Inquiry: Day One, 11 a.m. - Thirteen (2/2)
Title: Inquiry
Author: zeppomarx
Characters: All the usual suspects, plus more.
Summary: When a panel is convened to review the facts of Gregory House’s life, his fellows (past and present), colleagues, patients and friends are called to testify.
Thanks: To Brigid45, for her infinite wisdom and advice.
Warnings, etc.: Possible character death.
Disclaimers: Don't own House or any of the show's characters. If I did, things might have gone a little differently.
Chapter Summary: Thirteen continues her testimony.
Day One, 11 a.m.
Thirteen settled herself back on the hard, wooden chair. She drew a deep breath, and waited for the next question.
“You were part of his team around the time Dr. House went to Mayfield Psychiatric Hospital. Did you notice any changes in his personality beforehand?”
“I wish I could say that I had, but I did not.” How could all of them have missed the signs of his impending mental breakdown, she wondered? It was almost as bad as when they’d missed the signs before Kutner’s suicide. Were they so used to House’s eccentricities that they sloughed it off, or was he just that good at hiding things? Or were they not as observant as they ought to be. She’d gone over it in her head hundreds of times since.
“Did you notice any changes in Dr. House after he returned from Mayfield?”
“Yes. He seemed more at ease with himself, and for a while, he was less sarcastic… less sharp-tongued with us.”
“Were the rest of his staff and colleagues aware of these positive changes?”
“Of course, I can’t speak for them, but certainly neither Dr. Cuddy nor Dr. Wilson appeared to be giving him any kind of encouragement or support. They seemed more concerned over whether he was ‘using’ again -- as they called it.”
“Could you explain what you mean?”
Thirteen took a deep breath. Oh, well. In for a penny, in for a pound. At this point, she had nothing to lose by revealing the truth about her colleagues. “Well, Dr. House had been taking Vicodin for a reason. He was in excruciating pain all the time. Although he clearly had problems with the drug, he also needed some kind of pain relief. It almost seemed as if Drs. Cuddy and Wilson were more concerned with his drug use than with the reason he took the drugs in the first place. The studies have shown that people in pain react differently to the effects of painkillers than people who are not, and I don’t think that was taken into account.”
“Now, were you working for Dr. House when he was involved in a serious bus crash in the spring of 2008?”
“Yes.”
“Could you give us a brief summary of what happened?”
“In the crash, Dr. House suffered a severe head injury, with resultant concussion and retrograde amnesia. An X-ray revealed a skull fracture, which widened significantly over the next few days.”
“How was this injury treated?”
“In my opinion, not well. Dr. House believed that he had forgotten some crucial piece of evidence that might be used to save a patient’s life. As a result, he continued to work as he attempted to discover the answer.”
“How did others at the hospital react to this injured patient’s insistence on working?”
“For the most part, they encouraged it, because Dr. House was so adamant that a patient’s life was at stake. And, to be fair, he did discover a serious ailment affecting the driver of the bus, although it hadn’t caused the crash.”
“What exactly did Dr. House do in order to access his missing memories?”
“Initially, Dr. Chase hypnotized him, which was fairly benign. Later on, Dr. House inhaled aromas from the bus passenger’s clothing, believing that the sense of smell might trigger his memories -- which it did -- and eventually used a sensory deprivation tank.”
“What was your role in all of this?”
“Against my better judgment, I was the one who sealed him in the tank. I did argue with him about it at the time, but Dr. House, even impaired, could be quite determined... and he was, after all, my boss.”
“Anything else?”
“Yes. He recreated the placement of passengers on the bus and took the Alzheimer’s drug physostigmine to enhance his memories, which triggered a myocardial infarction in the process.”
“No one at the hospital overruled him or insisted that he rest?”
“Yes, although not very forcefully. At one point, Dr. Cuddy sent him home with a nurse in attendance, but when the situation grew more dire, she called him back to the hospital and encouraged him to keep working.”
“Dire? How?”
“First, there was the status of the bus driver -- whose condition had worsened. Then the recreation of the bus passenger placement, Dr. House’s use of physostigmine and his heart attack, which led him to realize that the person he had been really trying to remember was his best friend -- Dr. Wilson’s -- girlfriend, Dr. Amber Volakis. At that point, he refused to rest, pushing himself to find a cure for her.”
“Was he successful?”
“Yes and no. Yes, he did ultimately discover what was causing her symptoms, but no, he was unable to save her life.”
“This was all after suffering a skull fracture, a concussion, retrograde amnesia and a heart attack?”
“Yes, it was.”
“I would have to say that I find that kind of dedication to be admirable. I understand that, despite his quite serious injuries, he agreed when Dr. Wilson asked him to undergo a deep brain stimulation. Is that correct?”
“Yes, it is.” And what a stupid idea that was. She still couldn’t believe House had agreed to it.
“Had Dr. House had any treatment for his skull fracture up to this point?”
“Not much that I’m aware of. He had been encouraged to rest, which, as I mentioned, he had mostly refused to do and no one really enforced, and he had been sutured when he was first brought into the ER.”
“Let me get this straight. Dr. House was seriously injured in a traumatic accident, which eventually caused the death of someone he knew...”
Thirteen interjected. “She had been one of his fellows until recently.”
“Okay, then. One of his former fellows was injured and Dr. House not only refused treatment for his initial injuries, but he underwent a series of questionable acts to gain access to his missing memories, eventually allowing his best friend to convince him to attempt an extremely dangerous procedure, which could have been life-threatening for Dr. House, even if he had not already been injured.”
“Yes, that is right.”
“I have to ask: Why didn’t anyone stop him?”
Yes, she thought, why didn’t anyone stop him? Secretly, that sardonic part of Thirteen was pleased to hear the panel pick up just how ludicrous the whole thing had been. How could they have allowed him to continue under those circumstances… herself included? She bit her tongue to avoid giving away too much of her personal feelings about it. Drawing a deep breath, she replied, as calmly as she could, “As I said, Dr. House could be very stubborn. In addition, once Dr. House remembered that our former colleague, Dr. Volakis, was involved, Dr. Wilson became less concerned about Dr. House’s injuries and much more concerned about finding a way to save Dr. Volakis.”
“And yet, we are talking about a man who had suffered a severe brain injury and allowed it to be aggravated by avoiding proper treatment and undergoing questionable procedures. At what point does he stop being a doctor -- and your boss -- and start being a patient?”
Thirteen shifted uncomfortably in her chair, the tremor in her hands growing more pronounced. Oh, what the hell.
“That is the question, isn’t it? Only Dr. Wilson and Dr. Cuddy could have exerted enough pressure on Dr. House to ensure that he was treated as a patient and not a doctor...” Her sentence dangled enticingly, but she refused to complete the thought, which was that she felt that neither of those doctors had done what was medically appropriate under the circumstances.
“What was Dr. Cuddy’s role in all of this?”
“I don’t believe she was aware of the deep brain stimulation at the time. Other than that, she mostly allowed Dr. House to do as he saw fit.”
“Did you agree with her approach to his treatment?”
“I would prefer not to answer that question.”
“Understandable. Let me state it another way. If this had been any other patient, what would the course of treatment have been?”
“We would have admitted him immediately, done a head CT and an MRI, kept him still and under observation, performed ongoing mental status tests, checked him regularly for brain swelling and bleeds, possibly drained any fluid from the brain, if necessary, and perhaps even performed brain surgery if the situation worsened. We would have refused to allow him to function in his professional capacity until he had been cleared for work by a neurologist... a process that can sometimes take days, weeks or even months after an injury of that kind.”
“Did he have any other symptoms that you are aware of?”
“He certainly did. He suffered violent headaches, which he attempted to hide from us, his emotions were volatile -- not unusual in head injury patients, but quite unusual for Dr. House -- vomiting, bleeding from his right ear, and after the deep brain stimulation, several grand mal seizures. And, of course, following the DBS, he was briefly in a coma.”
“Were you present for the DBS?”
“No. I refused to be involved.”
“Thank you, Dr. Hadley. Is there anything else you’d like to add?”
“No, there isn’t.”
“We retain the right to call you back if we have further questions. Lunch break.”
Once again, she got up slowly, stretched… and left the room.
Day One, 1:30 p.m.
.
Author: zeppomarx
Characters: All the usual suspects, plus more.
Summary: When a panel is convened to review the facts of Gregory House’s life, his fellows (past and present), colleagues, patients and friends are called to testify.
Thanks: To Brigid45, for her infinite wisdom and advice.
Warnings, etc.: Possible character death.
Disclaimers: Don't own House or any of the show's characters. If I did, things might have gone a little differently.
Chapter Summary: Thirteen continues her testimony.
Day One, 11 a.m.
Thirteen settled herself back on the hard, wooden chair. She drew a deep breath, and waited for the next question.
“You were part of his team around the time Dr. House went to Mayfield Psychiatric Hospital. Did you notice any changes in his personality beforehand?”
“I wish I could say that I had, but I did not.” How could all of them have missed the signs of his impending mental breakdown, she wondered? It was almost as bad as when they’d missed the signs before Kutner’s suicide. Were they so used to House’s eccentricities that they sloughed it off, or was he just that good at hiding things? Or were they not as observant as they ought to be. She’d gone over it in her head hundreds of times since.
“Did you notice any changes in Dr. House after he returned from Mayfield?”
“Yes. He seemed more at ease with himself, and for a while, he was less sarcastic… less sharp-tongued with us.”
“Were the rest of his staff and colleagues aware of these positive changes?”
“Of course, I can’t speak for them, but certainly neither Dr. Cuddy nor Dr. Wilson appeared to be giving him any kind of encouragement or support. They seemed more concerned over whether he was ‘using’ again -- as they called it.”
“Could you explain what you mean?”
Thirteen took a deep breath. Oh, well. In for a penny, in for a pound. At this point, she had nothing to lose by revealing the truth about her colleagues. “Well, Dr. House had been taking Vicodin for a reason. He was in excruciating pain all the time. Although he clearly had problems with the drug, he also needed some kind of pain relief. It almost seemed as if Drs. Cuddy and Wilson were more concerned with his drug use than with the reason he took the drugs in the first place. The studies have shown that people in pain react differently to the effects of painkillers than people who are not, and I don’t think that was taken into account.”
“Now, were you working for Dr. House when he was involved in a serious bus crash in the spring of 2008?”
“Yes.”
“Could you give us a brief summary of what happened?”
“In the crash, Dr. House suffered a severe head injury, with resultant concussion and retrograde amnesia. An X-ray revealed a skull fracture, which widened significantly over the next few days.”
“How was this injury treated?”
“In my opinion, not well. Dr. House believed that he had forgotten some crucial piece of evidence that might be used to save a patient’s life. As a result, he continued to work as he attempted to discover the answer.”
“How did others at the hospital react to this injured patient’s insistence on working?”
“For the most part, they encouraged it, because Dr. House was so adamant that a patient’s life was at stake. And, to be fair, he did discover a serious ailment affecting the driver of the bus, although it hadn’t caused the crash.”
“What exactly did Dr. House do in order to access his missing memories?”
“Initially, Dr. Chase hypnotized him, which was fairly benign. Later on, Dr. House inhaled aromas from the bus passenger’s clothing, believing that the sense of smell might trigger his memories -- which it did -- and eventually used a sensory deprivation tank.”
“What was your role in all of this?”
“Against my better judgment, I was the one who sealed him in the tank. I did argue with him about it at the time, but Dr. House, even impaired, could be quite determined... and he was, after all, my boss.”
“Anything else?”
“Yes. He recreated the placement of passengers on the bus and took the Alzheimer’s drug physostigmine to enhance his memories, which triggered a myocardial infarction in the process.”
“No one at the hospital overruled him or insisted that he rest?”
“Yes, although not very forcefully. At one point, Dr. Cuddy sent him home with a nurse in attendance, but when the situation grew more dire, she called him back to the hospital and encouraged him to keep working.”
“Dire? How?”
“First, there was the status of the bus driver -- whose condition had worsened. Then the recreation of the bus passenger placement, Dr. House’s use of physostigmine and his heart attack, which led him to realize that the person he had been really trying to remember was his best friend -- Dr. Wilson’s -- girlfriend, Dr. Amber Volakis. At that point, he refused to rest, pushing himself to find a cure for her.”
“Was he successful?”
“Yes and no. Yes, he did ultimately discover what was causing her symptoms, but no, he was unable to save her life.”
“This was all after suffering a skull fracture, a concussion, retrograde amnesia and a heart attack?”
“Yes, it was.”
“I would have to say that I find that kind of dedication to be admirable. I understand that, despite his quite serious injuries, he agreed when Dr. Wilson asked him to undergo a deep brain stimulation. Is that correct?”
“Yes, it is.” And what a stupid idea that was. She still couldn’t believe House had agreed to it.
“Had Dr. House had any treatment for his skull fracture up to this point?”
“Not much that I’m aware of. He had been encouraged to rest, which, as I mentioned, he had mostly refused to do and no one really enforced, and he had been sutured when he was first brought into the ER.”
“Let me get this straight. Dr. House was seriously injured in a traumatic accident, which eventually caused the death of someone he knew...”
Thirteen interjected. “She had been one of his fellows until recently.”
“Okay, then. One of his former fellows was injured and Dr. House not only refused treatment for his initial injuries, but he underwent a series of questionable acts to gain access to his missing memories, eventually allowing his best friend to convince him to attempt an extremely dangerous procedure, which could have been life-threatening for Dr. House, even if he had not already been injured.”
“Yes, that is right.”
“I have to ask: Why didn’t anyone stop him?”
Yes, she thought, why didn’t anyone stop him? Secretly, that sardonic part of Thirteen was pleased to hear the panel pick up just how ludicrous the whole thing had been. How could they have allowed him to continue under those circumstances… herself included? She bit her tongue to avoid giving away too much of her personal feelings about it. Drawing a deep breath, she replied, as calmly as she could, “As I said, Dr. House could be very stubborn. In addition, once Dr. House remembered that our former colleague, Dr. Volakis, was involved, Dr. Wilson became less concerned about Dr. House’s injuries and much more concerned about finding a way to save Dr. Volakis.”
“And yet, we are talking about a man who had suffered a severe brain injury and allowed it to be aggravated by avoiding proper treatment and undergoing questionable procedures. At what point does he stop being a doctor -- and your boss -- and start being a patient?”
Thirteen shifted uncomfortably in her chair, the tremor in her hands growing more pronounced. Oh, what the hell.
“That is the question, isn’t it? Only Dr. Wilson and Dr. Cuddy could have exerted enough pressure on Dr. House to ensure that he was treated as a patient and not a doctor...” Her sentence dangled enticingly, but she refused to complete the thought, which was that she felt that neither of those doctors had done what was medically appropriate under the circumstances.
“What was Dr. Cuddy’s role in all of this?”
“I don’t believe she was aware of the deep brain stimulation at the time. Other than that, she mostly allowed Dr. House to do as he saw fit.”
“Did you agree with her approach to his treatment?”
“I would prefer not to answer that question.”
“Understandable. Let me state it another way. If this had been any other patient, what would the course of treatment have been?”
“We would have admitted him immediately, done a head CT and an MRI, kept him still and under observation, performed ongoing mental status tests, checked him regularly for brain swelling and bleeds, possibly drained any fluid from the brain, if necessary, and perhaps even performed brain surgery if the situation worsened. We would have refused to allow him to function in his professional capacity until he had been cleared for work by a neurologist... a process that can sometimes take days, weeks or even months after an injury of that kind.”
“Did he have any other symptoms that you are aware of?”
“He certainly did. He suffered violent headaches, which he attempted to hide from us, his emotions were volatile -- not unusual in head injury patients, but quite unusual for Dr. House -- vomiting, bleeding from his right ear, and after the deep brain stimulation, several grand mal seizures. And, of course, following the DBS, he was briefly in a coma.”
“Were you present for the DBS?”
“No. I refused to be involved.”
“Thank you, Dr. Hadley. Is there anything else you’d like to add?”
“No, there isn’t.”
“We retain the right to call you back if we have further questions. Lunch break.”
Once again, she got up slowly, stretched… and left the room.
Day One, 1:30 p.m.
.