Go Sack Out!

Posted on Thu Dec 29th, 2022 @ 10:45pm by Lieutenant Michael Amato & Lieutenant Commander Marc Kitchner M.D.
Edited on on Tue Jan 17th, 2023 @ 4:08am

887 words; about a 4 minute read

Mission: Mission 1: A Fool’s Errand
Location: Sickbay
Timeline: M1 MD06 (2268.21.05) 1500

With the Midway underway, the medical staff aboardship were beginning to get their bearings. The testing list for the shakedown cruise was extensive, especially for the understaffed department. Dr. Amato sat in the small sickbay conference room, a stack of paperwork around him. Dr. Kitchner had called a general staff meeting to begin in ten minutes. Hopefully it would go well. Mike sat down the clipboard and grimaced before taking a sip from the cup of coffee sitting in the middle of the pile.

Marc stepped into the Sickbay office area. "Good morning Michael." He stepped into his office for a moment and grabbed his lab coat from inside the door. Marc reached into his sleeve pocket, he muttered something under his breath and stepped back into office followed by the sound of drawers being opened and slammed shut again. "Don't get old my young friend, and don't become a researcher. I must have left them in the lab again." Marc said walking out the door into the lab and returned a moment later. "I'm going to need to order a dozen pair of these I swear." He said cleaning the lenses of his reading glasses with part of a handkerchief. "Are we set for the meeting?" The younger man nodded and yawned at the same time.

"Michael, after the meeting, I want you to take the rest of the morning off. You look like you could use a solid meal and a long nap." Marc said stepping to the counter and looking at the files on the top of the stack.

"Thank you doctor," Mike responded, "Med school is a tough habit to break." He started to search through a stack of paper and unearthed a pair of reading glasses, "I found these under the table awhile ago," he said, before sliding them across the veneered surface, "You realize a Retinax 5 treatment would be simpler."

"I remember med school,' Marc said with a slight groan, 'the Captain's father pegged me with the nickname 'Long Hitch Kitch', during our first year of academic residency. I was regularly going on 4 days without sleep for one reason or another. I quickly realized and so did everyone in earshot, after about 38 hours keep your distance and use small words. More than once I was clandestinely sedated or someone was about to commit Homicidus Medicus. Or a walking autopsy, I probably wouldn't have felt it." Marc picked up the extra pair of readers and put them in his pocket. "I've been told that I'm not a good candidate for Retinax, even 8 which is supposed to be less sensitive. But thank you for the concern, fortunately I really only need them for super fine print, and for things like blood counts.

Little by little all 30 odd of their staff trickled in and found places. "Good morning folks. I'll make this as painless as possible. Between now and the time we launch which is tentatively set for about 3 weeks we need to get through the routine physicals and blood work ups on the entire crew. All 368 of us at last count." He looked around at the odd groaning face. "Plus we still have stores coming aboard that need tending to. Dr. Amato can you please tend to the physicals. I'll worry about the stores, and assist you when I can. Nurse Duncan, please start scheduling everyone, I don't care how, just see that everyone is taken care of. 3 an hours to start with. Grab two orderlies to assist. If anyone gives you any crap, just send a security detail, we don't have time for arguments.

Conway and Swit ... Swit..." Kitchener stumbled on a name.

"It's Swit-al-ski doctor' a young red headed woman said breaking it in silibals, 'just call me Swiss, everybody else does."

"Okay, Swiss. The Lab is going to be extra busy, if you get jammed up, please call me. I may be old, but I know my way around a blood culture better than most." Marc said making a small note for himself.

"Jenkins, I'd like to sit down with you and discuss your thoughts on the personnel scheduling." Jenkins the head nurse just nodded. Another ten minutes of back and forth before the conversation more a less died. "One final thing. If you haven't noticed. I am forever loosing my reading glasses, please just give them to me in passing, or leave them in the top right hand drawer of my desk. I'd appreciate it." Marc said generating a chuckle or a smile on most everyone. "Questions ... Concerns???"

"How many physicals were conducted before we left dock?" Mike asked, trying to keep his jaw from dropping.

Jenkins looked over at him, "None, Doctor... Good luck," she responded.

"That's what I figured," Mike responded with a sigh.

Changing subjects, Swiss spoke up, "Any word on that door?" She asked.

"Engineering is too busy, so I suppose we need to just deal with it," Mike responded with a sigh.

"It just means a few more steps to get anywhere is all." Kitch said equally put off. "If there's nothing else let's get to work. Thank you. You ... He pointed to his young protégé. 'go sack out for an hour or two."

--
Lt. Commander Marc Kitchener - Chief Medical Officer

Lt. Michael Amato, MD - Surgical Resident

 

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