Chapter 57: Night Shift

June 29, 1987, McKinley, Ohio

“You received a letter from the medical school today,” Elizaveta said when I arrived home on Monday evening. “It’s in the basket.”

“I’ll change first,” I said.

I went to the bedroom, removed my cassock and slacks, put on shorts and a t-shirt, and returned to the kitchen. I used a letter opener to slit the envelope and removed the two sheets of paper.

“I’ll be staying with Doctor Leslie Cooper and her family. Her husband, Neil, is an attorney in Cincinnati, and they have two children. There’s a phone number and a suggestion to get in touch right away and to meet if possible. If you’re up to it, I’ll see if we can visit them so you can see where I’m staying.”

“I’d like that, and I think I can handle a drive to Cincinnati, so long as we stop in Rutherford.”

“Let me see if I can arrange it for July 18th, which is the first Saturday we could go. I’ll call after dinner.”

About an hour later, I placed the call.

“Turner-Cooper residence. Alan speaking.”

That would be the fifteen-year-old son.

“Hi, Alan. My name is Michael Loucks. I’m a medical student from McKinley. May I please speak with your mother?”

“One moment, please.”

A minute later, Doctor Cooper came on the line.

“Good evening, Mike.”

“Good evening, Doctor Cooper. Do you have a moment?”

“Yes, of course. What can I do for you?”

“I was wondering if my wife and I could visit so she could see where I’ll be staying.”

“I understand she’s seven months pregnant.”

“She is, and it will help her be comfortable with me being away.”

“The timing didn’t do you any favors! Doctor Mertens explained that you’ll need a week off when your wife gives birth. We can accommodate, obviously. When would your schedule allow you to visit?”

“We were thinking July 18th,” I said.

“Would you join us for dinner?”

“Yes, we’d love to.”

“Then let me give you directions.”

She did, and we agreed that Elizaveta and I would arrive around 4:00pm.

“I don’t know if it was in the letter, but the guest room we have for you is large, and has a private bath with a soaker tub.”

“That sounds wonderful. Thank you.”

“You’re very welcome. We certainly don’t mind if your wife stays with you, though I suspect she’ll want to deliver in McKinley with her OB attending.”

“Yes. Thank you for the offer, and I’ll let you know if we’ll take you up on that.”

“See you on the 18th for dinner, Mike. Arrive anytime after 4:00pm.”

We said ‘goodbye’ and then I hung up.

“All set for the 18th,” I said. “We’ll join them for dinner. They live in the Indian Hill part of Cincinnati, so most likely I’ll attend Saint George in Loveland. I need to confirm that with Vladyka, of course.”

“How are we handling the drive?”

“I think we’ll stop in to see my grandparents,” I said. “I want to see them, and that would give you a chance to stretch and to try to convince Rachel Michelle not to sit on your bladder.”

“She does seem to like that position, unfortunately.”

“How are you feeling?” I asked.

“Tired. I wouldn’t mind going to bed and cuddling.”

“Then let’s go.”

June 30, 1987, McKinley, Ohio

“Mike,” Nurse Vickie called out when I returned from Recovery late on Tuesday morning. “Mr. Crowe in legal would like to see you.”

“Did he say why?”

“No. Just that you should stop in.”

I nodded, let Doctor Taylor know, then headed to the administrative wing of the hospital, a place doctors tried to avoid like the plague. I went to the legal office, and the secretary showed me into Mr. Crowe’s office.

“Good morning, Mike. You are not in any trouble, but I need to discuss Melissa Bush with you.”

“Would you mind placing a call to my attorney and putting the call on speaker so he can listen?”

“I don’t mind, but I’m not sure that’s necessary. As I said, you aren’t in any trouble. Miss Bush has extended her suit to include the hospital, Doctor Gibbs, and Doctor Simons, though I’m sure you know Doctor Simons has left for Parkland Memorial.”

“I’m aware. And I’d feel more comfortable with Mr. Winston on the phone.”

He pushed the phone to me and I dialed the number from the small address book I carried, and wasn’t surprised when he answered directly, as Mom was on her honeymoon. I explained the reason for my call, and with his agreement, I put the phone into speakerphone mode. The two lawyers introduced themselves, then Mr. Crowe explained what had happened.

“Miss Bush, in order to stave off a motion to dismiss for requesting unavailable relief, filed a monetary damages suit against University hospital, along with defamation and slander charges against Doctor Gibbs and Doctor Simons. I’ve already spoken directly to Doctor Gibbs and by phone to Doctor Simons. I have all the transcripts of depositions and hearings, as well as Miss Bush’s record. I have a few questions.

“It’s OK to answer, Mike,” Mr. Winston said. “This isn’t adversarial. If there is something I’m concerned about, I’ll speak up.”

“Thanks,” Mr. Crowe said. “First, Mike, you directly witnessed the confrontation between Doctor Gibbs and Miss Bush, as well as the treatment of Miss Bush after the confrontation, correct?”

“Yes, though as I said in the hearing, I only had four hours a week to see what happened.”

“But you also had interactions with Miss Bush outside those four hours, correct?”

“Yes.”

“In reviewing the records, I found a couple of discrepancies and what appears to be a missing file. You met with Doctor Mertens and others in leadership at the medical school on September 15th, but I can find no information about what was discussed. Would you tell me about that meeting?”

I suppressed a groan. Somebody had noted the meeting in the calendar, and if Mr. Crowe found it, I was sure that Melissa’s attorney would find it.

“Mr. Winston?” I inquired.

“Go ahead and answer.”

“Miss Bush filed a false harassment claim against me, and the medical school convinced her to drop it after several witnesses confirmed my version of events.”

“That answers the other question I had. In her suit against the hospital, there is a claim of not just harassment, but of trading of sexual favors. She claims several doctors demanded, and in some cases, received, sex in exchange for grades. And that at least one medical student demanded sex in exchange for not giving false testimony.”

“Lord have mercy,” I sighed.

“Mr. Crowe,” Mr. Winston interjected. “I’d like to sit down with you. Are you available tomorrow afternoon?”

“I am.”

“Shall we say 2:00pm? Mike doesn’t need to be there, if it interferes with his training.”

“2:00pm is fine,” Mr. Crowe agreed.

“Mike, would you pick up the handset, please?”

I did.

“Don’t worry about this. If she didn’t name you, it’s probably a bluff. Once I see the filings, and review them with Mr. Crowe, I’ll have a better idea of what we need to do, if anything. Just hang in there, because she’s clearly flailing at this point.”

“Easier said than done,” I replied.

“Remember our agreement — I won’t practice medicine if you don’t practice law!”

“I remember.”

“I am as sure as I can be about anything that this will not impact your medical training or licensing. And we agreed that is the most important thing. Go back to whatever training you have now. That’s your job. I’ll take care of this. That’s my job.”

“Thanks.”

I said ‘goodbye’, then disconnected the call.

“I’m sure you’ve heard this,” Mr. Crowe said, “but allow me to reassure you. This has happened before, and no medical student has successfully sued over failure to obtain a Residency or failure to obtain a medical license. Some medical schools have settled cases like that by, in effect, refunding tuition, but McKinley Medical School’s counsel has made it clear they have no intention of settling this case, and will defend it vigorously. I assume you’ll be willing to give a deposition if necessary?”

“Ask Mr. Winston,” I said. “But I have no problem with basically repeating the testimony I’ve already given.”

“Thanks. I’m sure your attorney will be in touch after we speak.”

I left his office and headed directly to the cafeteria to have lunch with my team. When we finished, I had a few minutes to chat with Clarissa and fill her in.

“You should have just thrown her under the bus and had her expelled!”

“You know that’s not me,” I replied. “I had to give her a chance at redemption.”

“And she cut off the hand offering her a lifeline!”

“I did what I had to do as a Christian,” I replied. “Her response is on her.”

“And it came back to bite you.”

“Nobody ever promised me that Christianity would be easy. I do not have the heart for martyrdom, but I do accept the Russian proverb which says ‘life is suffering’. On balance, I have far more good than bad, so I really can’t complain. And, to be honest, my faith means that no matter how bad things become, like Job, I won’t waver.”

“There are three things about you that are unshakable — your love for God, your love for your wife, and your love for your friends.”

I smiled and nodded,

“I’m glad you’re my friend, Petrovich.”

“And I’m glad you’re mine.”

July 1, 1987, McKinley, Ohio

“I’m confident that all but one of her claims will be dismissed,” Mr. Winston said when we met late on Wednesday afternoon. “Basically, there is no law against discriminating against incompetence, attitude, demeanor, or any other thing which isn’t specifically protected. She didn’t claim she was discriminated against because she was a woman, just that she was graded unfairly and that Doctor Gibbs’ interpretation of events was wrong. But those aren’t claims for which a court can provide relief, as we’ve discussed.

“That said, the claims against the hospital with regard to sexual harassment are viable, though the hospital is moving to dismiss for failure to state a claim. In this instance, that means she needs to provide more specifics — dates, locations, names, and so on. She’ll be given an opportunity to amend that claim. It’s my opinion she’s not going to name you, because she’d have a very difficult time with that claim, given witnesses against her and the statement she signed when she dropped the claims against you at the medical school.

“Now, that’s not a guarantee, because she could decide to try throwing as much mud against the wall as possible to see if it might stick, but as we discussed before, that only creates a potential problem with your church, not with your medical career, and we agreed that your medical license must take priority in any decisions on how to proceed. And with regard to that, as far as I can tell, nobody who matters will believe her claims, should she make them.”

“So, basically, there’s nothing to do.”

“Not at this time. I don’t even think it will come down to depositions on any of the claims against the medical school, and only possibly on the harassment claims against the hospital and doctors. Do you know anything about that?”

“No. The first I heard of that was yesterday. I mean, I know it goes on, as we’ve discussed, but not anything specific to Melissa Bush. Can I ask a question about discrimination?”

“Sure.”

“What if she switches her claims against the medical school to say it was because she was female?”

“Then it would likely survive the motion to dismiss, but she’d still have to prove it, and her remedies would be limited to money damages. Had she been dismissed, it’s possible, though highly unlikely, the court would have ordered her reinstated. The problem there is how to decide if she’s being evaluated fairly or not. Do you know the ratio of men to women in the top students?”

“In my class, four men, six women. Of those, two are Peter and me, and three are female members of my study group. In the school, I’m not sure, but the class ahead of us had a higher male to female ratio than my class, and the one before it, even higher. The school only started a formal effort to attract more female students about five years ago. Before that, women typically made up less than a quarter of the student body. Now it’s about 60/40 male to female.”

“Are you aware of any incidents of sexual harassment?”

“Besides the nurse trying desperately to get me into bed?” I asked with a wry smile.

Mr. Winston laughed, “That would be an interesting case to try — a man being harassed by a woman. Don’t get me wrong, I believe it can and does happen, but the public at large wouldn’t see it in the same way as they see it the other way around. It would be very difficult to convince a jury unless there were some outright, provable quid pro quo. So other than that?”

“I know some women who have been harassed by other medical students and I’m aware of at least one doctor who believes female medical students and nurses are his personal harem. But I don’t know any specifics.”

“OK. If you’re asked, you say that you’ve heard rumors, but that you have no first-hand knowledge, and as such, can’t speak to what did or did not happen. Otherwise, just keep doing what you’re doing.”

“Thanks, Mr. Winston.”

We left the small office in the administration wing, and I went back to the surgical ward.

July 4, 1987, McKinley, Ohio

“Vladyka?” I said in surprise on Saturday when he walked up to our group at Milton Lake just after 1:00pm.

“I thought I would come to hear you play!”

“Master, bless,” I said, remembering protocol.

I held out my upturned palms, he made the sign of the cross, and I kissed his hand.

“The blessings of the Lord be upon you, Deacon Michael!”

Elizaveta also asked for his blessing, which he gave, and then we greeted Subdeacon Nathaniel, who had driven His Grace to McKinley.

“Your Grace, I would like you to meet Doctor Loretta Gibbs, my mentor, and her fiancé, Fireman Paramedic Bobby Murphy. Doctor Gibbs, Bobby, this is His Grace, Bishop JOHN, of the Orthodox Church in America.”

“How do we greet him, Mike?” Bobby asked.

“You’re not Orthodox, so you can shake his hand,” I replied.

“I put my pants on one leg at a time like any man,” His Grace said with a twinkle in his eye.

They shook hands with him, and we sat down to wait for the rest of our friends and family to arrive. We weren’t performing until 4:30pm, and didn’t have to be at the band shell until 4:10pm, so we had plenty of time to socialize.

“How is your training going?” Vladyka JOHN asked.

“Wonderfully,” I replied. “I’m interacting with patients on a daily basis, caring for them before and after surgery, and I’m able to assist in the OR on some cases.”

“You have one more month, then you go to Cincinnati, correct?”

“Yes. The doctor I’ll be staying with lives in the Indian Hill area, and the closest church would be Saint George in Loveland, where I’d like your blessing to attend if I’m unable to come home.”

“You have my blessing; I’ll let Father Stephen know. You’ll be welcome to serve, which I would prefer.”

“That would be my preference as well.”

“And you’ve made the necessary preparations to care for Matushka Elizaveta?”

“Yes. Serafima and Alyssa will take turns staying with her, and Maria, Doctor Evgeni’s wife, will check on her regularly. Doctor Forsberg, her OB, is a friend, and of course, Doctor Gibbs is available. And my mother-in-law and my sister-in-law are right next door.”

“It’s unfortunate timing,” Bishop JOHN opined.

“Deacon and I agreed on this plan before we married,” Elizaveta said. “We knew it would be difficult at times, but we love each other, and we have friends and family who love us and who will help us. And while it’s going to be difficult to travel, the doctor with whom Mike will be staying invited me to stay there if I choose to.”

Bishop JOHN smiled, “I’m not surprised that the two of you have worked out all the details and have a good plan and a good support system. If there is anything I can do to help, please let me know.”

“Thank you, Vladyka,” Elizaveta said.

Later in the afternoon, Robby, Sophia, and I headed to the band shell where we met Kim, José, and Sticks. About ten minutes before our set was supposed to begin, we went to the stage and ran through two ‘warm up’ songs, then Robby and Sophia began an abbreviated version of their routine. Our sets were well received, with lots of applause, and when we finished, we rejoined our group for a meal, and then held a Vespers service in the picnic shelter.

Bishop JOHN left after Vespers, but we stayed for the fireworks display before heading home.

July 6, 1987, McKinley, Ohio

On Monday, I got up at 6:00am and ran, then returned home for a shower and breakfast with Elizaveta.

“It’s going to be strange this week,” she said. “Are you still planning to sleep after lunch?”

“Yes. Tomorrow, I’ll go to bed after breakfast, and we should have dinner at 5:00pm, if that’s OK with you.”

“It is. You could have to stay past 6:00am, right?”

“Yes. If I’m in the middle of a trauma or an exam, then I have to stay until it’s finished. I’ll ask a nurse to call you if that’s the case.”

“Did you plan to attend Liturgy on Sunday?”

“I think so, yes. I’ll take a short nap on Sunday afternoon, but I don’t want to sleep too long or I’ll have trouble getting to sleep at bedtime.”

“So what are we doing this morning?” Elizaveta asked.

“Whatever you want, Kitten. This has to be your time. What do you usually do on Monday mornings?”

“Clean. Tuesday morning is laundry. The other days are whatever needs to be done, if anything.”