people suing me are, shall we say, prominent. They make big donations to the hospital. I did what I believed was right, which left a perfect bikini body with a scar, and the hospital walked away from me. Took a step back, threw collective hands into the air and told me I was on my own.”
“Which is enough to make you bitter, and I understand that. And like I said, I’m sorry about that,” Maggie said in earnestness. “It’s never easy, getting sued. I saw how it devastated my parents the few times they were sued. But they were lucky that the hospital stood behind them and they came out victorious. I take it you’re not doing so well in your lawsuit?”
“To say the least,” he repeated. “And it’s not just the lawsuit itself. It’s all the other things on the periphery that get to you.”
“What do you mean?”
“You can’t get it off your mind. You go over everything you did, wondering if you missed something or left out something that was crucial. You wonder what you could have done differently that might have changed the outcome. But, damn, in the end it was just a scar. She has a perfect baby boy to show for it.”
“Well, your insurance company should figure it out. They don’t pay out on bad or false claims.”
“That’s the other part. I took two years off and went to serve in the military before the lawsuit was filed and the hospital revoked my insurance in that time and fired me while I was laid up in rehab, trying to figure out whether or not I’d ever walk again. So I’m hanging out there on my own in this. Welcome home, Captain Lalonde”
Maggie’s eyes widened. “I did read about your injury, and I’m sorry.”
“Old news,” he said. “I recovered. But while I was focused on that, the hospital did me in. And the thing is …”
“There’s no loyalty,” Maggie said. “It was owed you, and they took it away. But after that long?”
“Statute of limitations in Illinois is generous. The thing is, I talked to the woman who’s suing me—”
“Your attorney let you do that?” Maggie interrupted.
“I don’t have an attorney. Can’t afford one.”
“And the hospital where you worked really, truly isn’t backing you up at all?”
“They claim my insurance coverage ended when I went into the military and became a military doctor, therefore they’re under no obligation to cover me in a suit that was filed after I left the military. I mean, there was almost a three-year lapse in there.”
“Seriously?” Maggie said indignantly. “That’s what they’re trying to pull?”
He shrugged. “I got some pro bono advice, which was basically to try to reach a settlement. But the settlement they want is higher than I can afford. I damaged a model’s perfect body with a scar and they want a bite out of me.”
“But the baby was healthy.”
“It was in fetal distress. Her own doctor wasn’t responding to the calls. They came in, I got assigned and knew there was no way she was going to push that baby out in time, maybe not at all because her pelvis was so small, so I did what I had to do. And now, with the lawsuit hanging over my head, no one back in Chicago will hire me because along with the lawsuit they went after my reputation, so here I am working as a carpenter, probably not inclined to ever go back into medicine, anyway. Bottom line is I appreciate the offer you gave me, but I come with built-in liabilities.”
“Maybe you do, but are you contented to stay a carpenter? After all your years of education and experience, are you ready to simply throw in the towel and keep that hammer handy?”
“I’ve had a couple of friends who were knocked to their knees by malpractice suits. It was ugly. And while the insurance usually pays up one way or another, there’s no way to fix a damaged reputation. For me, that’s as important as anything in this whole mess.”
“And it’s a stigma for life, if you don’t have the right people representing you. My parents have both been unjustly sued—my mother on behalf of the hospital more times than I can count, and it’s always a horrible time for her. For Daddy, too, when he got sued, because of all the emotions involved.”
“Then you understand.”
“More than know, Alain. That’s what I do.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m a registered nurse, and I work part time in medicine just to keep up, also because I love patient care. But I’m also a medical malpractice investigator, and within a few months I’ll be an attorney who’s going to specialize in med malpractice cases, not representing the people doing the suing but the medical personnel being sued. Besides putting on a vigorous defense where it’s deserved, I also want to do some reputation fixing. The thing is, insurance companies are so eager to simply give in and settle, but that doesn’t vindicate the doctor or nurse being sued who doesn’t deserve it. Like you, for example. You’d never seen this patient before, and she presents with fetal distress. Yet she’s wanting to get into your pockets for something that wasn’t your fault.”
“It’s not about the money. They have enough for two lifetimes. It’s all ego. I suppose they want a story to tell. And they sure as hell got it. On top of that, he wants to run for some elected office and campaign on medical reform as part of his platform. He just happens to want to build that platform on my back.”
Maggie paused for a moment, then a smile slowly spread to her face. “Then here’s what I propose. I’ll have to check with my superiors first, because I’m just the investigator. But if I can convince them to take you on as a client, in return I’d like hours here at the clinic. We’ll pay you, of course. Not much, but some kind of stipend for living expenses.”
“You can work in Illinois?”
“We have a registered agent in Illinois so yes, I can work there. And the thing is, Alain, while this isn’t the kind of action that’s going to put money in your pocket, unless you want to countersue, which I wouldn’t recommend since you turning around and suing back turns you into some kind of aggressor you don’t want to become, it’s one that will prevent you from having to go through this alone. And there’s a good possibility we can restore your reputation once we win it and it’s over with.
“In other words, the best outcome would be giving you some peace of mind, and maybe the will to go back out there and practice medicine on a full-time basis. So … interested?” Her heart really did go out to the man. He was taking a beating he didn’t deserve. Even without all the facts, it sounded as if he’d unwittingly stepped in then gotten hammered with a situation that couldn’t have possibly been salvaged.
“Maybe,” he said cautiously. “The thing is, if they sue me they can’t really get anything. I wasn’t kidding when I said I needed this job as a carpenter to get by. So wouldn’t it be just as easy to let them sue then find out I’m not worth two nickels? I mean, I’m living in my aunt’s house, fixing it up for her. She’s moved to Florida and told me I can do with it what I want. She’ll deed it over to me in due course if I want the place, but I don’t want it right now because if I’m being sued I don’t want them taking her house.”
“Your reputation’s worth more than a couple of nickels, isn’t it?”
“It
