Posted by Ensign Jazzin Lauren (Medical Officer) in CMO Office - A Much Needed Discussion (TAG Ens. Lauren)

Posted by Lieutenant Seddk Vock (Chief Medical Officer) in CMO Office - A Much Needed Discussion (TAG Ens. Lauren)

Posted by Ensign Jazzin Lauren (Medical Officer) in CMO Office - A Much Needed Discussion (TAG Ens. Lauren)
Posted by… suppressed (5) by the Post Ghost! 👻
After finishing his meetings and getting a quick bite to eat, Vock made his way back to Sickbay. Walking in, he looked around for Ens. Lauren. Seeing him in discussion with a nurse, Vock approached and nodded once to both. “My apologies for interrupting. Dr. Lauren, when you have a moment, please come to the office.” and he nodded once again and made his way into the barren office.

Jazz looked up to Vock as he approached, inclining his head as a mark of respect. When Vock asked him to ‘come to the office’, his heart sank. “Yes, sir. I will be there momentarily.”

When Vock walked away, Jazzin let out a groan and rubbed his temples. “I am not looking forward to this,” he said, as much to himself as the nurse he was with.

Kella smiled and patted his arm. “It goes with the job, I’m afraid. When the Head Nurse calls me into their office, I never think ‘brilliant! this is going to be fun!’ Just get it out of the way.”

The Betazoid/Trill man sighed. “Yes but … after the whole ‘thing’ in front of the CO, I on’t expect this to go well.”

“Well, he’s hardly going to fire you for being too passionate about your patients!”

“Kella; he’s Vulcan! He might just exactly that!”

The nurse gave him a pat on the back. “Well, keeping him waiting is not going to do much to help your case. So you better hop to it!”

Lauren gave a half-smile, half chuckle. “Aye, aye.” And made his way over to the CMO’s office.

Looking around, he saw the few small crates with is personal and professional belongings stacked neatly to the side. Some had some minor damage from the ‘incident’ aboard the shuttle, but were mostly intact. Inspecting more closely, he exhaled slightly in relief seeing that there was nothing major to indicate the contents had been harmed. Vock took a seat behind the desk and, finally, logged in as Chief Medical Officer. The full Sickbay display came up on his desk interface showing current patients, their vitals, and summary of condition and treatment programs. Vock set his personal notification parameters, wincing once in pain as he hit a burned area of his fingers a bit too hard, and then minimized the display. Pulling up the roster of current Medical staff, he found the personnel file Ensign Jazzin Lauren and reviewed it. He had read it before, but he wanted to ensure that he remembered everything correctly after the shuttle.

Vock, CMO

As per protocol, Jazzin’s exit evaluation had been sent over to his new posting ahead of his arrival, though with Vock being incapacitated, no one had seemed to have actually looked at it. It read:

‘Doctor Lauren proved himself to be a fine, competent physician and officer. He is caring, intelligent, and generally works well under pressure. He specialised in general practice, making him a good candidate for his next assignment. Jazzin also excels in pharmacology, to the point where I sometimes wondered why he didn’t pursue a career in that as a scientific field of practice.

‘Though there is no denying his superb knowledge of medicinal practice, Lauren has a habit of second guessing himself if he doesn’t know the answer right away. This does not limit him, too much, but in his next posting, some encouragement to be confident in his diagnoses might be beneficial.

‘In all, Jazzin Lauren is a caring, thoughtful young man who builds good rapport with fellow staff and patients alike. His ‘bedside’ manner is excellent, it’s very obvious how much this new entry to our ranks cares for his profession.

• Lieutenant Commander Lee Parker, Starfleet Academy

Jazzin was glad he wasn’t someone who perspired under pressure, as he would no doubt be dripping with sweat as he approached Vock’s office.

“You wanted to see me, sir?” He said, as if he had no idea why.

Ens. Lauren
CMO

Vock looked up and said flatly “Yes, Ensign. Come in. If you would like something to drink, help yourself to the replicator before you sit.” and he indicated a chair in front of the desk. He then tapped the desk and the door, which had remained open since Vock entered, slid silently closed.

The Betazoid glanced at the replicator; since his stomach was in knots right now, food or drink was the furthest from his mind. “Thank you, sir. But I’m fine.”

He took a seat opposite Vock, resting his palms on his knees, as they were a little moist. It wasn’t that he was scared of Vock, but that he was simply not looking forward to what had to come. It had been inevitable since the incident in Sickbay with Kavad and Mclure.

“Ensign Lauren. Am I correct in my belief that you understand why we are having a private conversation, or will it be necessary to review the preceding events?” His voice held no sign of judgement or frustration; it seemed to be simply a question for clarification purposes.

Vock, CMO

The question actually gave Jazzin a pause for thought. It was obvious that the two officers saw things differently, which most probably came down to the characteristics of their respective species; Jazzin had been raised on Betazed, where you were an ‘open book’ as the Humans might say. You experienced emotion and shared it with those around you. Conflicts still happened, of course, but everyone had some clue on the outlook of the ‘opposing party’.

So the Betazoid decided to clarify. “I believe I am here because, during time after you came round from your unconscious state, and began treating my patients, I allowed my frustration in the differences between our respective practices to result in disrespecting you - a senior officer, and my department head- in front of the Captain.” He glanced up. “That’s what I think, anyway, sir.”

Ens. Lauren
Med

Vock cocked an eyebrow at him, and there was brief flash of… something… across his features. “Very well. We can start with that. A few questions for your, then.” he said, again with no trace of animosity, judgment, joviality… nothing but speech. “One. What was the root cause of your frustration? Two. Why do you believe you ‘allowed’ yourself to become… let us just call it ‘less appropriate than expected’. And three. Do you understand your role within Sickbay as both a doctor, one of some skill from what I have seen and read in your file, and also as an officer in Star Fleet?” and he looked at Lauren. It was then that there could be seen an underlying intensity to his gaze that may not have been there before, or maybe it had just been well hidden.

Vock, CMO

Lauren flicked his gaze to the Vulcan’s eyes, a moment. Did he just sense something? During his time working alongside Vulcans in the Academy, he had always sensed in them the almost rock-like stoicism: the complete control over their emotions. But something had just happened …

He cleared his throat; he’d have to consider this for another time. It might even be something he would have to ‘listen’ out for, with his new chief. Something here wasn’t entirely in keeping with the Vulcan-minds he was used to.

“Those are some complicated questions, sir,” he admitted, a little wearily. “And some simple ones.” He took a breath. “I was frustrated because … well, I will be honest; it’s probably down to the differences in the way we appear to practice … and I’m not saying that that’s anyone’s fault. You’re a Vulcan and though I have Trill blood in my veins, I’m mostly a Betazoid. I suppose your … logical way of dealing with the situation is not in keeping with how medical professionals act on Betazed.” He felt incredibly awkward, but his department head had asked, so he would answer. “It was hard not to feel like you didn’t … well … care about my patients. I know that compassion isn’t something your people feel, but I also can’t pretend to understand it, being from a race of people who feel everything.”

“It’s probably why I acted the way I did, sir … in response to your second question. Not only am I an emotional creature; I’m from a species that is guided by emotion, which is in stark contrast to your own.” He scratched the back of his head; a sign of nerves, before asking: “Knowing what you must surely know about Betazoids, don’t you at least understand that situations where people around you are dying; people who you are supposed to keep from dying, might bring something out in them, sir?”

The last question felt like a rebuke. He even stood a little straighter as he spoke. “My role in Sickbay as a doctor is to prevent injury, suffering and death. As a Starfleet Officer, it is to obey the chain of command. We were often warned that the two might come into conflict … I suppose I just wasn’t ready for it to happen the moment I arrived on my first ship.”

Ens. Lauren
Med

Vock’s expression fluttered a moment, and he set his palms flat on the desk top. “Quite the contrary, Ensign. Vulcan’s possess a much greater depth of emotion than most races seem to realize. It was these emotions that threatened us with extinction… brought about by our own hand. We embraced Logic as a way to… temper… our emotions in order to ensure our survival. You should realize that a doctor who does not care for the well-being of their patients would not be a decent doctor. A certain level of empathy is necessary to understand what a patient is going through. And it is only then that clear course of treatment can be prepared. That being said… I believe your statement about you feeling as if I didn’t care about ‘your’ patients is best exemplified by Ensign Mclure. I am afraid I must disagree with your assessment regarding my view on Mr Mclure. His condition is… excessive. I am not one to quit when there is a reason to keep trying. But I was there when he was injured, Mr. Lauren. I saw first-hand what happened to him.” and as he spoke the normal monotonous tempo of his speech sped up ever so slightly. “I treated both of those officers inside a shuttle that was disintegrating around us. I pulled them out from underneath the remains of the burning console. I did everything in power to help them as much as my medical knowledge and training would allow. And I knew then, as I know know, that Ensign Mclure would not survive his injuries. So rather than allowing him to suffer, I recommended the course of action that I did.” and he leaned forward slightly and the intensity in the background of his eyes became more apparent, even as his face remained expressionless. “I did not do that to be callous, Mr. Lauren. I did that to spare a brave man the indignity of an irrevocable vegetative state, alive only because machines keep him that way.” and he took a pause and the fire in his eyes faded… somewhat.

Lauren was doing all he could not to straight up reach out and dig around the Vulcan’s mind with his own (admittedly somewhat limited) telepathic abilities, but doing so was not only extremely rude, but he had no idea if a Vulcan, who had inherent telepathic abilities of their own, would notice.

In fact, such was the discrepancy in what Jazzin know of the few Vulcans he met, and from what he knew of them as a species, Lieutenant Vock seemed almost impassioned, that he was almost missing Vock’s point.

Everything Vock was saying made perfect sense of course. It was logical. Jazzin chose to remain silent.

“Yes, your role is to treat injury and illness, and prevent death when you can. But you will not be able to stop it every time. To believe that you can will only lead to a great deal of disappointment; or demonstrate a level of arrogance that I do not believe to be appropriate on conducive to a well-functioning Sickbay.” and he paused slightly.

“And yes, I am aware that your race is predisposed to expressing emotion in all it’s vast arrays. I simply expect you to do so while maintaining a high degree of professionalism. Contradicting your Department Head in front of the Commanding Officer is not what I consider ‘professional’, Ensign.” And there it was again, just a flash of… something. “Going forward, should you find yourself in a state where you feel that I am being… ‘unfeeling’ I think is an appropriate summation of your view of my bedside manner thus far, erroneous as that may be… simply ask to speak with me privately, Ensign. It does neither of us any good to… to… how do the humans say?… Ah, yes - ‘Air our dirty laundry’ in front of the staff and crew.” and he cocked his head slightly to the side looking at Lauren. “Is that an acceptable solution to you, Ensign? Or did you have another solution to suggest?”

Vock, CMO

Jazzin felt crestfallen.

He had always been known for his kindness, his ability to get on well with everyone he worked with, and general wanting to be an all round ‘good person’. But his first ever interaction with his new boss had not been a great one. His instinct was to sit to attention, agree with everything, apologise and be on his way.

But there was something inside of him that was pushing at him not to roll over. Maybe it was his Trill grandmother, who was known for being quite fiery? Maybe his dislike for his Chief (he couldn’t deny he felt it) didn’t want to back down so easily.

“Well,” he said, a little tentatively. “Of course, I agree with you on … well, almost everything.” He took a breath. “But almost. With all due respect sir, I would appreciate it if you were planning on not using my rank, would not call me ‘mister’, as I am a ‘doctor’ by title; something I worked very hard to achieve.” He cleared his throat nervously. “And secondly, if you would like me to be completely honest … contradicting you in front of a superior officer in a situation in Sickbay … that is not always going to be avoidable. If I believe, in my professional opinion, that I disagree with a course of treatment that is imminent, then I can’t be expected to hold my tongue while whoever it is goes away and care is once again for consideration, because in Sickbay, the care of our patients should be our concern whether or not it is the Captain, or the Admiral of the Fleet stood beside us. I feel it’s the patients who take priority. That is what I was taught by the medical officers I trained under at the Academy, and I stand by it.” He glanced up. “I’m sorry if you feel in any way that I am disrespecting you for how I practice, but I am practising how I was taught to. I won’t stop treatment simply because an officer of superior rank comes into Sickbay.”

He exhaled, slowly. He didn’t even realising he was so tense, but he was essentially arguing with his chief. It made him feel horribly uncomfortable, and this meeting, which he was not looking forward to in the first place, didn’t seem to be helping any.

There were also these empathic fluctuations that he was sensing from Vock. Should he bring it up? Would it be appropriate in the middle of what could be considered an argument? He didn’t want to bring it up like he was using it against the lieutenant … it might have to be a conversation for another time.

Ens. Lauren
Med

Vock looked intently at Lauren for a few moments. And this time, there was no denying that the Vulcan before him was experiencing some kind of internal emotion. There was fire in his eyes and the knuckles on his hands went dark as he pressed his palms against the desk. When he spoke, however, his tone was the same calm and tempered cadence, his tone even, and his face expressionless.

“I will address you as ‘Ensign’ or ‘Mister’ in most circumstances that are not medically related, as you are both a doctor and an officer. The two may have come to you at the same time, but they are not necessarily interchangeable. As we are not discussing medicine, you are an Ensign. And you did not contradict my medical opinion, Ensign, nor did you contradict a medical order. You expressed an emotional reaction to a query I made as to a medical history and belittled me on behalf of a computer system that you expressed a belief that I did not have a more than rudimentary knowledge of… and I explained the logic behind my inquiry. Regardless, your demeanor and speech was not only unprofessional, it bordered on the insubordinate.” and he cleared his throat slightly and took a small breath, the rigidity in his posture and the intensity of his gaze relaxing a bit.

“There are protocols I expect you to adhere to, both as a doctor and as an officer. As a doctor, I expect you to do your best to provide sound and effective medical treatment and advice to all those who find themselves in your care. As an officer, I expect you to be responsible, professional, and mindful of the fact that even though your are an Ensign; you set an example for the rest of the staff. I do not mind professional disagreements, Doctor. I actually believe that such discussions can produce effective plans of action. And I feel that I must remind of something that you may have overlooked in your understandably passionate defense. While you will have assigned a patient or patients in this Sickbay in the course of your tenure aboard this vessel… every patient who comes in this department is ultimately my responsibility, not yours. You are responsible to your patients, Doctor. I am responsible to all of them, regardless of who attends to them. I am also responsible for you and what you do. That is a responsibility I take very seriously.”

“I do not think that you disrespected me in the way you practice medicine, Doctor. However, your speech in front of the Captain and our staff was disrespectful to me with regards to my rank and position in this department. That being said, I also believe that that may be due to the unusual circumstance of my arrival. A circumstance you handled quite well, for the most part. As such I believe it to be a non-issue provided it is a singular incident. And I do not expect you stop treating patients simply because a superior officer arrives- that is not only illogical but highly irresponsible. What I do expect is for you to conduct yourself as a true medical professional at all times you are on duty. I do not expect you to follow my or anyone else’s medical protocols blindly; I expect you to voice your medical opinion whenever you feel it is necessary. But I expect… no… demand… that you do so professionally and with respect to whomever you are speaking, myself and subordinates included.” and his head cocked to the side slightly and he took a deep breath through his nose and his lips pursed together slightly before he spoke again. “You do not have to like me, Ensign. You do not have to look forward to our time serving together. But if I may extend a bit of personal advice. It is much easier to work with those you take the time to get to know. You may still not like someone, but you would at least have an understanding of who they are as a individual. That, in turn, may allow for easier communication and a less… unpleasant… working environment.”

Vock, CMO