The Final Diagnosis

“Oh no!” The reaction from Dornberger was much what O’Do

“Charlie, we know you’re a close friend of Joe’s and I had that in mind when I asked you here. You could persuade him about this.”

“In other words, you want me to carry your ax,” Dornberger said dryly.

“Charlie, it isn’t an ax, believe me.”

Dr. Charles Dornberger hesitated. He observed that the others were watching him, waiting for his answer. He debated: should he do as O’Do

In a way the news of the state of affairs in Pathology was not entirely unexpected; it was a condition he had suspected for some time. Nevertheless the two incidents concerning Rufus and Reubens, which O’Do

At the same time Charles Dornberger wanted to help Joe Pearson if he could, and at this moment he found himself resenting the tide of events which seemed to be engulfing the elderly pathologist. And yet O’Do

Dornberger looked around at the others. He asked, “Is this unanimous?”

Lucy Grainger said thoughtfully, “I’m very fond of Joe. I think we all are. But I do believe some changes in Pathology are necessary.” It was the first time Lucy had spoken. She too had wondered about this meeting with Kent O’Do

O’Do

The surgeon nodded. “All right—if Charlie will approach Pearson, I agree.”

Harvey Chandler was next. The chief of medicine told Dornberger ponderously, “In my opinion this is the best way to handle the situation, Charlie. You will be doing all of us, as well as the hospital, a very real service.”

“Very well,” Dornberger said. “I’ll see what I can do.”

There was a momentary silence, and O’Do

Harry Tomaselli said softly, “I take it, then, we’re going to look for an available pathologist.”

“I think we should begin to look around.” O’Do

“Pathologists can be pretty choosy nowadays,” Bill Rufus said.

“I know. This may not be easy.” O’Do

Harry Tomaselli had reached into one of his desk drawers and removed a file folder. He said, “Something here may interest you.”

Harvey Chandler asked him, “What is it you have?”

“I’ve been receiving the ‘open list’ on pathologists lately,” Tomaselli answered. “Frankly, I anticipated something like this and asked for it. This name came in a week or two ago.”

“May I see?” O’Do

He glanced over the sheet the administrator had given him. The listing was for a Dr. David Coleman, his age thirty-one. O’Do

He passed the paper to Rufus. “I doubt very much if he’d look at us,” he told Tomaselli. “Not with those qualifications and what we could pay to begin with.” O’Do

Rufus glanced up. “I agree. This man can take his pick of the big city hospitals.” He passed the sheet to Harvey Chandler.

“Well, as a matter of fact . . .” Tomaselli paused; he sounded unusually diffident, as if weighing his words carefully.

O’Do

“Well, the fact is, Dr. Coleman is interested in this hospital.” Tomaselli paused. “I gather he’s heard something of our recent changes and plans for the future.”

O’Do

“I know because we’ve had some correspondence.”

Rufus said, “Isn’t that a little unusual, Harry?”

“Perhaps I was being premature, but after this came”—Tomaselli indicated the paper which had now passed to Lucy—“I wrote to Dr. Coleman. I said nothing definite, of course. It was just a tentative approach, sounding him out.” He turned to O’Do

“Yes, I do.” O’Do