Welcome to Medical

Posted on Fri Nov 11th, 2022 @ 9:55pm by Cadet Senior Grade Thalainian Th’Thane

1,423 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: The Cadet Cruise
Location: Sickbay

“Medicines cure diseases, but only doctors can cure patients. That age old quote is why you are here. Starfleet Medical has, does and always will aim to produce the finest medical personal in not only the Federation, but in the goddam known universe. They produced McCoy, Bashir, Crusher and Boyce. You are to be the next generation, the successors to those officers”.

Lieutenant Commander Janvier’s words had brought the room to silence. Thal, and the other cadets with him, stood in a line at the position of ease inside the small waiting and reception area for the Cavaliers sickbay. It was a small and open room, next to the entrance to the Sickbay. It was decorated with a couple couches and some tables, with a small reception desk manned by a Petty Officer 2nd Class.

As they stood around, Thal glanced around at the other Cadets. He saw both senior and junior cadets, some whom he recognised.

“As soon to be medical officers, you will all be joining myself and the rest of the medical department here in sickbay. Everyone will be assigned a department member who will serve as their mentor. If you have any questions about anything, from life on a starship to how to administer a dental anaesthetic to a Klingon, ask them. You will also be shadowing them, and you will assist them in their duties. Aside from this, you will undergo practical lessons under the direction of myself and others. This will include surgery, vaccinations, medical examinations and overseeing treatments. Now, if you will follow me I will give you a short tour of the sickbay and introduce you to the department”, informed the Commander, walking further into the department as Thal and the other Caders followed behind him.

“The reception area doesn’t look like much, but it’s essential for a Sickbay to operate effectively. It’s here that paperwork is done, administration filled away, appointments scheduled and, during emergencies, a triage or decontamination centre can be established. This here is Petty Officer Bavel. He’s our Medical Aide, and is responsible for paperwork, administration, serving as a receptionist and manning the duty desk here. Petty Officer, any news?” asked Commander Janiver.

“Nothing Sir”, replied Petty Officer Bavel in an emotionless Vulcan voice. “I did update the specialist appointment calendar, but the ACMO took it in order to ensure it’s proper distribution”.

Janiver grinned. “Yes, that does seem like something the Lieutenant would do. Thank you Petty Officer”. The Commander didn’t wait for a reply, and instead walked down the hallway and past the desk. The Commander pointed out a door nwwr the desk, which he said was a bathroom. The Commander stopped at and opened a door to reveal a office with a desk, replicator, a couch with table, and a nice window, which he informed them was his office. Turning to the left, they entered through another door into a cramped space. Three other doors could be seen, and Commander opened them all.

“That’s the ships Rehabilitation Gym. Well, that’s what it’s meant to be. I know it looks cramped, and it is, but it works perfectly well. It’s meant to be used for rehabilitative purposes, and provide fitness facilities for patients. In reality, it’s used primarily by the medical staff to exercise, as the equipment is higher quality then the equipment in the actual gym, for some reason. Oh well. We carry a dedicated physiotherapist, Lieutenant Junior Grade McDowall, who is the visor casual and laidback member of Starfleet I’ve ever met. I think it has something to do with the fact that he never really has any work to do, but I’m not certain.” considered the Commander, looking thoughtful.

Thal wasn’t really sure how to react to this. The Commander was the most relaxed, the most casual, the…well, chilliest, medical officer he’d ever met.

“We’ve also got an attached and even more cramped changing room”, the Commander said as he turned toward the centre. He then turned to the door to the right, and opened it to reveal a ward of some kind. The biobed’s were empty, but medical staff filtered in and out of the room. “This is our 6 bed recovery ward. It’s pretty much where you end up if your illness or injury isn’t serious or life-threatening, but we neee you to hang around overnight for treatment or monitoring. It’s also where non-critical patients go after surgery.”

Closing the three doors, the Commander began to lead the cadets through the cramped room in between the three doors and out into the hallway. The Commander kept on talking, this time about the complement of the medical department on ship. “The Steamrunner class has a mid sized sickbay and medical crew. Aside from myself and the Assistant Chief Medical Officer, the vessel carries two Medical Officer’s, the Physiotherapist and Rehabilitation Specialist, the Surgeon, the Pathologist and Medical Scientist, and a Dentist. We also carry an enlisted contingent, comprised of a Chief who serves as Head Nurse, four Petty Officer’s and Crewman serving as Nurse’s, a Petty Officer serving as a Dental Nurse and a Crewman serving as a Laboratory Technician. You’ve already meet our Medical Aide, who is a Petty Officer. We also carry a Warrant Officer, who serves an our Optometrist. Now, if you’ll continue down this hall you can see the rest of our department”.

Next up was the medical storeroom. It was a large room, with lots of shelves, lockers and storage blocks. Moving further down the hall was the medical laboratory. It was a surpassingly small spade, yet managed to fit everything you’d need for work in spade. An assortment of consoles, some storage space, an examination table, and a multiple pieces of scientific machinery. The room last that was the morgue, with its autopsy table and storage for bodies. The Commander informed them that one of the medical officers had received some more advanced training in order to serve as a Coroner and to manage the morgue when needed.

Past that was the Nursery. This was an even smaller space. It had a changing table, kitchenette, a play area for kids and a lounge area for parents. One of the Nurses had specialised as a Midwife, and so managed the Nursery. Apparently it was common for medical staff to undergo specialist training in order to hold extra department posts, so the ship could run smoother.

The Commander lead them up a hallway, informed them that the room behind the door they were passing was a shower area for patients and staff alike, and then lead them into the Primary Care Ward, which was so far the only area with patients in it.

“The Primary Care Ward is the place you will work the most. It’s a 12 bed ward that is where patients are treated for bumps, bruises, common diseases, and anything else that doesn’t look to be particularly life-threatening,” the Commander informed them, before leading them into another area. It looked to be similar to the Primary Care Ward, but a little smaller.

“This is the Intensive Care Ward,” the Commander told them. “It’s 4 bed, and is where you send patients if you aren’t sure whether they’ll die soon or not and there is little more we can do about it but watch and wait at that stage anyway.”

The Commander checked his watch, and seemed to have realised that was meant to be a 30 minute tour had turned into 2 hours.

“By the Prophets! Well, we’ll just need to skip some stuff then. Man. You’ll likely see it anyway, but the door at the end of the hallway leads to the Advanced Care Ward. It runs in it’s own power grid, and is much more secure then the rest of sickbay. It’s comprised of a surgical control room, a decontamination and sanitation module, the two surgical bay’s, and an isolation room. We also have the dual Dental and Optical Room. Now, I’m very sorry that this has taken so long Cadets. I’ll make sure the other officers know this is my fault, and not yours. If you haven’t already, you should unpack your belongings, set up your quarters and I’ll send the list of mentors through to everyone shortly. Good luck everyone. I hope you all envy the cruise”.

 

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