The Outback Nurse. Carol Marinelli

yourself.’ She thought for a moment. ‘But I’ve never intubated anyone without supervision.’ Clem heard the note of tension creep into her voice.

      ‘And hopefully you won’t have to. You can always bag them until help arrives, but who knows what can happen? At least you know your way around the kit. You can have a go, that’s got to be better than doing nothing and watching someone die.’ Olivia nodded glumly, not for the first time wondering just what she had taken on.

      ‘Now the defibrillator. It’s pretty standard, you can run a three-channel ECG off this model—’

      ‘I’ve used that type before,’ Olivia interrupted.

      ‘Here’s the on-off switch,’ Clem continued, blatantly ignoring her again. ‘Keep it plugged in overnight to charge it, but just run the cord through the Jeep window into the garage wall. Are you listening? I hope you’re taking all this in,’ he snapped rudely.

      ‘I’ve used a defibrillator before—this model, in fact. I know what I’m doing.’

      ‘I’m sure you do,’ he said through gritted teeth, ‘but when I ring you at one in the morning to come and assist me in an emergency, I need to be sure you know exactly where all the equipment is and how it works. It’s no good you driving off in a hurry and leaving the bloody defibrillator still charging on the garage floor.’

      ‘Obviously not,’ Olivia retorted. She was nervous enough about her new responsibilities, without him treating her like the village idiot. ‘I’m grateful to you for showing me things, but I really don’t need a total re-train. If I don’t know or understand something then I’ll ask.’ She stood there resolutely, staring defiantly into his angry, haughty face, awaiting his wrath, but it never came.

      ‘Well, just make sure you do,’ he said after what seemed an age. Turning his large back on her, he deftly replaced the equipment.

      With her face burning, Olivia made her way to the passenger seat. She knew she had been right to stand up to him. He had to treat her, if not as an equal, at least with some respect.

      Climbing into the driver’s seat, he started the ignition. ‘We’ll go the back way. It’s a short cut but don’t use it till you’re comfortable with the Jeep.’ And without looking over once, he gave her a run-down on their first patient. ‘The first port of call is the Jean Hunt, for her postnatal check. She’s just had her fourth baby. A son after three daughters...young Sam. He’s six weeks old now.’ Clem skilfully guided the car around the tight bends.

      ‘Oh, yes,’ Olivia recalled. ‘Dougie mentioned them. They must be thrilled.’

      ‘Not exactly,’ Clem replied grimly. ‘Everyone’s thrilled except Mum.’

      ‘Oh, dear.’

      Clem finally glanced over at her, realising she understood the situation.

      ‘Exactly.’

      Olivia remembered only too well the tearful mums on the maternity ward, trying desperately to appear happy to relatives and wondering why on earth they’d been feeling so miserable and unable to cope.

      Clem continued, ‘After an extremely long and exhausting labour with a difficult posterior presentation, young Master Hunt entered the world quite healthy, screaming his head off, and he hasn’t stopped since. A complete contrast to the girls, who were the most placid little sheilas you could imagine. Alicia, the youngest, actually had to be woken for her feeds for the first couple of months. Not only does Jean have a husband and three other children to cope with, she’s also dealing with a never-ending stream of well-wishers bringing little blue gifts and telling her how delighted she must be feeling.’

      ‘Poor thing,’ Olivia sympathised. ‘How’s his weight?’

      ‘Borderline. He’s gaining, but not as much as I’d like.’

      Olivia thought for a moment.

      ‘Could he have reflux?’ she suggested.

      Clem shrugged. ‘I really don’t think so, though I have considered it. I’ve seen a lot of reflux babies but Sam just doesn’t quite fit the picture. I think it’s more Jean.’

      ‘Is she breastfeeding?’

      ‘Trying to, but I’m going to suggest she puts him on the bottle today.’

      Olivia couldn’t believe what she was hearing. How behind was this place? Everyone knew you encouraged breastfeeding.

      He looked over again. ‘What’s wrong, you don’t approve?’ Clem parked the car and turned around to face her.

      She looked at him properly for the first time, and realised just how attractive he really was. ‘It’s not a question of whether I approve or not. I was taught to promote breastfeeding, that’s all. To give in after such a short time seems strange to me.’

      ‘Look, I do see your point. Breast is best and all that, but only if it’s working. When it isn’t, the bottle is fantastic.’

      Olivia opened her mouth to argue but he cut her short.

      ‘There’s no breastfeeding mothers’ support group here, no lactation consultant to call in, just the help you and I can offer. You may have only done a morning here, but you can surely see how stretched we are.’ He held up his hand to silence her as she again attempted to put her point. ‘Let me finish, then you can have your say.’

      Olivia snapped her mouth closed and folded her arms.

      ‘I’ve been round nearly every day since Sam was born, but there’s not much more I can do. He’s healthy, he’s just hungry. For whatever reason, breastfeeding just isn’t working this time. Anyway, Jean’s far more experienced than you or I—after all, she’s successfully fed three children. It’s a bit like taking snow to the Eskimos, offering her advice on her feeding technique.’

      Olivia grudgingly nodded.

      ‘And as chauvinistic as it may sound to a liberated young woman like yourself, Mr Hunt will be back from a hard day’s work at the farm this evening. He’ll want to come back to a tidy house and a meal. It doesn’t mean he loves her any less than the sensitive twenty-first century men you may mix with, it’s just the way it is here. And I can tell you now that Jean isn’t going to take a stand for sisterhood and to heck with routine.’

      Olivia digested his speech. She actually understood far more than he realised. She herself had desperately wanted to start a family as soon as they’d got married. But as with their elusive wedding date, Jeremy had wanted to wait, for what she hadn’t been quite sure. The thought of Jeremy coming home to a messy house, a crying baby and a hysterical mother made her realise he wasn’t the modern, liberated man he liked to think he was. Taking her silence as dissent Clem went further.

      ‘I could prescribe anti-depressants or tell her to hang in there till things improve, but I’m not prepared to do that, at least not this early in the piece. That’s not the kind of medicine I practise.’

      And despite the fact she had indeed only worked a morning with him, Olivia knew that already. It was obvious from the adoration of his patients that he was a wonderful caring doctor. Still, she wasn’t prepared to give in that easily. ‘I still think you should go in there with an open mind,’ she said defiantly, but, watching his face darken, wished she’d held her tongue. She probably wouldn’t last the week out, like her predecessors.

      ‘May I suggest something?’ Clem said slowly.

      ‘Of course.’ Olivia nodded weakly. Perhaps he was going to tell her to remember her place.

      ‘Maybe it should be you that goes in to the house with an open mind. In fact, why don’t you decide what Jean should do?’ he suggested.

      ‘And if I don’t come down on your side, you’ll simply override me,’ she retorted.

      Clem shook his head. ‘You don’t know me very well. Of course, I could override you but I won’t.