Core Beliefs - Chapter36 - Change of Venue

Core Beliefs – Chapter 36 - Change of Venue

Half an hour after entering the hospital administrator’s office, they emerged.

Chris watched the three tread toward him. Joe’s expression and mannerisms showed he fumed in silent rage. Ling stomped down the hall, livid. On the other hand, Marcus appeared quiet and withdrawn.

When they gathered, Joe angrily recounted the proceedings, how, instead of working towards a compromise, the Administrator threatened to ban Ling from the premises and would do likewise to anyone who interfered with hospital staff or policy.

“A bunch of dumb-ass lawyers run this place!” Joe blurted.

“What can we do?” Chris asked.

“We have to find somewhere else to get Matt treated.” Joe all but shouted. “Marcus, you were right; these people don’t care about him. Ling, can we fly him to your place in Houston?”

She shook her head. “Joe, he wouldn’t survive a trip like that.”

“Another hospital in town?” Charlotte asked.

Marcus stood. Everyone stopped talking and looked up at the imposing African American.

There was a gleam in his eye and purpose in the way his shoulders were set.

“I see it this way,” he said, “this is a good thing.”

The puzzled and troubled looks indicated they questioned his sanity.

“As long as we are under this roof,” Marcus said, “operating under their control and limitations, we have a zero chance of helping Matt. The same restriction would apply if we were at other hospitals. What we have to do is define what setting gives Matt the best chance and, to make it happen.”

It was the way he said, “Make it happen,” that reminded Chris of Matt.

“Let’s get out of the box!” Chris snapped. “In fact, there is no damn box!”

“There’s not a hospital in St. Louis equipped for what Matt needs.” Marcus looked at Joe and Ling. “What I’m proposing is going to sound crazy, but the more I think about it, the more sense it makes. There is only one place where the total resources of a 2.3-billion-dollar empire, with dedicated medical resources, can be brought to bear.”

“You’re right,” Chris jumped in. “There are labs and systems in place to create almost anything, and you can bet the staff will be the most cooperative on earth. You’ll be turning help away!”

Joe and Ling hadn’t figured it out, still eyeing Marcus and Chris with confusion.

“Which facility is best suited?” Marcus asked Chris.

Chris ran a mental inventory of space and resources. “I think Myoplex may be best. They do more bio-lab work and regularly operate under sterile conditions. They are also centrally located and actually the closest to our location.”

“Are you telling us you want to move Matt to one of the company facilities?” Ling blurted.

Over the next ten minutes, Marcus laid out a proposal that covered everything from labs and testing to surgery. Ling blinked in awe that he could structure the concept so quickly in his head.

“But where are you going to get the medical equipment?” Ling asked.

“Most of our customers are hospitals, research facilities, and medical supply companies.” Marcus laughed. “I am sure we will have every required item, and the best part is we have an army of people that will help run it to ground and get it set up.

“Ling, I promise you that in two days or fewer, we will have a first-rate facility at your disposal. Now, the only drawback I see is a shortage of medical staff. Ling, even as determined as you are, you cannot run 24/7 and do what’s best for Matt.”

“Marcus, can you really do this?” Joe blinked in disbelief.

“We can do this,” Charlotte declared, “all of us. We each have abilities and experience to offer, and from what I see, any lesser option would not be giving Matt our best!”

Her face grew grim as she looked each person in the eye. “I don’t want to ever think I did not give that man my best!”

“Joe,” Marcus said, “it is your decision. You tell us what you want to do.”

Joe sat stiffly, thinking back on the session with the Administrator, remembering what he had seen at the silo, remembering how these people adored and loved Matt. As these things rolled through his mind, he made his decision.

“Throughout my life, I have wondered at the miracles wrought by my brother’s companies. As I look around, hear you, and see your determination, I realize, for the first time, that you do not know how to fail. You certainly don’t know how to quit, and based on everything I’ve seen and heard, there is no doubt in my mind that whatever you do, it will be a hell of a lot better than what is happening here. Let’s do it!”

There was a tangible change in the atmosphere, still grim and determined but now with a clear purpose and goal.

“Ling,” Marcus took control, “you and Charlotte work together to make a list of every medical component you need in your dream facility.

“Chris and Charley, we need to prepare space for surgery, labs, rest quarters, and support systems. I’m calling Karl in HR at Myoplex and telling him what the situation is. He’s a good man. I guarantee he will not let you down. You two head over there and start stripping three lab rooms to make them ready for sterile conditions. Talk to Melissa Kyle. That woman knows how to get things done.”

Marcus shifted his gaze. “Joe, you and I need to handle some prep work for transferring Matt. Put on your lawyer hat and make sure these people don’t screw with us.”

“Cynthia,” he smiled at her. “I need a special favor. Dr. Chang flew up here with nothing but the clothes on her back. Can you help get her outfitted?”

With things tasked, Marcus made calls to all five companies, placing them on notice that anything, anyone, and everything was subject to requisition at any moment.

“Be prepared,” he told them, “and do not fail.”

The response was unconditional support and absolute commitment.

Marcus joined Ling and Charlotte and handed his laptop to Charlotte. “We have a VP of purchasing at every company. Start sending your lists to them as a group and have them respond to the group when they locate an item. The goal is to have all items on-site by noon tomorrow.”

Marcus opened the email directory, showed Ling the personnel list, and helped get the right people into a group.

*** 

Ling shivered, stunned, having never experienced this kind of call to action.

She wondered, ‘Can they really pull this off?’

Charlotte was already typing and transmitting the first list. Ling started writing the second and realized that dozens of the items she needed came from Matt’s companies.

She smiled, whispered to herself, “Maybe this is destiny?”

Within an hour, half of the items on the first list had been located and would be at the Myoplex facility before five that evening.

The one missing item sat in a company storeroom in Cleveland. Marcus phoned the purchasing agent and conferred with the supplier. In five minutes, he arranged for the item to be on a domestic flight in the suitcase of the sales manager of the supplier. It would be in St. Louis by 11:00 that night.