A Voyage Within Qalb

Chapter 01: Perfect, Or So I Believe

16th February 2020

"The Prophet said, "My Lord knows whatever is said throughout the heaven and earth, and He is the Hearing, the Knowing."" (21:4)

Chapter 01: 

Perfect, Or So I Believe

Winter rolled out a thick white carpet of snow in the city of Inersaw, creating a significant buzz in Vitals Hospital, but that wasn't Dr. Laeeq Abdullah's concern. Being the cardiologist-on-call, he had little to do with patients tolerating runny noses or a viral cold. Snowflakes fell serenely outside the thick glass walls, twinkling in the orange streetlights as he stood facing the traffic from the Doctor's Common Room.

His attention was soon drawn to an ambulance which sped into the Emergency Entrance. Laeeq watched as two young women climbed down before the nurses rushed outside to receive the patient; a small boy strapped to the stretcher.

One of the young women suddenly looked up to where Laeeq was standing, or perhaps she was just looking at the building in general, but Laeeq took a step backwards. He had no explanation to offer; her pale, terrified, soft features encased in a dark purple scarf remained in his memory for a little longer than he expected it to.

"Emergency! Suspected SVT infant!" A nurse announced over the PA.

Laeeq picked up his stethoscope and walked out, he had already trained himself to ignore the blaring alarm lights accompanied by the sirens which rang out above his head. It crossed his mind that this was probably be the young boy who had just arrived in the ambulance. As the nurse led him down to Pediatric Cardiology unit, his doubts were confirmed. The Purple Hijabi was gone, but her companion, the one with a lime green hijab, was in the separated OPD, holding the baby down.

"Assalam Alaykum, I'm Dr. Laeeq." He informed after sliding the curtain aside. "Are you the mother?" Laeeq asked as he entered.

"Wa Alaykum Assalam. No, but I'm the guardian--" She started.

"Please get the gown and gloves for the guardian." Laeeq said to one of the nurses, not sparing her a second glance.

"I--"

"Ma'am, follow our instructions for now." Laeeq interrupted her. "We can talk later, In Shaa Allah."

The woman nodded.

"You'll have to hold the baby down, like this." Laeeq demonstrated. "Get the IV needle ready, and where are the electrodes?" He asked the intern.

The nurses and other junior doctors bustled around the bed as the young woman held the baby down. Laeeq inserted the needle in the baby's arm as he squirmed, filling the air with screams. The intern taped the electrodes to the infant.

"They were at the mall when this happened. Phoenix Tarktis." The nurse spoke. "A pediatrician was around, thankfully, and he found the baby's heartbeat too fast to count. He called an ambulance immediately, and it turned out to be SVT."

Laeeq nodded as the baby shrieked in pain. The machine beside him jumped to life, showing a clear 246 beats per minute and setting off another alarm.

"Reset his heart with adenosine." Laeeq ordered as the baby suddenly stopped crying and began again, this time louder. "It's metabolising quickly, we need to trigger the vagal nerve. If that's not enough, get ready for a Diver's Reflex."

"What's happening to him?!" The woman asked urgently after a while, close to tears. "Is he going to be okay? Is he --"

"Adenosine isn't working." Laeeq muttered.