Posted by Ensign Kiama Naim (Scientist) in Pre-Sim: Sickbay – Medical Evaluation

Posted by Ensign Shon Baht (Medical Officer) in Pre-Sim: Sickbay – Medical Evaluation

Posted by Ensign Kiama Naim (Scientist) in Pre-Sim: Sickbay – Medical Evaluation
Posted by… suppressed (3) by the Post Ghost! 👻

(Snip)

Shon chuckled sheepishly. “You’re very gracious, Ensign, and thank you for your reassurances,” Shon said as he readied the scanning equipment. “Modesty is not exactly a priority in the medical profession, but I still find it hard to let go of my manners. It must be nice, in some way, to have those barriers be a bit more transparent as a betazoid.”

When Shon started to scan Kiama, he would notice a number of things. All along her the left side of her body and partly on the right side of her back were a number a smallish, mostly healed bruises that seemed to be a couple of weeks old. Though the majority of them seemed to be on her torso. The only exception was on the right side of her rib cage. There was not only a large bruise, but also a healing fracture in her 9th and 10th ribs and a healed hairline fracture in her 8th rib. Apart from that the scan would show that she was in good health and the readings were similar to previous ones listed in her file.

~Ensign Naim, Scientist

Ensign Baht attempted the best he could not to express surprise either externally or internally at the discovery of the rib fractures as he reviewed the scans. Shon moved to the edge of the biobed to wave the tricorder over Kiama’s body, hoping to give the impression that he was simply performing another ordinary scan. But as the tricorder passed over her rib cage, Shon’s hand paused slightly, and he inspected the tricorder readings intently to see if there were any hints as to what caused the fractures and the health of the healing bones.

Her bone density and all checked out as normal and if he wanted to make a guess regarding the fractures according to the readings on the tricorder, blunt force would be good one. There were indications that she had been hit with something on her right side, which might also explain the bruises on her left side.

As a distraction from his closer investigation, Shon said cheerily, “so, how was that trip to Risa?” It was only as Shon said it that it occurred to him that both the injuries and the trip had occurred in the recent past, and he wondered if the two were connected.

(Ensign Baht, Medical)

Kiama turned her head towards Shon and grinned kind of lopsidedly at him. “Well, all things considered it was a nice, relaxing trip. With many days spend on the beach or taking walks,” she replied and then added with an embarrassed chuckle, “However, I also learned my lesson about the combination of certain alcoholic drinks and dares. Let’s just say it didn’t end well. Though luckily a number of bruises and superficial scrapes was all we ended up with.” And that was honestly what she believed. Sure, if she moved in certain ways, the bruise on her right still hurt, but then again that one was rather big. So no surprise there. Without missing a beat, she added, “Have you ever been to Risa?”

~Ensign Naim, Scientist

“I haven’t,” Shon responded automatically as his attention was still focused on the scans, “but I’ve heard only good things!” He noted to himself that his hunch had been correct with a pang of pride.

“You should go one day. It’s a beautiful place with lots of things to do,” Kiama reminisced, her gaze becoming unfocused as if she wasn’t seeing her surroundings anymore.

After a couple seconds of silence, Shon flipped the tricorder closed and looked down at Kiama with concern. His tone became a bit more serious than before. “Ensign, I’m going to have you continue lying down for the moment, if that’s alright. I don’t mean to alarm you, but along with those bruises you also suffered fractures to your eighth, ninth, and tenth ribs on your right side. They’re in the process of healing naturally, but I’d like to supplement that with additional intervention, to ensure that you’re back to tip-top shape as quickly as possible.”

Her face turned a slightly ashen colour as she breathed, “Fractures?” How could she haven not noticed? Swallowing audible, Kiama continued, “Do I have to be worried?” She was aware that that was a vague question, but there were simply to many things to worry about to phrase that question more precisely; especially considering that she felt kind of chocked up. For while she didn’t think that it would have a lasting impact on her health other than probably a slight weakening of said bones, she did worry about the impact her stupidity might have on her current posting and on her career in general.

Ensign Baht held up a hand defensively. “I’m not particularly concerned about the circumstances surrounding how this happened, for the record. The details of the incident don’t need to be included in the medical report, especially since you were not acting as a Starfleet officer at that time. I’m a doctor, not a snitch. But I would like to help mitigate some of that pain you mentioned.”

(Ensign Baht, Medical)

Kiama nodded, her black eyes closed for a brief moment. When she opened them again, she looked straight at Shon. “Thank you, Doctor. I can’t believe I didn’t realise that I got hurt more than I initially thought. I never broke a bone before, but I always thought you would feel it and even hear the crack.” Taking a deep breath and exhaling slowly, she continued, “Is there anything I should or shouldn’t do in the next few days?”

~Ensign Naim, Scientist

Shon felt a swell of sympathy as Kiama offered her thanks for his discretion. A small part of him wondered if he was not doing his due diligence by promising to omit the recklessness that caused the injury, but from his point of view, he would rather members of the crew like Ensign Naim felt comfortable coming back to sickbay. Doctor-client confidentiality was something to be revered, after all.

“There’s nothing to worry about, Miss Kiama,” Shon said as he moved to help her slowly sit up on the edge of the biobed to hopefully avoid too much discomfort with the movement. “The scans showed no sign of damage to you liver, kidneys, or spleen, which can sometimes happen when those lower ribs break. But you seem to have very manageable fractures that are already healing naturally as expected. Brain damage can sometimes result in a lack of pain awareness, but again the scans showed no trauma in that regard, so you probably just got lucky to have as little pain as you do.”

Kiama silently thanked the four deities as she let Shon help her sit back up. Once her torso was in an upright position again, she swung her legs over the edge of the biobed again. “I’m glad to hear that, though I really hope I would have noticed if I’d had internal injuries like that,” she shuddered ever so slightly just thinking about how badly she could have gotten hurt because of her stupidity.

Ensign Baht crossed the sickbay to pick up an osteogenic stimulator from a medical supply locker. As he returned, he held the tool behind his back while he answered Kiama’s last question. “I have a couple recommendations. You’d be surprised how helpful simply apply an ice pack to those ribs will be for managing pain and helping with those bruises, too. Some people also find that it helps to sleep propped up slightly while their ribs heal. Most importantly, you want to avoid activities that might further injure your ribs, so no sports in the holodeck or heavy lifting on duty. I’ll write you a doctor’s note for that recommendation so your superiors know not to push you too hard the next couple of weeks.”

Shon held up the osteogenic stimulator. “Thanks to modern technology, we can assist those bones in speeding up the healing process, but it will still take a little while for those bones to heal fully. I’d like you to come in once a week for the next three weeks for treatments with an osteogenic stimulator like this one. Would you mind lifting your tunic so that I can access your right ribs?”

(Ensign Baht, Medical)

“Of course,” Kiama replied and without hesitation she unzipped her uniform jacket and then lifted her shirt and undershirt up to reveal her right side. Even with her dark skin, the bruise was still fairly visible, though not as much as it would have been if her skin was lighter. “That doesn’t sound to bad. And while the first impression you got from me might not seem like it, I actually can be responsible and listen to doctor’s advice,”she said earnestly, before switching topics without missing a beat. “If you like, maybe we can grab something to eat after a shift one of these days. I’d like to get to know my fellow officers some. And I wouldn’t want to get injured again to get to know you better. What do you think?” For a little bit, the Betazoid woman had seemed rather subdued, but now it seemed that she was becoming her excited, almost giddy, self again.

~Ensign Naim, Scientist

Shon leaned down slightly as he carefully maneuvered the osteogenic stimulator to hover about an inch from Kiama’s skin before powering it on. He slowly moved the glowing instrument in small circular movements over the bruised area and along the ribs underneath. He smiled at her suggestion for a meal. “I’d like that. Sometimes it feels like it’s hard to make friends with personnel from other departments, given the nature of medical’s relationship with the crew,” Shon said with a twinge of loneliness. “So thank you for offering, let’s plan on it.”

Shon noticed Kiama’s uptick in demeanor and her friendliness had disarmed him. He had one last topic to broach, but he felt himself resisting it because it might damage the pleasantness of the interaction. With a small sigh through his nose that he hoped Kiama didn’t notice, Shon sat back and flipped the medical device off. “And that’s that, quick and painless.” He paused, then lowered his voice slightly. “Ensign, one last question that I feel compelled to ask from a professional perspective… substance use that results in injury or poor decision making can obviously be quite harmful to your health. Binge drinking, in specific, can be a slippery slope. Do you have any concerns about your substance use?” The question was entirely non-judgemental, but Shon was quite clearly expecting a defensive response.

(Ensign Baht, Medical)