Medical Stop

Posted on Sun Jan 29th, 2023 @ 5:59am by Petty Officer, 3rd Class Lottie Daglish & Lieutenant Avira zh'Kenarh M.D. & Ensign Isaac 'Zac' Hughes

Mission: Sojurn
Location: Sickbay
Timeline: Day 330 17:00
1382 words - 2.8 OF Standard Post Measure

The complete stop had not caused as much physical damage to the crew as had been expected to the day nurse. There were a couple of engineers that were injured in the evacuation of engineering, but apart from that it was all cuts and scrapes. Lottie finally decided to admit that her wrist was hurting enough that she should get it looked at now that sickbay was quiet. She looked down at it and sighed, she should have reported it when she had fallen in the shower when the ship had stopped but she had not wanted to not help.

The petty officer stood in the doorway of the small office and bit her lip before finally speaking up. “I got hurt when we stopped.” She admitted the two officers who were sat there going over the events of the ship losing warp stability.

Avira looked up from the reports and looked over at the nurse. "And we didn't even treat you? That's no good. What kind of a medical team are we?" She got up from her seat and motioned for Zac to follow her. "Only the best care will be good enough. Hop on the bed. Doctor, would you please get the medical scanner?" The Andorian stepped up to the woman who had managed to get herself on the bed that had been pointed out to her. "Tell us exactly what happened?"

Wheeling over the scanner, Isaac adopted a stance of mild sympathy whilst remaining generally non-committed to any response outside what was requested of him. It was amusingly ironic, after all, to be relegated to nursing duties because the patient wasn't capable of performing them herself. It was also timely that he and the Chief had been discussing the imminent plans for his step sideways into psychiatrics and the provision of mental health consultation for the crew. Perhaps chastising certain members of their own staff about adequate self-care could front-line his initial response.

Lottie wiggled on to the bed holding her hand in place where it would not hurt quite as much. “I fell in the shower when we stopped then came to my duty station.” The nurse in question looked generally around the room and not at the people who would chastise her for not speaking up sooner. Daglish was not normally quite so reluctant to reach out for help but it had seemed not proper at the time.

"Wonder if we'll have a rash of this throughout the ship once things quiet down a bit more." There was a lot to be said about Humans and their physiology compared to Andorians but it had become rapidly clear to Avira that given the right circumstances, the humans could be quite reluctant to seek out medical aid. Although 'right circumstances' was clearly a bit of a misnomer here.

"I landed on my backside," said Isaac conversationally, a faint crinkle to his eyes conveying his best attempt to reassure Lottie that she wasn't the only clumsy bod. "Without witnesses, more's the pity."

Lottie looked at the pair bemused, it was like her parents were trying to be overly nice when she had messed up trying to relate in an awkward way. "Less embarrassing and I would have mentioned but ... it was busy and we needed all the help." She winced glancing down to see that her socks were mis matched from her attempt to get dressed.

"A medics first duty is to their own safety. You cannot help anyone if you yourself are injured." Avira knew it was a tenet of first aid for the humans as well, but people in their profession were usually quick to forget it. "The damage seems minor." She looked over to Zac to get the confirmation from the scanner in regards to that assessment. It didn't feel dislocated or fractured. Perhaps a hairline or simply overstrained. Something that was difficult to tell with the naked eye.

"Well, it's still a wrist," the other doctor confirmed helpfully. "Still attached as it should be. We're doing well so far." The humour to his bedside manner wasn't always so blatant but something about the current dynamics left him occupying that space to counterbalance the Andorian's predisposition to lecture. "Not seeing any fractures, just an angry scapholunate ligament." He spun the scanner around for both to see. "No tear, just some hyper-extension."

The petty officer stayed quiet for a moment looking between them both still as she tried to work out who to answer first. “Needs must.” She finally decided to answer the Andorian and the comment about their safety first. They had, had no choice but to just move with the flow. “But duly noted. Next time I will get assistance before rendering assistance.”

Avira nodded, "luckily the damage sustained seems to be minor." She reached behind for some pressure bandages and started to unwrap it a bit. "Normally I'd ask my best nurse to help you with this, but she is currently indisposed." She tried her hand at lightening the mood herself, though it immediately left her with the urge to explain herself or to clarify her statement. "Not that I feel that this is beneath me, or that I'll do a substandard job." She looked over at Zac hoping for a bit of support.

"If we're thinking about the same nurse," Isaac replied, offering Lottie a quick wink before turning his attention to the back-pedalling Andorian, "then I'd definitely have no trouble admitting that she'd tie me in knots, literally, if it came down to who set a compression bandage the fastest." His part of proceedings done, the doctor held up both hands in mock defeat. "I know when to stay in my lane."

“Mmmhmm many people appreciate knot tying skills.” Lottie commenting smiling at the pair trying to make her feel better and appreciated. “I am sure your knots will be adequate Doctor.” She quickly added trying to reassure the Andorian who was obviously trying to feel out her attempts at lightening the mood and joking around with colleagues as had been advised many times.

Avira frowned at that comment and looked at her handiwork, immediately she started to doubt whether it was genuine or just something said to make her feel better. While it was far from the neat and tidy work that Lottie normally delivered she felt it was sufficient for its intended purpose. "I'm sure a knot would actually put pressure on an already sore joint." She grabbed an adhesive strip and finished up her wrapping of the affected wrist by sticking the bandage in place. "There. Now I don't think I need to tell you that you should avoid strenuous activity with that hand, and if the pain increases day to day, please come back immediately."

“I am sure that you would notice before I needed to come back plus I spend most of my days here.” The nurse lent out with her good hand squeeze a woman’s forearm gently. “Thank you doctor.” Lottie glanced at the other doctor, and offered a grin. They had a much easier relationship despite less time together. Lottie thought of them more as friends rather that mentor and student. “And I appreciate your bedside manner, doctor. So thank you as well.”

It had taken a fair bit of compartmentalising for Isaac to manage the disconnect between the people he'd lost and their near-replicas. Lottie, having held much the same position in his universe as in this one, had been his constant support. As much as it felt important to separate the two, it also seemed like a natural part of grieving to want to blur the lines and just believe that everything was fine. That there wasn't a version out there, one he'd grown to know very well, who hadn't made it. Whose family would possibly never even realise the sacrifice she'd given.

As always, his smile smothered his sadness.

"Learned it from one of the best."

Lottie could not help but smile herself and put away the thoughts of the woman who in another universe have taught him. It was easier today not to think on her and wonder if she had the same problems but that could wait for later. She needed to figure out how to do things one handed.