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‘No. Not tonight.’
‘Well, that’s great. Thanks a lot. How’s Mrs Neal coming along?’
Brooke pulled a face. ‘Slowly. I’ve just bleeped the anaesthetist.’
‘Right. Let me know when she’s delivering.’
Alison Neal continued to make slow progress and by six o’clock she was fully dilated and had been pushing for an hour. As it was her first baby, in theory she could have been left to push for longer but Brooke was worried about the baby.
‘His heart rate is dipping slightly with each contraction, Alison, so I’m going to give the doctor a ring.’
Bother. She was going to have to ring Jed because his SHO didn’t have enough experience, the registrar was off sick and the senior reg wasn’t due to start for another six weeks.
He strode into the room five minutes later and Brooke immediately handed him the trace, dispensing with preliminaries.
‘We’re getting late decelerations.’ She knew that if the baby’s heart rate dropped after the peak of a contraction it could be a sign that the baby was short of oxygen. ‘I’ve tried changing her position but it’s made no difference.’
‘Right.’ Jed frowned down at the trace, and slipped the paper through his fingers, examining it in detail. ‘How many centimetres dilated is she now?’
‘She’s fully dilated and she’s been pushing for an hour, but the head’s still quite high.’
‘OK.’ Jed handed the trace back to her and smiled at the Neals. ‘I’m Jed Matthews, the consultant. How are you doing?’
‘I’ve been better.’ Alison was looking exhausted, her blonde hair hanging limply round her shoulders. ‘What happens now?’
‘I’d like to examine you,’ Jed said gently, ‘and then we’ll decide together what’s best.’
Alison nodded and Brooke gestured to Paula to help Jed as she settled herself on the bed and talked quietly to Alison.
Jed snapped on a pair of gloves and examined Alison carefully, his face a mask of concentration.
‘OK.’ His handsome face was thoughtful as he finished his examination and gave Alison a warm smile. ‘It’s hard to know who’s more tired, you or the baby.’
Alison’s grip tightened on Brooke’s hand and she and her husband exchanged anxious glances. ‘Is he in trouble?’
Jed hesitated, choosing his words carefully. ‘Not yet, but we need to deliver him as quickly as we can. Have you heard of a ventouse delivery?’
Alison took a deep breath. ‘That’s the suction thing, isn’t it?’
Jed nodded. ‘Basically, yes. I attach a flexible cap to the baby’s head and when you push, I give you a bit of extra help. You’re still doing most of the work, but I can give you a helping hand.’
Brooke blinked with admiration. Somehow he’d managed to make it seem as though Alison would still be doing it all herself. Clever man.
‘Will it hurt?’ Alison looked suddenly anxious and Jed shook his head, his eyes kind as he moved over to the sink and started to scrub.
‘Your epidural was topped up not long ago so, to be honest, it shouldn’t, and I’ll be as gentle as I possibly can.’
Seeing Alison’s expression, Brooke decided that Jed’s bedside manner was second to none but, then, she already knew that, didn’t she? Remembering just exactly how skilled Jed’s bedside manner was brought a blush to her cheeks and she dragged her mind back to work with an effort.
‘Paula, would you bleep the paediatrician and then assist Mr Matthews, please? I’ll sit with Alison.’
Alison grabbed her hand tightly. ‘Will you stay with me the whole time?’
‘The whole time,’ Brooke promised, hoping that Jed was as skilled at using the ventouse as he was at performing emergency Caesarean sections.
He was. As soon as she and Tim had manoeuvred Alison into the right position, Jed applied the cup to the baby’s head with enviable ease. He glanced over his shoulder at Paula.
‘Have you seen this before?’
