used for necessities and equipment, and we rely on a
heavy corps of volunteers.”
Robbie the Robot could be heard beeping along the
hallway. “Hi, I’m Robbie . . .” He moved on.
“Nonpaid personnel like him?” Renie said, pointing
toward the door.
“In a way, yes,” Heather replied. “He delivers
things. He’s programmed to take charts and other paperwork to various departments. Robbie can even use
the elevators.”
“Good,” said Renie. “I’d hate to see him clank down
a flight of stairs. You’d probably have to put his parts
in a dustpan.”
Somewhat warily, Heather moved over to Renie’s
bed, holding the thermometer as if it were a weapon.
“So what are the problems Good Cheer is facing?” Judith asked.
“The same as every hospital,” Heather replied,
showing some enthusiasm for shoving the thermome-128
Mary Daheim
ter in Renie’s mouth. “The merger of medical specialties helped everyone. Hospitals spent far too much
money on duplicating equipment. It wasn’t necessary
or feasible, especially in a city like this, where so many
of the hospitals are within a five-mile radius.”
“The decline in religious orders must have hurt,” Judith noted. “It certainly made a difference in the
schools when they had to hire lay teachers instead of
nuns.”
“That’s true,” Heather said, then paused to take
Renie’s pulse. “We only have five nuns on staff at
Good Cheer. There used to be dozens.”
“So salaries have gone up dramatically,” Judith
mused. “Malpractice insurance, too, I suppose.”
Heather nodded. “It’s terrible for the doctors. But
you can’t practice medicine without it. Look at what’s
happened . . .” She stopped abruptly and bit her lower
lip.
“Yes,” Judith said kindly. “Have the suits been filed
yet in the instances of the Somosa and Fremont
deaths?”
“I can’t say,” Heather replied doggedly as she read
the thermometer.
“Yes, you can,” Renie retorted. “It’s a matter of public record.”
But Heather refused to cooperate. “Whatever comes
next, it’s not Good Cheer’s fault,” she insisted.
“Meaning?” Judith coaxed.
“We did nothing wrong,” Heather said, her manner
heated. “Not the nurses, not the doctors, not anybody
employed by Good Cheer.”
“You sound very certain,” Judith remarked.
“Hey,” Renie yipped, “aren’t you putting that blood
pressure cuff on awfully tight?”
