

"Thank you."

Doug, Kerry, and Mark walk out together. As soon as the door shuts behind them, Doug said, "I can't believe he's gone."

"Even thought I knew it was supposed to happen, I was worried that somehow it wouldn't go through," Kerry said.

"Congratulations on your promotion," Doug said.

"Thanks. Are you going to call Carol with the good news?"

"Yes. Mark, look Elizabeth is up ahead, why don't you catch up with her and tell her the good news."

"I will do that. I'll meet you guys downstairs in a little while."

Mark walked quickly and called, "Hey, Elizabeth." She turned at the sound of his voice and waited for him to catch up with her. Before she got the chance to say anything Mark asked, "How are you feeling? You left to early this morning, I didn't get to see you."

"I'm ok. I was a little sick this morning, but it didn't last long and I feel better now. I'm sorry I left so early. I had to scrub in at 7:00."

"That's ok. When you next see Kerry, be sure to congratulate her on her promotion." Elizabeth had a bewildered look on her face and Mark said, "She's acting Chief of Staff until the Board confirms her permanently for the position."

Elizabeth's jaw dropped, and she asked cautiously, "He's gone?"

"Yes. Suspended for sixty days and by then Kerry will be confirmed for the position. Dr. Ferarro suggested he find himself a new job."

Elizabeth had a huge smile on her face and said, "I feel horrible for saying this, but I am so glad. No more having to deal with him-at all!"

"I think that's the general consensus. They are pretty close to choosing a new Chief of ER Meds too."

"Are you in the running?"

"Dr. Ferarro offered to nominate me, but I turned it down. I don't want that much administrative stuff. I like seeing patients."

"That's probably a smart move. So do they have a list of candidates?"

"Yes. Ten in total, and Kerry, Doug and I were each given a few resumes to look over and candidates to call. This, however, is the total list of candidates."

As Elizabeth looked the list over, and when she saw the name Alicia Lewiston she thought to herself, "No, it couldn't be…"