Chapter 2: Consent
Jessica rubbed the side of her forehead with two fingers. She ignored the man sitting on the couch and spoke directly to the patient, "I suggest you cancel or postpone that meeting. There are risks of getting discharged so early."
"I know the risks and I know it can be done," he grunted.
Jessica took out a phone from her left pocket and started a voice recording. She knew VIP patients can easily take back their words and she was the perfect scapegoat if anything happens. "Okay well just to cover the bases, I'm going to record that I have your consent... Mister... What's your name?"
"You don't know who I am?" He raises an eyebrow.
"It says John Doe on your chart," she said without looking up from her tablet.
"John Doe it is then."
"Okay, well I have your consent to record this for legal purposes correct?"
"Correct"
"This 32-year-old Asian male with a gun wound injury presenting to Cambridge Grace Hospital on May 20, 20XX at 2:10 pm consents to risks pertaining to surgery and any complications secondary to going against medical advice by discharging early. Do you agree?"
"Yes"
"Alright, let's get you into the OR," Jessica said as she stopped the recording.
Just then, the man sitting on the sofa stood up and said, "Dr. Wong, sign the papers before proceeding." He opened the door and retrieved the papers from the bodyguard outside. The two bodyguards in the suite moved and blocked the doorway from the inside.
"I'm not going to sign it until I read it. And it'll take me a while to read all that. You guys seem to be in a rush and this will only delay time. Now move out of my way." She knew why they were so persistent but she wasn't going to give in. It also seemed that time was on her side this time.
The bodyguards looked towards the man by the couch for instructions. He was about to open his mouth when 'John Doe' waved his hands dismissively and said, "Hao Zhou, it's fine, the meeting's more important."
The bodyguards quickly parted, allowing Jessica through to prep for the surgery.
—-
The surgery was completed in half an hour. Jessica went to inform Hao Zhou and signed off on the discharge papers. He gave her the stack of paper and she promise to sign it by the end of the day.
Having no more surgeries or consultations scheduled for the rest of the day, she headed back to her office. She reached for her phone and checked for any missed messages.
Sloth: -in surgery-
Wolf: Haha have fun! Be home for dinner?
Sloth: Yeah just finished. Gonna sign some consent papers before heading home.
Jessica learned to be careful of contracts. Although it was boring to read and took up previous time, she rather be aware of all the terms she agreed upon. She got her sushi platter and started eating while reading over the consent forms, signing off on the pages. The first few pages were generic agreements about patient privacy. Some of the terms near the end, however, made her scowl. She crossed them off and edited her own terms.
She changed "... the doctor consents to all post-surgical follow up appointment at any given time or day" to "... the doctor consents to all post-surgical follow up appointment on weekdays before 6pm." She continued and adjusted similar terms to her liking.
The last few pages outlined a personal doctor contract. She smirked seeing it. 'No way am I going to go through with this.' She took out the pages of the contract and put the remaining signed papers in an envelope and brought it up to the front desk of the VIP ward before driving home.
Half an hour later, she pulled up on the driveway of a two garage house. She currently lives with her parents. They give her personal space for the most part and she gets free meals, so why not? When she opened the door, she was greeted with the smell of her mom's home cooking. She smiled, 'Lobster's for dinner! My favorite!'
Jessica joined her parents for dinner before going to her room to wash up for bed. She came out of the shower wearing an oversized t-shirt and shorts. She found a comfortable spot on her bed and opened her laptop to review her schedule for tomorrow. 'I got to be up by 8 tomorrow and it's only 11... so one episode it is!'
She finished an episode of a Korean drama and was about to sleep when she received a text:
Pup: Put on your bra. One minute. @Sloth, you've got a visitor.
Sighing, she jumped off her bed, put on a bra and headed out the front door.
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