“Okay Dave, how can I help?”
He flicked a glance over to Gary and then scowled down at his feet, pressing his lips together.
“I can’t–” he broke off and gave Gary another uncomfortable glance. “Shit. Never mind,” he said, pushing himself up from the chair.
“Dave,” I said softly, rising with him. “Would you prefer to talk to me alone?”
He looked at Gary again and gave a brief nod.
“You mind, Gazza?” I asked, and Gary moved to the door.
“I’ll be right outside,” he said as he closed it behind him. Dave and I lowered back to our seats.
“Okay. What can I help you with, Dave?”
“My dick . . .” he started, then broke eye contact to look over at a poster for Hepatitis B. I waited as he took a deep breath in and let it out slowly. “My dick don’t work, doc.”
“Okay,” I said slowly. “In what way?”
“I can’t . . . I can’t get it up,” he whispered, the skin I could see of his face that wasn’t covered with bushy beard was bright red.
“Right, so you can’t get an erection?”
He nodded, then paused and shook his head. “No . . . I . . . um . . .”
He trailed off. “Dave, do you ever get erections?”
“Yes, when I’m on my own, but not – not when . . .”
“Not when you’re with your partner?”
“No.”
“Are you being released soon, Dave?”
He nodded and swallowed. “My missus . . . she . . .” he broke off and I saw his eyes fill with unshed tears. “Last time it happened I shouted at her. I . . .” he swallowed and looked away from me. He was in here for theft, but I knew he also had a history of domestic violence.
“Okay, so, with erectile dysfunction there’s blood tests we need to do and we need to take your blood pressure to rule out physical causes, but there are other psychological causes for erectile dysfunction.”
“What? So, if you fix my head then you can fix my dick?”
“Something like that. But also, Dave, if you drank alcohol, used drugs, that could have had an effect. If you’re clean when you’re on the outside this time, you might find things are better.”
He sniffed and a tear rolled down his cheek. “Don’t want to fuck things up with her again,” he said, so low I almost didn’t hear it. “Don’t want to hurt her, ever again.”
“Being off the booze might help with that too, Dave.”
“I don’t –”
The door flew open and one of the guards walked in with a furious Gary following him.
“Hey, doc,” the guard said. “New rules: I’m staying in the clinic room with you whilst you do your stuff.”
Dave stiffened and swiped at his cheeks before he shot to his feet. His angry vibe filled the room, making the atmosphere thick with tension.
“Fuck this,” he said, and for a moment I thought he was going to punch Gary or the guard. I did not imagine Dave was a man who relished having witnesses to an emotional outburst. Unfortunately, it was Gary that was blocking the door. Dave put a large hand to his chest and shoved him clear of it so he could storm through. Another prison guard chased after him and I could hear Dave swearing at him in the corridor.
“Whatisgoing on?” I asked, fuming that this guard had interrupted a sensitive consultation. If I’d had more time with Dave, I might have been able to delve a bit further into what was going on. It was obvious he felt remorse. He could have even been a candidate for the Domestic Abuse Perpetrator Programme, which could have helped keep his partner safe. I was furious. “You can’t be in here. There’s such a thing as patient confidentiality. Any guard in my room compromises that and you know it.”
