Lewis Rigg
Lewis Rigg (2007)
Luke Carroll
Episodes: 4516 – 4550
Occupation: Doctor (Intern)
Lewis was a 28 year old Doctor at Northern Districts Hospital. He was also a former ambulance paramedic and came from Reefton Lakes. He seemed very career minded and was determined to become a surgeon. Along with this drive and ambition came a big ego and a streak of arrogance which led him to clash with his colleagues at the hospital.
He first appeared in Noah’s trying to chat Martha up. She agreed to a date, to take her mind off Michael, but the relationship never really got off the ground.
He then literally bumped into Rachel in the diner soon after and there was an instant attraction. Neither knew of the others occupation and they spent the night together. Rachel’s excitement about her new relationship soon disappeared the next day when she discovered he was an Intern at the hospital and she was his supervisor. Rachel immediately told Lewis that they could not continue to see each other as it was totally unprofessional.
From his first day at the hospital Lewis immediately clashed with Sam regarding patient care. He thought she was questioning his judgement and became very defensive. When Rachel told Sam that he was the guy she spent the night with, Sam was not happy. Sam then found out that Lewis also slept with Marie, a fellow Intern, and she tried to dissuade Rachel from seeing him. The friction between Lewis and Sam continued and, after making mistakes with patients, Sam accused Lewis of negligence. Lewis threatened to make Sam’s life difficult if she reported him. When Rachel questioned him he played the whole thing down and promised to sort things out with Sam.
Lewis continued to pursue Rachel, despite her telling him repeatedly that they couldn’t see each other. Rachel soon gave in and resigned as Lewis’s supervisor so she could continue her relationship with him. Sam was very unhappy about this news as she didn’t want to have to see him at home as well as work.
When Jack saw Lewis talking to crooked cop George he suspected he was involved in George’s illegal activities. It turned out Lewis was only helping George’s daughter, who was ill.
The friction between Lewis and Marie grew and when Marie was found badly beaten in the bushes near the surf club. Lewis immediately came under suspicion and was questioned by the police. Lewis admitted he did arrange to meet Marie prior to the attack but insisted he had nothing to do with it. He told Rachel that Marie had threatened to tell everyone that he slept with a patient in med school and that was what he was arguing with Marie about. Rachel was initially shocked at the revelation but then tried to encourage Marie to try and remember what happened to clear Lewis’s name. Lewis also begged Marie to tell the police the truth.
During the investigation Sam suspected Lewis could be the hospital attacker too and when she found out he was doing ambulance shifts at the time of the other attacks she took her suspicions to Jack. Lewis was arrested but took Marie along to the station as a witness. She told the police she had remembered everything and he was not the one who attacked her. He was then released by the police without charge.
When Jack was in a coma, Lewis was his doctor which led him and Sam to clash further. The frostiness began to thaw slightly when Rory nearly shot Lewis with Jack’s gun. Sam seemed to appreciate Lewis’s understanding in the matter and even invited him to dinner.
Lewis continued to see Rachel and because of their aversion to each other’s flat mates they discussed moving into Brad’s old house together. Rachel then discovered she was pregnant but Lewis’s reaction was not that of a supportive partner. He immediately said “Are you sure it’s mine?” and ran away to get his “head around it”. Rachel had a miscarriage but, unaware she had lost the baby, Lewis turned up saying he was ready to talk about it. He apologised for running away but said he was not ready to be a father yet. Rachel told him the baby was gone anyway and he said that maybe it was for the best. Rachel agreed with him and told him to leave. Lewis then came to see Rachel later with bunch of flowers. He told her he was not ready for kids and Rachel realised they were in very different places in their lives, he wanted a career and she wanted a family. Because of this they decided it was time to end their relationship. Lewis bumped into Rachel at the hospital later. He told her there was no point in staying in the Bay and he had been offered a surgical placement in another hospital.
Profile thanks to Karena.