Supernatural S04E04
Dr. Airy's curiosity is piqued when he catches a news story about multiple children dying of bacterial pneumonia despite quality care at a University of Massachusetts hospital. With his background, he remembers that, while pneumonia is a leading cause of death in children, it is a secondary condition that develops due to bacteria or viruses, which should be treatable. While it could be a medical anomaly, he convinces the other Hunters to research the area and the situation and see if it is worth going cross-country.
While Airy searches the web on the current cases, Scott looks into historical similarities in Fitchburg, Ciaran looks for other cases in the local area, and Jon looks for new shows for Aine to watch in the car since House is now in its final season. What Airy finds has. a lot of details left out for child and patient protection, but all of the current cases are indeed from the same hospital, UMass Family Medical Center, involving five deaths in the last month or so. Scott finds some references to cases in the old paper mills and other factories in town, but the most concrete is an investigation into the old children's library when it opened in 1899 - there was a clear "outbreak" of cases in the 1899-1900 winter season that provoked checking the library for health and safety, but finding nothing. Ciaran finds that nearby areas have similar blips in pneumonia cases going back at least 100 years, but specifics are tricky because they could blend into the sheer amount of childhood illnesses in the past. Despite the challenge, the Hunters agree it is worth investigating and head to Massachusetts.
First, Jon heads to sports shops to pick up the state hunting license and shop.
The weather is still mild, with some wind but sunny days without snowfall. Airy and Scott head to the hospital directly with Scott pulling out his CDC credentials. They enter successfully and notice that the hospital has been renovated recently, with new campus name, nice facilities for visitors, and even their meeting room looks fresh. They immediately meet Dr. Genevieve Pierce, the head of the intensive care department. She's a brunette in her 60's, looking a little haggard but indefatigable in the core. The duo get information on the cases of bacterial pneumonia and get access to patient records. Five children were all treated and should have been responding to the usual battery of drugs for streptococcal pneumonia, a highly common source of infection, but ended up all eventually dying. It also involved families, but none of the children went to any of the same schools, sports teams, daycare, or anything in common except being at the hospital.
First were Ali and Fatima, children of Jamal and Colleen Hudson. Next came Beatriz Figuroa, daughter of Carol Figueroa. Last were Hanna and Charles, children of Shannon and Jerry Meadows. Beatriz was the youngest at 4 while Charles was the eldest at 13. The Meadows also have a third child, Rebecca, who was not ill. The Meadows children and Hudson children all had the same primary pediatrician, Dr. Dewey Vance, at the family clinics down the road. Beatriz was seen by a doctor in a private practice, Dr. Ariana Banner.
Dr. Pierce gives Scott and Airy a tour of the intensive care units: the ER and emergency surgery, NICU, intensive care for adults, and special elderly and children's wings. All units are state-the-art (thanks to University funding and generous donors) and rooms can be fully isolated. The Hunters do ask her about any recent staffing changes, but the unit has been fairly stable over the last 6 months. It looks like Dr. Pierce runs a tight ship and that there is good camaraderie and retention in staff, nurses, and doctors on duty.
However, while they are talking in the hallway, they are interrupted by a wail and they turn to see a woman talking to the doctor on duty and wailing over her child on the gurney. The doctor and a couple of nurses calm her enough to let them wheel the child into a room. The Hunters overhear as Dr. Peirce checks in with a nurse: the woman is Shannon Meadows, and her daughter Rebecca was just admitted for pneumonia as well. The doctor in charge is Pediatric specialist Dr. Jerry Wilkens, and the Pediatrician, Dr. Dewey Vance, should be arriving soon.
Dr. Pierce returns to them and explains the situation; who wouldn't be distraught watching two children die and be about to lose the third and youngest?
Dr. Airy taps in - just in case - to Angel Radio but there's nothing relevant going on, and nothing here.
Meanwhile, Ciaran admires the architecture in the old downtown area and heads to the city hall with Aine to check for clues about what happened at the old children's library. He meets Mary Moore, a lady in her 50's, who provides him with some of the town's history and notable architecture. Through Mary, Ciaran and Aine learn that the town has some colonial era buildings still, but experienced a rather large and outsize influx of wealth from the variety of mills, fueling a core of Victorian-style development to show off this wealth. This variety lead to economic longevity, keeping the town a consistent size up to modern years. However, there was an inevitable post-war mid-century modern boom in building civic structures, like the new library, and renovating many more, including City Hall. Renovations have also been completed more recently, and the Hall boasts a welcoming new lobby and information area and modern technology. When Ciaran asks about where the children's library originally was, she gives him a brochure on architecture in town and points out a photo of the building prior to renovations, where the library stacks, waiting/reading area, and children's area are all visible. Ciaran and Aine wander for a bit before finding the original location, cleanly renovated and a modern office. They experience no other ghosts or supernatural signals. Looking at the photo, however, Ciaran thinks he sees a skeletal hand print in a wooden beam used for a bookcase. It seems to extend like smoke damage over the brick of the wall while the wood itself looks like it is rotting.