Super big props to procrastinatrix for sending me a tape of this episode when I screwed up. Thanks, procrastinatrix!
Previously on Gideon's Crossing: Sid screwed up while operating on Mr. Porter. Boies had to tell Mrs. Porter that her husband died. Mrs. Porter sued. Ellyn the lawyer claimed that the hospital wasn't responsible. Ah, but it wasn't just Sid's fault. Cherry caused Mr. Porter's kidneys to fail. Wyatt, distracted by his wife's departure, left Porter unsupervised. Porter died. Boies took the fall for Wyatt. Ben yelled at Boies. Mrs. Porter wanted the doctors involved named, and for them to take responsibility for their actions. In other words, a whole heap of trouble is coming.
An orderly pushing a tray of food stops to blow his nose -- right near all the food. A nurse carrying a tray of meds drops them on the floor, then picks them up and puts them back on the tray. Another nurse brings urine samples to the counter, then picks up a bunch of I.V. bags. A patient walks through the spill on the floor. Some random guy totally sneezes on the patient. That point is that hospitals can kill you, I guess. But it's not like those same types of things don't happen in everyday life. I guess you're more vulnerable in a hospital, because of your weakened immune system from being sick and all.
Ollie is talking to a patient named Mr. Chin, asking about his stomach pain. Chin wants a glass of water. Ollie tells him he can't eat or drink, and offers ice chips. Chin isn't happy. Cherry shows up and summons Ollie. Chin goes on and on about the glass of water, saying he can get it himself. Ollie tells the nurse that she should "shoot to kill" if Chin tries it.
Ollie follows Cherry out of the room. Cherry gives her the bullet on a patient who is undergoing chemo but came in with "strep pneumonia" two weeks ago. She's had a relapse. Cherry is concerned because she crashed within forty-five minutes. Ollie thinks it's an infection, but Cherry doesn't think there are any signs. The woman groans in pain. Cherry mentions that it's one of Ben's patients. Ollie struggles to come up with an explanation for the sudden crash, while Cherry rips on her for suggesting Ebola. Hey, at least she's trying to help! Cherry leaves to get Boies, over Ollie's protests. Boies is in mid-complaint about another patient, who suspiciously had the same symptoms as Cherry's patient. Cherry points out that his patient "crashed like a Kennedy was at the wheel." Boies picks up on the similarities and runs off. When they arrive, Ollie is putting in a central line. Cherry accuses her of "muscling in." Ollie calls Cherry "Opie," and when he asks for some respect, she changes it to "Dr. Opie." Boies wants to intubate and take the patient to ICU. Sid comes in, looking for some help with charts. The others protest that they are busy with a patient. Sid starts detailing another patient who had a similar crash the night before. Boies finishes putting the tube in. Ollie asks what's going on. Boies replies, "I don't know. Things are getting distinctly hinky in this town." Get it? Because the title of the episode is "Hinkytown"?
Wyatt leaves a message on his in-laws' answering machine for his wife. They haven't talked, and he's wondering what's going on with them. He wants to talk. Yeah, maybe he should have thought of that a few months ago.
Sid complains to Ollie about the fact that she brought someone home the night before. Ollie feels like it's her business. Sid says he wouldn't care, except that he ran into the guy in the bathroom at 4 AM, and they had a chat. And the guy wasn't wearing pants. Ollie says breezily that the lack of pants isn't her fault. Except that it kind of is, but I'm not going to go down that road. Sid asks Ollie to "warn [him] time the navy's in port." Ouch. Ollie doesn't seem offended. Sid asks about the patient from earlier in the episode, who was intubated and sent to ICU. Ollie says that it's Cherry's case.
Cut to Cherry trying to fill Ben in on the status of the patient. Cherry reports that the patient is still "febrile and non-responsive." As he continues, Ben interrupts and says that the patient's name is Sharon. This recapper thanks him for that one. Cherry says that they took a bunch of cultures from Sharon. Ben wants a call when the cultures come in, but Cherry stammers that it might be a while because the lab is backed up, while making it clear that this is not his fault. Ben wants to know why, and Cherry tells him that "several patients developed sepsis at the same time."
Max is in his office, on the phone with a "Jason" who will be there "tomorrow for sure." Ben walks in and asks about the three patients who went into septic shock last night, saying that there must be a source of infection in the hospital. Given that opening montage, I can't imagine where it might be. Max corrects Ben, saying that six patients have gone into septic shock in the last two days. Ben asks about "Detwiler," the "Infection Control Officer." Max says that Detwiler left the hospital two weeks ago, and they hired Jason (the guy on the phone at the open of the scene) but, as we viewers know, Jason won't be there until tomorrow. In the meantime, Max is the Infection Control Officer. Ben protests that Max "wouldn't know an infectious disease if it bit [him] on the ass." Max can't get mad, because it's true, and in his own inimitable way he convinces Ben to take charge. I love Max. Ben asks about the Porter case. Max says that things should start moving shortly. Ben thinks they should give Mrs. Porter "what she needs." Max tells Ben to find the source of the infection, soon.