Prepping the Medical Team

Posted on Wed Feb 8th, 2012 @ 3:13pm by Lieutenant JG Justin Chadwick MD

Mission: Crises and Consequences
Location: Sickbay
Timeline: Morning after Happy Homecoming

[Sickbay, 0715]

"I don't give a damn what the current medical staff says they always do, I'm the new Chief Medical Officer, and we'll be doing things my way. You are the head nurse now, Emily; you have full charge to implement my protocols. You know how I operate. And Jeremy and his crew of Medics know what they should be doing. I'll be keeping all of the Romulans separate from the crew as far as medical needs go," Justin explained to the nurse. He transported on board with a crew of 5 nurses, 10 medics, and two 4th year med students on doing internships. It was almost as if fate herself had put them on the ship en route to the training seminar.

"Justin, it isn't that I don't mind taking authority over the staff, but the 2 doctors they have on staff don't seem to care to take orders from a nurse," she responded.

He furrowed his brow and thought about it for a moment. "Yeah, well, that's going to change." Justin went into the medical officer's office and accessed the computer. He recorded a memo, "Chief Medical Officer Justin D. Chadwick to all medical staff. As of this date, any orders passed on by Chief Nurse Emily Pardillo are to be followed as given. Any medical personnel who fail to comply with any orders that are passed on by Nurse Pardillo will suffer the consequences. There are no exceptions to this order. Chadwick out." As soon as he was done recording it, he pressed the comm button, "Computer, send this memo to ALL medical personnel and please verify receipt of this message by all the recipients. Notify me if anyone refuses to submit to verification of receipt of the message."

"Acknowledge. Message added to the send queue," the computer dutifully responded.

"Satisfied?" he asked Emily.

"I suppose that will work for now. What's the plan for our guests?"

"The Admiral has given us access to Holodeck 5 for augmentation of our medical facilities. I figure we'll activate the emergency medical hologram there and create as many medical staff as we need to assist. I'll have Jeremy down there performing triage, and at least one of the med students as well. I guess we might as well start calling them doctors, so that we don't confuse the crew of the ship."

She was about to respond when Justin's communicator activated and a man's voice said, "Doctor Sutton to Doctor Chadwick."

Justin rolled his eyes. He'd only been on the ship for 4 hours and already heard of the lazy reputation of Doctor Sutton, who should have been next in line for Chief Medical Officer, but his complacency and lackadaisical attitude about everything took that option away.

Justin tapped his comm badge to reply, "Go ahead."

"You want to tell me what this damn memo is all about? I'm not answering to any damn nurse!"

"If you wish to discuss it, doctor, you can come to the Sickbay and talk to me in my office," Justin replied, forcing himself to stay calm.

"Fine," the voice responded with an audible sigh.

"Chadwick out," Justin said and then tapped his comm badge to close the channel. "Damn drama queens. I'm not going to put up with his shit, Emily, and neither are you. Doctor or not, I'll relieve him of duty and suggest the Admiral confine him to quarters for the duration of this mission if he gives me too much crap. Better yet, I'll suggest he share quarters with junior staff members. Just because he's a doctor doesn't give him any special privileges over other Ensigns. We could give his quarters to a Senator or other dignitary." His lip curled into a sneer when he said that. It had been a long time since he sought revenge against someone, but he was feeling particularly eager to do so this one time.

"Shall I leave?" Emily asked.

"Of course not. Stay here in Sickbay so you can hear the butt chewing he'll receive. Besides, I may need to call you in to assert the authority I've given you as head nurse. How about you start replicating more medic packs. I want 100 in here. You can stack them over there next to the surgical bed. There is more than enough room to maneuver around even with them there. I've given orders to Jeremy to have at least 200 prepared in Holodeck 5, and I've ordered the other medics to station 20 in each of the cargo bays. I want the Romulans to be able to fend for themselves if they can. I know we'll be receiving some Romulan doctors as well. They can help sort things in Holodeck 5. Also, make sure all the tricorders are in full working order. Once you do, go ahead and call for someone to take all but 5 of them to Holodeck 5. They're going to need them down there more than we'll need them here. We can always replicate more if needed."

Just as she got started on replicating the medic packs, his highness Doctor Sutton came through the door with an air of arrogance floating about him. He was fat and his uniform was slightly disheveled. She had known many people who were portly, but on this man, it looked... disgusting. He clearly didn't care about his physical state, and it showed. She avoided making eye contact, but he could feel the man's eyes burning into the back of her head. He was mad, and she didn't need a tricorder to see it.

"Just who the hell do you think you are coming in here and telling us we are going to take orders from some damn nurse we don't even know?" Doctor Sutton almost yelled at Justin.

"Well, for starters," Justin started to reply, "your boss. If you have any issues with that, you need to take them up with Admiral Cowell. I think we both know how that will turn out."

"I don't care; I'm not taking orders from some damn nurse. I didn't go to medical school to take orders from some bitch nurse."

Within a nanosecond of the words coming from the man's mouth, Chadwick was on his feet and had his forearm pressing the man against the wall behind him. It was positioned just below his throat. "If you EVER call her that again, you won't have to worry about taking orders from her or anyone else. If you do, I will personally terminate you, and I don't mean your job. I don't give a damn what you think you are entitled to. I'm the CMO on this ship, and as long as I am, you WILL follow my orders, or you WILL find yourself in very hot water." Justin pulled away from Sutton. Sutton nearly stumbled to the floor, as he was almost lifted off of it when Justin pinned him to the wall. "Do I make myself clear?" Sutton stood there, blankly staring back at Justin. There was contempt in his eyes, and it looked as if the man were about to take a swing at Justin. "I said do I make myself clear?"

"Yes," Sutton almost whispered.

"What was that?"

"Yes," he repeated a little louder.

"Yes what?"

Sutton made eye contact with him. There was rage behind them. "Yes, sir!" he said loudly this time.

"We are going to have to work together, Ensign, whether we want to or not. When I give an order, I expect it to be followed. If I don't think I can trust you to carry out your duties to the letter, I will relieve you of duty and suggest that the Admiral put you off at the nearest facility. I don't want to be your enemy, but I won't tolerate anyone that shirks their duties and refuses to follow directions."

"Understood, sir."

"And one more thing... Nurse Pardillo could no doubt hear you say that filth. You will go in there and apologize sincerely to her. After, you are to go put on a clean uniform. If I see your uniform in this state again, I'll put you on report. Laziness has no room in my medical department. Shape up, or you will be shipped out."

"Aye, sir," Sutton said, and then stood at attention.

"Dismissed," Justin said. He stood and watched as Sutton turned on heal and stepped out of the office. He approached Nurse Pardillo and spoke quietly to her. A few moments later, he hung his head low and walked out of Sickbay. It was obvious that she said something to him that put him to shame. Curiosity got the better of him, so he went to her and asked what she had said to the good doctor.

"Oh, nothing really," she laughed. "Ok, I told him if he ever called me a bitch again, I'd just queue him in to how big of a bitch I can really become." She stood trying to gauge Justin's response. "Oh, and there was also something about removing his reproductive appendage."

Justin burst out laughing, and patted her on the back. "You know, Em, if I weren't married...,"

"Yeah, and if I had a gram of gold pressed latinum for every time you've told me that, I would be richer than any Ferengi!"