Mending Broken Hearts

7. Focus on Her

Pensive silence followed as we looked at the patient in front of us. She meant the world to me, but even for others in our team she was a friend, a colleague, a student, a trainee. In her they probably all saw a part of themselves. And we haven't even talked about the baby yet.

"Dr Muller, what about the baby? Should we be giving Noor steroids?", I asked. 

He nodded solemnly, "I think we have no choice"

There was a reason for his reluctant acceptance. Noor's baby was only 32 weeks. If it were born now, its lungs would not be fully developed and it could have breathing problems for life. If the baby survived this newborn period, that is. 

Steroids would help the fetus's lungs develop faster. But that came at a cost to Noor. The steroids would also suppress her own immune system at a time when her body was wracked with pathogens and she needed every cell in her body to fight it. Giving her steroids was akin to pushing her into a boxing ring with one hand tied behind her back. 

That was not a fair match. 

But it was match, I knew, she would willingly fight for the sake of her baby. 

Madi must have read my mind because as soon as the attending and fellow went into the room to examine her, she whispered to me, "Balancing the mother and baby's life is always tricky. But with the antibiotics and antiviral treatment on board for Noor, steroids are the best chance of survival for both her and her baby"

"InshaAllah"

Madiha

10:00 AM

The rest of our rounds went faster, but the waiting game we were playing did not ease up. In fact the longer I went without hearing from Salman, despite my numerous texts the more I was worried for him too. Even Osman had asked me multiple times if I had heard from him. 

"I am worried for him.", he admitted quietly. A far cry from the abrasive tone he had taken up just a little while ago. His voice, an indication of acceptance of Salman as Noor's husband, soothed something deep inside me. 

I didn't even know what it was, but I ignored it. I didn't have time to understand it right now. 

Instead I glanced at my phone again. All I had was a text message from Kim saying that the Pediatric Department had officially asked Chicago Police Department to assist in locating Salman. A little while later she texted again. The police had been able to reach Salman's mother in Kentucky. According to her he had abruptly left their house around midnight. They had assumed he was driving back to Chicago, but hadn't heard anything from him either.

"Maybe he hadn't heard from Noor, got worried and then decided to drive back to Chicago. But if he did, the drive from Kentucky to Chicago is about 5 hours, he left his parent's house 9 hours ago. So why isn't he here yet?", Omar remarked when I updated him. 

I had no answers for him. The only thing I could do is focus on the task at hand; being the senior resident of an ICU team that was taking care of the sickest of sick patients in the hospital. Summoning my inner duck, calm on the surface paddling like crazy under the water, I started to work on Noor's admit note when my sister sent me a text. 

'Call QUICKLY. Need help!'

Of course, my mind immediately went to someone in my family falling seriously ill. That was the fate everyone around me was faced with at the moment. But when I called her back she just wanted some money to buy a present for her new fiancé whose birthday it happened to be that day. 

"Are you kidding me, Maliha?", I stared at my phone incredulously, "That is the problem you sent me an SOS for?"

"It is an SOS. This is the first time we're spending his birthday as a couple and Abu gave me $20 to buy him a present", she replied, "Madi tell me, how am I supposed to buy a present for a man worth millions himself, with 20 dollars"