Meghan made her way into the common area of the station and saw Adam starting to set up stuff for lunch. “Hey, Adam. Got stuff for a peanut butter sandwich?”

He looked up at her and nodded. “Got a bread preference? Half or whole?”

“Wheat please, and half should do it.”

He set aside what he was doing and started making a sandwich for her. “There’s drinks in the fridge – water, Gatorade, sodas.”

“I think I’ll stick with water, thanks.” She grabbed a bottle out of the fridge and accepted the plate with the sandwich. “Thanks. I’ll be in the bay if someone needs me.”

She headed through the bay door and settled on the back bumper of one of the ambulances. She opened her bottle of water and had just taken a bite when Jerry walked over to her.

“What’s up, buttercup? Why are you eating out here?” He gave her an assessing glance. “You don’t look so hot.”

“Blood sugar, I swear,” Meghan protested, around a mouth full of sandwich. “I didn’t want to be the center of attention for something easily fixed with a sandwich.”

Jerry sighed and shook his head. “Eat your sandwich, and then I want to do vitals on you.”

Meghan sighed loudly, and rolled her eyes. “Okay, but I get to eat first.”

He agreed and took a seat next to her. “So, Brandi says that you’ll be coming back on duty in another 3 weeks or so.”

Meghan smiled and took a bite of her sandwich. She nodded.

“It’ll be good to have you back,” he admitted. “I’m going to be working with you at least a couple of times those first few weeks.”

“Yeah, Brandi wants me with another medic the first few shifts back. Gotta keep a vitals log after each run. I think it’s a bit overkill, but I understand just the same. We’re all walking on eggshells to see how my body handles the return to shift work.”

They heard someone open the door to the other ambulance in the bay and start rummaging around. Jerry stood up and stretched. “Okay, squirt, your sandwich is gone. Let’s double-check your blood pressure and stuff.”

He opened the back doors to the truck and climbed inside. He gestured Meghan to the captain’s chair and pulled out equipment. Meghan sighed, but climbed in and sat down. She held out an arm.

Jerry smirked as he wrapped the cuff around her arm and took her blood pressure. “112/74. Looking good.” He put the pulse ox on her finger and turned the machine on. Then he pulled out the glucometer.

Meghan gave him a look. “Really?”

He wagged his eyebrows at her. “You said it was low blood sugar. Let’s check it, to be sure.”

She sighed again, but let him prick her finger and run the test. “Back up to 112 with the sandwich. Make sure you get some lunch,” he advised, and packed everything away.

“Gladly,” she replied. “I think they’re bringing in BBQ today.”

Just then, Adam leaned his head in the bay. “Lunch is here, folks. Come and get it!”

“Speaking of lunch!” Just then, they heard a loud thud in the bay. “What the-“

Meghan hopped out of the ambulance and went to investigate. She rounded the second ambulance and saw Carol, one of the new medics, lying on the ground. “Carol? Are you okay?”

Carol wasn’t moving. “Jerry! C-collar and backboard on the double! Brandi! Brandi!” Meghan hollered, rushing to Carol’s side.

Some from inside heard the yelling and came to the doorway to see what was going on. Stan, an EMT, rushed over and held c-spine while Meghan started assessing her co-worker. Brandi rushed in, took in the situation.

“What happened?”

“Not sure. We heard a loud thud and found her lying on the floor. My guess is she fell from the cab. She’s unconscious and unresponsive.” Meghan was working her way through a trauma assessment and was shining a penlight in Carol’s eyes. “Pupils are equal and reactive.” She put away the pen light and started feeling the back of her head and neck. “Not feeling any deformities, no fluid from the ears and nose, no bruising behind the ears. C-collar, please.”

One was handed to her, and she carefully fit it and wrapped it around Carol’s neck. Someone pointed out that Carol’s left knee and leg were at an awkward angle. Another medic cut the pants leg. “Meghan, it’s either dislocated or broken, not sure which. Someone bring me a SAM splint and some kerlix!”

Meghan nodded at the information. Soon the leg was splinted. “Okay, let’s get her onto the backboard. At the head’s count, on 3.” Carol was rolled onto her side, her back palpated, and then rolled back down onto the backboard. She was secured with straps and her knee propped up with a pillow under it.

Adam asked Meghan what she needed set up in the ambulance. “Lactated ringers or normal saline? Want blood tubing?”

“Ringers and blood tubing, please. And ready for monitoring.” Someone brought the gurney close to the backboard and strong hands lifted Carol up and onto the gurney. She was wheeled to the ambulance and loaded inside. Meghan hopped in and started searching for an IV site. She secured it, and started looking for a second site for a heplock.

Brandi came to the side door. “Meghan, ride in with her – you’ve taken charge of her case. Got your backpack?”

Meghan looked up from the blood draw she was doing. “No, it’s in the classroom.”

Brandi sent another EMT to bring the backpack, and hopped in to start cutting clothes. “Hand me a sheet from the cabinet, Adam.” They made quick work of cutting off clothing but keeping Carol as modestly covered as possible.

The EMT brought Meghan’s bag, and Brandi hopped out. “Adam, you ride with her. Jerry’s got your rig covered until you get back. Call me with updates!”

Brandi shut the doors, and they headed to the hospital, lights and sirens blaring. Adam patched Carol to the monitor and checked vital signs again. “Pulse ox is 94%. I’m going to put her on some O2 via nasal cannula.”

Meghan nodded. “I’ll call in report.” She sat in the captain’s chair and picked up the mike. “EMS 21 to County Med, incoming Trauma Alert.”

County Med to EMS 21, go ahead with Trauma Alert report.

“County Med, I’m bringing in an early 20s-year-old female, probable fall onto concrete. GCS 3, BP 90/62, Pulse 112, Resps 18, O2 is 98% on 2 liters O2 via nasal cannula. 2 lines established, lactated ringers TKO. Pupils equal and reactive, no signs of fluid or battle signs from ears or nose. Lungs equal and clear bilaterally. Abdomen is soft and nondistended. Left knee and leg show deformity, possible dislocation. No signs of fractures. Patient is in full spinal precautions. ETA is 5-7 minutes.”

Report received, EMS 21. Go to Trauma Bay 2 on arrival.

“10-4, County Med. EMS 21 out.” Meghan cycled the vital signs again and didn’t note any major changes.

Adam looked at Meghan and frowned. “She should be coming to by now.”

Meghan nodded. “I’ll be curious to know the results of her head CT. She must have really smacked the floor with her head.”

Adam pulled out the Toughbook and started charting. “I’ll handle the report, especially since you aren’t technically here.”

Meghan snorted, and glanced through the front of the ambulance to gauge where they were. “We’re here,” she stated, and started prepping to go into the ER – unhooking the monitor, switching O2 to a tank on the cot, and unhanging the IV from the hook on the ambulance ceiling.

Staff was waiting on them when they arrived, and Dr. Branston was leading the team. “Meghan! Didn’t expect to see you. What have you got?”

Meghan gave report while helping to unhook Carol from the cot and slide her, backboarded, from their gurney to the ER bed. Nurses flurried around, getting Carol hooked up to telemetry, starting a second round of IV fluids, and other things. Meghan handed a nearby nurse the blood tubes she had drawn, and headed out of the room once her report was given.

Bob disengaged from the crew and met her at the trauma desk. “Hey, kiddo! Good to see you finally back in my ER working!”

She accepted his hug and laughed. “Yeah, but technically I’m not here. I’ve got 3 more weeks before I’m officially cleared for duty. I happened to be at the staff meeting today when this happened, and was first to my coworker. Brandi let me be in charge.”

“Well, I’m still glad to see you. Everything okay? Feeling healthy?”

Meghan’s stomach took the opportunity to rumble loudly. She laughed. “Well, aside from being hungry, I’m doing well. My lunch plans got interrupted.”

Bob chuckled. “All par for the course, as you well know. I need to go check on another patient. Was good to see you!”

He left, and Adam came to stand beside her with the computer. They chatted back and forth while Adam wrote out the report. Meghan noticed movement from the trauma room and turned to see Carol being wheeled out of the room and down the hall. Mitch came over, running a hand through his hair.

“I’m sending her up to CT. She still hasn’t gained consciousness yet.” He sighed. “How far of a fall would you say she had?”

“What do you think, Adam? Seven to eight feet? It’s a Freightliner chassis on that ambulance. Come into the bay and see.” Meghan led the way out of the ER and into the ambulance bay. Stan was cleaning up the back, raised a hand, but didn’t say anything.

Mitch nodded. “Pretty tall, but still surprising that she’s not regained consciousness yet. We’ll have to see what the CT reveals.”

Meghan agreed. “Keep Brandi posted, if you would. She’ll make sure updates trickle down to me.” Meghan started back towards the ER doors.

“By the way, what are you doing here? I didn’t think you were cleared for another 3 weeks.” Mitch said as he followed her.

“I’m not officially here,” Meghan replied. “I was at the staff meeting today, was talking with Jerry in the bay when we heard her fall. As I was the first one to reach her and started barking orders, Brandi told me to go in with her. Adam was help and CYA.”

“Ah, gotcha. And you… you’re feeling okay?”

“Yeah, doing fine, except for starving. Lunch had just arrived when she fell. If I’m lucky, they will have left at least some potato chips. Brandi catered in BBQ for lunch today,” Meghan explained.

Mitch laughed. “You’ll be fortunate to have leftovers, period. Make sure to eat something, though.”

“Oh, I will!” Meghan promised. Adam walked up to them.

“Ready to go? I got report done and signed.”

Meghan nodded, said her goodbyes to Mitch, and followed Adam back to the ambulance.

Adam’s stomach rumbled on the way back to the ambulance station. “Am I wrong to hope that they left us anything to eat?”

Meghan chuckled. “I hope there’s more peanut butter and bread. BBQ doesn’t last long with this group. We’ll be fortunate if they left us a soda and some chips.”

Stan soon had them backing into the bay, reached the stop, and turned off the engine. “Who’s up for PB and J? Maybe they left us some chips.”

The three trouped back into the common area. Jerry was lounging in one of the recliners. “Guys, BBQ sandwiches are waiting for you in the oven. And Brandi snuck back some chips. The coleslaw didn’t make it, or the potato salad. Sodas in the fridge.”

“Oh, bless you!” Meghan exclaimed. She accepted one of the sandwiches and a plate of chips from Adam, and grabbed a Dr. Pepper from the fridge. She settled at the table and dug in.

Brandi emerged from her office, hearing the crew was back. “Any updates on Carol?”

Meghan shook her head. “Still unconscious. She was headed to CT when we left. Dr. Branston is going to contact you when he knows more. Could you text me with updates? I’m supposed to be getting back to the school soon.”

“I can do that,” Brandi agreed. “What time are you supposed to be back?”

“One PM,” Meghan replied, looking at her watch. “Oh, crap. Let me call Fred – I’m going to be late.”

She pulled out her phone and dialed. She explained what had happened and that she hoped to be there by 2 pm. Fred understood, and said he’d see her then. She hung up, set her phone down, and took another big bite of BBQ.

“Meghan, we got the conference room cleaned up for you, so you don’t have anything to worry with there. Want some oranges? I forgot to pull the unused ones out and set them out at lunch.”

Meghan chuckled. “I can take them with me. Medic students are bottomless pits. They’ll get eaten.” She reached in her pocket and pulled out a slip of paper. “Before I forget: vital signs. Adam took them for me on the way back.”

Brandi glanced at the numbers, then crumpled up the page and threw it in the trash. “Looking good there, Meghan. Oh, and excellent class and skills lab today. I’d love it if we could do something like that with each staff meeting.”

“I’ll see what I can do. I saw people leaving suggestions in the box for me.”

After another few minutes of chitchat, Meghan finished her lunch. “As much fun as it’s been, I need to get stuff loaded up and head back to work.” Adam took her plate, and she headed for the bay first to grab her backpack off the truck, then to the conference room to gather up her muscle model, extra handouts, and the leftover oranges. She put everything in her car, said her goodbyes, and headed for the college.