Heart Surgeon, Prince...Husband!

‘I’ve done quite a few bypasses in my time,’ Luc reassured him. ‘You won’t feel a thing, because you’ll be under a general anaesthetic.’

‘Isn’t that the operation where you’ll stop his heart beating?’ Mrs Jefferson asked. ‘I read up about that on the Internet.’

‘It’s one way of doing a bypass operation, using a heart-lung machine to breathe and pump the blood round your body for you, but actually I prefer to do my surgery off-pump—where the heart’s still beating while I operate,’ Luc said.

Kelly hadn’t expected that, and it intrigued her.

Mr Jefferson’s eyes widened. ‘But isn’t that dangerous?’

‘It’s quicker, so you’ll be under anaesthetic for less time, there’s less chance of you bleeding during surgery, and you’re also less likely to develop complications after the operation,’ Luc said. ‘So in my view it reduces the risks.’

‘And after the surgery you’ll be with us in the ward,’ Kelly said. ‘You’ll be in Intensive Care at first, where we’ll keep an eye on you to make sure everything’s working as it should be. You’ll still be asleep for the first couple of hours, but then we’ll wake you up and your family will be able to see you.’

‘You’ll be well enough to get out of bed and sit in a chair, the next day,’ Luc said. ‘A couple of days later you’ll be back on your feet, and a couple of days after that you’ll be ready to tackle stairs again.’

‘A whole week in hospital.’ Mr Jefferson looked as if he couldn’t take it in. ‘My doctor said I’d be in here for half an hour, maybe a bit longer if you had to do a procedure like a stent. He didn’t say I’d have to stay in for a week.’

‘But if you need the operation, love,’ Mrs Jefferson said, ‘then you’ll have to stay in.’

‘I’m afraid you do need the operation, Mr Jefferson,’ Luc said gently. ‘Right now I know it feels very scary and a bit daunting. But it’s the best way of preventing you having a heart attack.’

‘But our daughter’s having a baby next month,’ Mr Jefferson said.

‘Which is another reason to have the operation now. You’ll be able to cuddle the baby without worrying that you’ll start getting chest pains,’ Kelly said. ‘By the time the baby’s crawling, you’ll have made a full recovery and can really enjoy being a grandad.’

‘And you won’t be left to deal with everything on your own afterwards,’ Luc added. ‘Heart surgery is a big operation, and we’ll help you recover on the ward.’

‘You’ll come back to us a few weeks after the operation to start a rehabilitation programme,’ Kelly said, ‘and that will help you get completely back on your feet. There are support groups, too, so we can put you in touch with other people who’ve already been through the same thing—they’ll understand how you’re feeling and can help you.’

‘And it’s really bad enough that I should have the operation tomorrow?’ Mr Jefferson asked.

‘Your arteries are severely narrowed,’ Luc said. ‘Right now that’s causing the pains in your chest, and the medication isn’t enough to stop the pain. But on top of that there’s a risk that one of the plaques will split and cause a blood clot that will completely block the blood supply to your heart and give you a heart attack. That could do a lot of damage to your heart muscle.’

‘And kill him?’ Mrs Jefferson asked.

‘We always try our best to save our patients but, yes, I have to tell you that’s a possibility,’ Luc said. ‘I know it’s a lot to take in, but we’d really like to keep you in overnight here and do the bypass tomorrow, Mr Jefferson.’

‘So will the operation cure him completely?’ Mrs Jefferson asked.

‘It will stop the pain and lower the risk of having a heart attack,’ Luc said.

‘But because you have coronary heart disease you’ll still need to look after your heart,’ Kelly added. ‘Your family doctor’s probably already told you what you need to do. Stopping smoking and eating better are brilliant, so definitely keep that up, and maybe add in a bit more gentle exercise.’

Mr Jefferson still looked terrified. ‘I hate needles. I can’t even make myself give blood, even though I know I ought to. Coming here today for this was bad enough.’

Kelly held his hand. ‘I know it’s scary now, but in the long run you’ll feel so much better. And your wife and daughter won’t have to worry about you as much as they do now. Luc’s really good at what he does, and so is the rest of our team. It’s natural to feel worried, and you’ll probably feel a bit wobbly at times after the operation—that’s absolutely normal. But the operation is really going to help you. You’re going to feel a lot better, and you’re not going to worry that your chest pain or breathlessness is going to stop you playing with your grandchildren.’

‘Are there risks?’ Mrs Jefferson asked.

Luc and Kelly exchanged a glance.

‘There are risks with all anaesthetic and surgical cases,’ Luc said. ‘But they’re small, and we’re experienced enough to know what to look out for and how to fix things. I know it all sounds really daunting, but there’s a greater risk if we don’t do the surgery.’

Mr Jefferson swallowed hard. ‘All right. I’ll do it.’

‘Good man.’ Luc rested his hand briefly on the older man’s shoulder. ‘We’ll get you settled in to the ward, and I’ll be doing rounds later if you have any questions. Dr Phillips will also be on hand if you need anything.’

‘Or talk to any of the nurses,’ Kelly added. ‘That goes for both of you.’

‘Thank you,’ Mrs Jefferson said.

* * *

Once Mr Jefferson was settled on the ward and had been put on a nitrate drip, Kelly went back to the cath lab. The rest of her clinic was more straightforward, to her relief, and she managed to catch up with Luc afterwards.

‘Thank you for talking to Mr Jefferson with me.’ She’d liked Luc’s warm, easy manner and the way he’d described things without being dramatic and terrifying their patient even more. He’d acknowledged Mr Jefferson’s fears and reassured him.

‘No problem,’ he said.

‘You actually do the surgery off-pump?’

He nodded. ‘I’m assuming that’s unusual for here, then?’

‘Yes, it is. I haven’t actually seen off-pump surgery done before.’ And it was the first time in a long time that Kelly had been interested in seeing something different—that her old passion for her job had resurfaced instead of being buried by the fear that she might have missed something and let a patient down, the way she’d let Simon down.

‘If you can spare the time, you’re welcome to scrub in and observe as much of the operation as you like,’ he offered.

‘I’d love to. I won’t be able to stay for the whole thing, but maybe I could come before or after my clinic tomorrow, if that’s OK?’

‘Whenever fits your schedule best,’ he said.

‘Thanks. I’m definitely taking you up on that.’

‘Actually, you can spread the word that I’m always happy to have observers,’ Luc said. ‘The actual operation is only a part of caring for our patient. I’m a great believer in all areas of the team knowing exactly what happens in the other parts of a care plan, and the more we all understand what each other does, the more we can work together and help our patients.’

‘That’s very much Sanjay’s approach as the head of the department,’ Kelly said. ‘Cross-fertilisation of ideas. And you’re welcome in my cath lab any time, as are any of your students.’

‘Thanks. I’ll take you up on that.’ He smiled. ‘So is Mr Jefferson settled in?’

She nodded. ‘His wife’s just gone home to pick up his things. She had a bit of a chat with me beforehand. She’s worrying about losing him.’

‘Understandable, in the circumstances,’ Luc said. ‘But that must’ve brought back some tough memories for you.’

She shrugged. ‘If anything, what happened to Simon has probably helped me empathise a bit more with my patients and their partners.’ There had to be some good coming out of such a senseless death.

‘You’re still brave,’ Luc said, patting her shoulder.

Again, his touch made her feel all flustered. Which was crazy. She hardly knew him and this wasn’t supposed to happen. ‘You have to get on with things,’ she said.