Previously on saving hope we met with Charlie, he is in a coma and his invisible self is walking around Hope Zion hospital he can see all that is going on but, can’t interact with people unless they are dead, close to death or in a coma, his fiancé Alex is working hard whilst also looking after him, Dawn is Charlie’s ex-wife who has turned up and is stirring up emotions. Joel is an orthopaedic surgeon who knows what he is doing and is not afraid to admit it, Maggie is a resident doctor who can be a little self-involved and has a crush on Joel, Gavin is a doctor of the mind and doesn’t like his foods touching, Zach has strong religious ties, Shahir is a brain surgeon who isn’t really a people person, Victor is one of the male nurses who is cool and cares, Dana is Acting chief of Surgery and can be a little scary to people and we ended the last episode with coma Charlie getting a little bit of movement due to Alex trying a little of the coma arousal therapy.
We open this episode with Charlie hooked up to monitors, Alex is talking to him about being inpatient and about starting the coma arousal therapy, she starts by spraying her perfume around him, giving him the sense of smell, Charlie is watching this, he can see and hear all that is going on, by his reaction I think he likes the perfume, Alex checks that no one can see and gets on the bed and straddles Charlie, she takes her top of and puts his hands on her skin, to give him the sense of Touch. Invisible Charlie says that “Whoever invented this therapy is an evil, EVIL genius!” love that. Nurse Jackson walks in and interrupts her, she tries to explain what she is doing and he says he needs to suction his phlegm (Nice!). Alex puts her top back on (it’s very fitted, no doctor I have ever seen has a top that fitted) Alex gets in the lift and Charlie is talking about getting better, how it’s like when you get in the lift and make a bet with yourself to get to the floor your on with no one else getting on it, which Alex has done since when the lift arrives she does a fist pump!
Maggie and Joel walk into a Café, they are discussing whether they are doing the walk of shame, Joel says because they are together they are technically safe, they do not realise that Gavin is in the Café sitting eating his breakfast, he calls to them and Maggie reacts with ‘oh crap act cool’ they both do the awkward trying to explain why they are together, Gavin says when they are done to let him know and they can go in together, Joel says he has car and Gavin says thank you for saving him as yesterday he sat in Cheese and that he was wearing his cords, (Joel’s face at hearing Gavin wears cords is just the cutest.)
Alex walks and asks Reycraft if she needed time off, if he would cover her duties for her, after a small discussion, he agrees that he would, but he couldn’t guarantee she would get the job back again. Joel starts to Quote Shakespeare “Yond cassius has a lean and hungry look, He thinks too much, such men are dangerous!” he then bites his lip and smiles (any fan girl is having a meltdown right now!) Alex asks if he got laid last night, as he always rocks Shakespeare after he has, Alex then asks who the Juliet is and Joel replies with I don’t Kiss and tell, she says that he barely even kisses. He changes the subject onto Charlie, he mentions that just because he moved his finger it doesn’t mean he will move today and Alex replies it doesn’t mean he won’t. (I like that she is in a positive mood for Charlie at the moment).
Alex walks into the ER to see Maggie and a group of staff watching a man rehearse his proposal speech, Benjamin Monk he has abdominal pains and is due to fly out to meet his girlfriend Karen Anne Churley to propose to her, they notice he has a few scars already and he says they are due to a childhood illness he once had, he had lots of surgeries and then he mentions that his dad is a surgeon who is out fixing Cleft Palates, Maggie seems impressed, at that point Zach pops his head in and says that there is multiple trauma’s due in, Ben Mentions that his dad knew this mad orthopaedic surgeon but he can’t remember the name, Maggie says Joel Goren at the same time as Alex says Charlie Harris (awkward) Ben says Harris is the one he was talking about, Maggie looks a little awkward now. Alex mentions that Charlie is her fiancée and he says to mention that Dr Monk from Winnipeg says hi. Maggie and Alex head to help with the trauma’s due in.
Two males in their early twenties are brought in; they are brothers and have had a roofing accident. Both of the brothers are hurt really bad, one is conscious and one isn’t, one seems to have a really bad femur Fracture (gory looking lower leg break). Alex takes one of them up to surgery he has broken ribs and problems with the liver and abdomen, when they are in surgery she talks about a Pringle (not the crisps) this is a surgical manoeuvre to prevent blood loss during liver surgery, clamping an artery off, Joel knows he has work to do but says ladies first, Alex says that he needs to get going, he has pelvic issues as well as the ribs so he has a lot that needs doing and its needs to be started straight away. Whilst they are doing this Charlie talks about a cartoon he once saw with a guy hanging from a palm tree in a monsoon and is swinging from side to side hanging on for dear life, whilst he talks you can see that they have complications with the surgery. The guy they are operating on now appears by Charlie and needs to be calmed down a little as his breathing is fast because he has seen himself as they operate on him. He asks why there is so much blood and Charlie explains that his liver was punctured by his broken ribs and that he is in rough shape. He arrests, CPR is started whilst they’re still trying to sort out the problem. Charlie goes back to his cartoon story and says that he knew with how the wind was that the cartoon guy couldn’t hold on, as you hear this you see that the guy being operated on is not going to make it and they call time of death. The guy looks at Charlie who lets out a huge sigh.
Maggie is explaining that test results for Ben show he is anaemic and that he needs to take some iron which will affect his stool and make it black, Maggie says he can go to see his girlfriend and they will run some more follow ups when her returns. Maggie moves around the desk and starts to talk to Gavin, she notices that he has a lot of paper works and he mentions that the swallower is in the house, he then mentions that she swallowed his phone, and is unsure how she got it down. He adds she is like captain hook as the phone is ringing inside her and he has no idea who is calling him. Maggie asks if he is leaning on the discharge papers and he hands over the clipboard. She notices Ben is gone and then goes on a search to find him, he is sitting on chairs and by the sounds of his breathing is not doing so well. He says he felt dizzy and gets up to go, he then falls to the floor and nurses rush to help Maggie deal with him.
Charlie is now talking to the guy who just passed, he explains he is in a coma and that normally in his experience people will either wake up or die and when they die he has no idea what happens next as they just disappear on him, they both have no idea why he hasn’t gone and is still talking to Charlie.
Joel walks past the waiting room, a woman stands alone looking and waiting whilst he passes, he goes in and talks to the roofing brother who has survived, Joel asks if he has any family to contact and he says no, his parents are in Trinidad and he has no wife or other siblings. Joel talks about the damage to the guys leg and knee, he asks if he can feel anything as Joel starts to move his foot about, he says he can, they start to talk about the roofing business and that it was his brother Isaacs dream, that instead of a business card he had baseball caps made, Isaac wore his everywhere. Joel explains about the damage and that they will lose part of the leg, Mr Wolf seems to be in his own space as he looks out, Joel calls his name and he replies with ‘I heard you’, Joel talks of his options about doing a van ness rotationplasty where they amputate the leg and re-attach it upside down so his ankle then becomes his knee, they would then attach a prosthetic and he can walk and run as normal with it, Mr Wolf replies with, do whatever you want I don’t care.
Maggie and Alex go out to see Ben who is sitting in chairs getting his pulse taken, they walk away and discuss what they think it is and then turn to see him being sick, his vomit is red and he asks what is wrong. Once they get him in a bed they ask questions if he has had any family history of cancer, he mentions he was adopted and when he searched out his birth mum she had passed away from colon cancer, that it was called lynch syndrome and they say it can be hereditary, he talks about how he hates hospitals and how he was taken in to work by his dad and that it is not much fun at the age of 5, he says how scared he is and then to calm him Alex explains about Charlie how he is in a coma, saying how he moved his hand against the odds and the human body is an amazing thing and they will fix him. Alex now walks into Charlie’s room and asks Nurse Jackson if Dr Tolliver has been in yet, he says not in the last half hour since she last asked, they have a conversation about the therapy and he at first says he’s not doing ‘The bra Thing!’ she asks if everyone knows about that and he says yes, he then says he will do a little of the therapy, spray deodorant and tickle his feet and then adds he is very secure in his masculinity, she says thank you and then leaves.
Joel goes to see Dana about the Van ness operation, he mentions she has a nice office and she says it’s bigger than Charlie’s and then adds ‘in a woman’s world size does matter’. Dana mentions the Van ness surgery is usually done on children with tumours, Joel explains not always and he goes on to convince her that he can do the surgery, saying how if they just fused the leg he would be a peg leg and would need a prosthetic anyway, that this is a better option, Dana mentions that the risk of infection is too great and if it fails Johnny Wolf the patient may lose the leg above the knee or worse, it’s too risky and that she is worried about litigation, Joel says his patient is what he is worried about and that she is in charge and that she needs to takes risks and that his triumph is her glory (all of this is said with a charming smile).
Maggie has a camera looking at Ben’s Colon he is awake and the camera has gone in through his rear end (ouch). Maggie starts to fish for information on Joel since she knows that Alex used to date him, Ben starts to sing the wedding march and then starts to say his vows for Karen Anne Churley, they discover that he has a floorless and pristine colon and he does not have cancer. Alex gets a page and leaves the room, she walks down the hall and finds out about his test results that something is present that shouldn’t be as another test contradicts it, as Alex walks back she notices a poster for employee of the moth for a woman named Karen Anne Churley (yes we have heard that name somewhere before, can you remember where?). Alex walks into the doctors lounge and asks if Joel has seen Gavin, he says he doesn’t mingle with the puppies, Alex says not that one anyway, Joel leans back with that gorgeous smile and says he is having fun, Alex reminds him what is fun for him may not be for others. Victor walks into the lounge and says that Johnny wolf’s wife wants to speak with him; Joel mentions that he was told he did not have a wife.
Charlie is walking in the corridor talking to Isaac, he tells him about what he knows, they see someone is about to pass and use that as an example, saying how that they are working on him and he won’t survive, Isaac asks if he can do something and Charlie tells him to talk and tell them to relax, tell them how it is, the guy appears and after a moment starts to scream, Isaac tell him not to panic and that “Yours Dead Bro!” (Perfect wording for the old man) the guy continues to scream and runs off. Charlie and Isaac follow him out of the room and find he has vanished, Isaac says ‘is that it ten seconds and then poof you’re gone’ and asks why it won’t happen to him. Isaac now raises a point Charlie had not before thought of, if he actually needed to do something to make him wake.
Joel walks out to the woman he had passed earlier, Johnny’s wife and he says he said he wasn’t married, she goes on to explain they are fighting, she is worried about him and Joel explains about the surgery, she says she has been too scared to go in but she has to make her peace in case anything goes wrong. They walk in and the first thing he says is that she needs to leave, she walks up and wants to explain, but he says that she can’t say anything Isaac hasn’t already told him, she walks off and Joel says they are sending him down to the OR now.
Gavin and Alex walk into see Ben, he looks at them as Alex asks to see the backs of his knees, he says the pain is in his abdomen and she repeats that she needs to see his knees, they notice track marks, he tries to say its steroids, but they explain they know about Karen the employee of the month, they tell him they know he drained his own blood to look anaemic and then drank it to make it appear in his stool, they know what he is up to and he is to leave as soon as he is able to, just as Alex walks away he says he has swallowed a safety-pin and it was open and that he will need tests, she thinks he is lying but Gavin explains he was present when he told Maggie about the swallower, she says he is a con man, but Gavin states he is a frequent flyer who is willing to do himself harm. Alex comes out of radiology after a scan on Ben and starts a conversation with Shahir about Charlie and how she thinks the coma arousal therapy is working, he says there is no evidence to prove it, she wants him to do another Glasgow test (this is a test that helps test the patient’s state of conscious) after more pushing from Alex he agrees to do the test at the end of the day.
Maggie and Alex are talking about how the safety-pin perforated Ben’s duodenum (this is the shortest part of your small intestine and most of your chemical digestion takes place here). The walk up to Joel who is getting ready for the Van ness Rotationplasty, he looks nervous and doesn’t want to screw it up as Johnny is only 24, Alex reassures him he won’t (showing you how much she knows him). Anyone and everyone who is available is watching him do this surgery as it is a once in a blue moon operation for some hospitals, he says he is not used to performing to a full house and he should charge admission, Victor says that’s what you get for performing Diva surgeries, he is handed a bone saw and gets to it. We now see Mrs Wolf pacing outside as the operation goes on and Charlie and Isaac are sitting in chairs. Charlie says that he thinks he knows why Isaac is still here, Isaac says something and says it’s from the bible and Charlie says it’s too big for him to read, Isaac mentions all the medical books and their size and Charlie mentions they have lots of pictures (yeah I like pictures in books too), Isaac talks of two brothers in the book of genesis who fell in love with the same woman, Charlie gathers that Isaac told Johnny that he loved his wife on the roof, Isaac thinks it’s his fault and Charlie mentions that he is still here as he has unfinished business, Isaac stands up and shouts that he messed up its his fault, he is still there and Charlie says that is not going to do it.
Gavin is talking to Alex and says that ben has Munchausen’s syndrome (this is where people can have extensive medical knowledge to fake illness and get attention) Alex feels she was fooled by him and Gavin tries to explain that hospitals make him feel safe, Alex doesn’t understand that and says he was completely fooled she should have seen the signs, Gavin explains that he has only seen him for an hour and he probably has other mental health issues. Alex asks him how he should treat a patient like that and he replies with Patience, she asks him to not see him until after her post op rounds and he agrees. Alex knocks on Dana’s door and says she was paged, Dana wants to talk to her, Dana says that Reycraft mentioned she was looking to take some time off, Alex see’s that he mentioned that (trying to take her job) and then Dana goes over the other things she knows like:- stripping in Charlie’s room and not being quick in catching the Munchausen’s patient, Dana goes on to mention that Alex is not in the game, she is not thinking as she used to as she has Charlie to think off and that she needs to get her head back in the game. This upsets her a little and she leaves, she arrives to see Ben and asks how he is doing, he is feeling a little rough, she says he is in denial about his illness, he says that he is not the only one, he goes on about how she is believing a lie about the fact Charlie will beat the odds.
Charlie and Isaac are in Johnny’s room seeing that he made it through the operation Charlie mentions that Dr Goren can be a nob, but is a great surgeon. Mrs wolf enters the room and confronts him about his hate for her, he says that he doesn’t hate her and that he is on a morphine drip so it is a good time to talk, he says he didn’t want to see it but knew what was going on, that he should have thought harder and that Isaac died because of him, and Isaac says it’s not true.
Shahir is doing the Glasgow scale test on Charlie, Alex is watching and she can’t believe that Charlie is still a 6, Shahir says that the finger moving was just a reflex and random neurons firing, Charlie sees what he is saying and Isaac say’s it’s going to be ok, but Charlie says no it’s not. Alex leaves the room and finds an empty side room to try to calm herself down, she lays down and cries and we see Charlie beside her and stroking her arm, we then see her turn and it goes into a flash back of them in bed and Charlie’s saying they should get married, they have a small conversation about it, he says he has a feeling about it and she says it could be gas, she says that their relationship is amazing and the best time of her life and they discuss how they are a fit, its science and it’s like a Yin to a Yang. Alex hears a knock on the door and Joel walks in, she can’t believe she is so emotional, he then tries to convince her that she had reason to, she has taken in what Shahir has said to heart and she is now doubting herself and that as a doctor should form conclusions on what she can see, not on what she feels, Joel says that she believes in him and she is his lifeline not his doctor and that she needs to get back on the horse, as they say on the ranch, she says he has never been on a ranch and then she thanks him for his support as she really needed him there and then.
We come to a finish now with the slow motion music and Alex walking past Jackson into see Charlie, we then move through rooms and see Ben alone contemplating things, Mrs Wolf in a chair at Johnny’s side falling asleep, he is looking through his brothers belongings and takes out the baseball cap, he dusts it off and leans back hugging it, Isaac nods seeing he does still care. Charlie talks over the music saying how to be seen is all we want, from when we take our first steps having our parents see us, telling us we are going to be ok, saying they are cared for and in this together and we are going to get through it. Isaac steps back and Charlie asks if he is ok and he says yes, Charlie asks what happens next and Isaac says he thinks he is done, the power seems to go and a bright light shines, Charlie looks at the light and then sees Isaac is gone and is standing alone in the corridor.
So that was episode 3, blindness and I think the title refers to the fact that sometimes you are blinded to what other things may be going on if you are looking for something else, as Alex and Maggie were looking for Ben’s problem they were blinded to what was really happening and then how Alex felt her emotions for Charlie were blinding her to what was really happening to him as she was looking for improvement and would pick out anything she saw as a sign she wanted. As always I hope you have enjoyed this recap and I would like to thank you and please stay tuned for more.
