Kathleen Patterson

Kathleen Patterson is a patient tho had her larynx reconstructed to restore her ability to speak.

History
Kathleen had had her larynx removed five years prior and was in the hospital to a hypopharynx reconstruction in the hopes that it would restore her speech. She'd had several other procedures that had failed to restore her speech. In the interim, she'd grown an online community for the voiceless and used post-its with common phrases to communicate.

Kathleen went into surgery. Afterward, she refused to try speaking because she was worried. Lexie spoke to her alone, saying she could try it with her and it wouldn't be so bad if it didn't work because she's just an intern. Kathleen shakily said, "Hi." and then began to speak more confidently.

Romantic
She is married to Mr. Patterson. Their relationship was strained by her voicelessness. After her surgery, when she refused to try speaking, he snapped at her, begging her to talk to him. When he later heard her speak, he was delighted.

Friendships
During her voicelessness, Kathleen started blogging and grew an online community for those who are voiceless.