Duc was weighing everything up. ‘It’s just unusual. For some people chikungunya is symptomless,’ he explained to Vivienne. ‘But this has hit this family so hard and so fast it must be some kind of vicious strain.’
Viv wrinkled her nose. ‘What does that mean? They’ve all been bitten by the same mosquito?’
Duc shook his head. ‘No. One person usually gets bitten and becomes infectious. If they then get bitten by another mosquito, it can pass the virus to another person. Literally, the virus could have passed between them all in a matter of days.’
‘Is there a cure? A treatment?’ Viv asked hopefully. She hadn’t got that far in the crib sheet yet—there just hadn’t been time.
She liked the way they were discussing the case. They were all comparing notes, looking for the most likely cause.
Duc shook his head again. ‘No cure. No vaccine. Just treatment. Those with underlying conditions, the young, and the elderly are most at risk of developing complications.’
‘But if we keep our eye on this family over the next few days,’ Joe said, ‘by this time next week, they could all be on the road to recovery.’
Joe pulled some sample bottles from one of the bags. ‘Okay, folks. Is there anyone we haven’t taken blood from yet? We need to get samples and get them to the lab.’
Duc pointed to the two people who hadn’t quite required IVs. ‘Just these guys. I’ll do it if you want.’
‘I’m going to keep an eye on my ladies,’ said Viv. ‘One of them is having stomach cramps that I hope don’t turn into anything else. I’m sure it’s just a symptom of the disease but I’m going to keep an eye on her in case I need to recheck things.’
Joe pulled out some paperwork. ‘Okay, let’s get this up to date for each patient and make sure everything is charted and prescribed.’ He raised his eyebrows. ‘Then we’ll have a chat about how we’re going to manage this situation for the next few days.’
Viv put her hand up straight away. ‘I’m happy to cover a few nights. I know I’m really a midwife, but general observations, IVs and antibiotics are all things I can cover—just as long as I’m not needed at the hospital.’
‘How many patients do you have due right now?’
Viv pulled out the work phone that Sen had given to her that morning. ‘Well, thanks to our wonder admin assistant I’ll be able to tell you. Let me check. Yip. Twelve due this month. Seven have already delivered and we’ve had one from next month deliver already.’ She gave them all a big smile. ‘I actually don’t have anyone due this week.’
Joe laughed. ‘You know that means nothing. Let’s hope you didn’t just curse yourself by saying those words out loud.’
Vivienne laughed too. She liked how well everyone worked together. Teamwork was essential in any hospital, and the way that everyone had been willing to pack up and come out here had impressed her. Could they really have found ambulances to ferry all these people back to May M?n? She simply wasn’t sure.
She went back to check on her patients, turning up the speed on one of the IVs. Duc appeared and slung an arm around her shoulder. ‘How do you feel about us both covering the night shift so we can send Joe home to his son?’
Viv nodded. ‘Fine with me.’
Duc handed her a bottle of cream. ‘First job for us to make sure everyone—including us—is covered from head to toe in mosquito repellent. There could still be virus-laden mosquitos hanging around. We don’t want to be the next victims.’
Vivienne shuddered. ‘You say the nicest things. Can I barter for another dinner for this?’
His eyes twinkled. ‘I think I can manage another dinner.’
They worked comfortably together, settling down on the sofa in the main room once everyone had been tended to. Mai Ahn had come back with some extra bags of IV fluids and some food for them both.
It was dark outside now. Throughout the house they could hear the sounds of deep breathing. All the patients were sleeping.
Viv put her head on Duc’s shoulder. ‘I think I’m too tired to eat right now,’ she murmured.
‘You did good,’ he said.
Her hand moved over to his arm. ‘So did you. We all did. Let’s just pray it’s the right diagnosis.’
There was a long pause. Viv gazed at the dark sky speckled with stars outside the window.
‘I’d forgotten about this part,’ Duc said, his voice sounding a little strange.
She lifted her head. ‘What?’
He made a sad kind of sound. ‘The being a doctor and not just a surgeon part.’ He held up one hand to gesture to the room they were sitting in. ‘I would never do this, haven’t done it in my whole career. I spend my life in a hospital setting, seeing patients in clinics, wards or Theatre.’
Viv smiled. ‘Ah...a home visit virgin. Well, welcome to the world of community nursing. Every home opens a whole new world. You’ve no idea what you’re stepping into.’
He looked at her and she continued. ‘I’ve been in houses where they have giant birthing pools in their living rooms. Some where I’ve had to step over the passed-out drunk person as I step inside. Houses where my feet stick to the carpet and I’m afraid to take my coat off. Then there’s the family pet who snarls and growls at me, looking as if they want to eat me, and there’s the inevitable shout, “Don’t worry, hen, he’ll no’ touch you!” Then...’ she wagged her finger ‘...there’s the pristine houses that are miles cleaner than the hospital and you feel positively shabby as soon as you cross the threshold.’ She rolled her eyes. ‘I’ve been asked to take my shoes off at the door or put those blue coveralls on my feet.’
He shook his head as he smiled back, his brown eyes looking at her fondly.
‘Looking after people in their own environment is a privilege, Duc. I never forget that. And it makes you better at your job. You don’t have a team to back you up. You can’t press an emergency buzzer and a whole team appears in under two minutes. It’s you. You’re it. You have to improvise and make do. It makes a more experienced practitioner, and a more resilient one.’
He gave a slow nod of his head at her words. ‘You love it, don’t
you?’
He pressed his lips together as she nodded. ‘And I’ve taken you away from that.’
She squeezed his arm. ‘There’s lots of ways to look after a community, Duc. According to Lien, she’s practically had to put a tracker on Joe because he’s so used to home visiting because he worked as a GP. Maybe there’s a way to look at more outreach work. Or...’ she held out her hand ‘...when it’s needed, taking services to the patients. You did okay this time around.’
He leaned back against the sofa and Viv looked at the expression on his face. She saw something that hadn’t been there before—curiosity.
‘Every job can be a challenge. Sometimes the challenge is what gives you the enthusiasm to keep going.’
She wanted to say more. She wanted him to take a look around and realise just how important the work here was.
He’d risen to the challenge today. But his long-term plans weren’t for working at May M?n Hospital.
Her stomach gave a little twist. What were her own long-term plans? She’d never had any before. Just living from one six-month contract to the next.
But Hanoi was a wonderful city. Bright, exuberant and filled with special people. She could see a fantastic role here. One that she couldn’t possibly even begin to tackle in six months.
She licked her lips, mouth suddenly dry. This was the first time ever she’d had thoughts like this. And what would be the point in thinking of staying here longer if Duc was going back to the US?
She leaned her head back on his shoulder and murmured, ‘Okay, I bags first sleep. Wake me up in an hour.’
She settled down as he slung his arm around her shoulders again and let her snuggle against him. She’d think about all this later...
CHAPTER EIGHT
THE WEEKS PASSED QUICKLY. Vivienne started to become more familiar with the particular conditions that could affect the pregnant women around Hanoi.