Posted by Captain Rende Asam (Commanding Officer) in Meeting the Captain

Posted by Lieutenant Junior Grade Leah Hart (Nurse Practitioner/Counseling) in Meeting the Captain

Posted by Captain Rende Asam (Commanding Officer) in Meeting the Captain
Posted by… suppressed (16) by the Post Ghost! 👻
With her earlier inquiry about the Captain, Hart was hoping to gauge how to approach this meeting, but as she figured it the best policy was honesty. The way Leah saw it, she wasn’t here just for one person, even if that had prompted her transfer. No, her assignment was far bigger than that and she wanted to establish an understanding between her and the captain to avoid confusion with the crew. They wouldn’t know what prompted her arrival, but she wanted support making sure her role here was accepted… as much as possible in any case. Hopefully with that established, she could then talk about her primary case before her.

Walking with Rand, they approached and she let the yeoman take the lead here.

Rand pressed the chime on the captain’s door and waited for the door to open.

Rende was expecting the chime, and had instructed Rand to bring Hart after her tour. The captain opened the door, “Rand, come in.”

She stepped inside once they were invited in.

~Leah Hart, NP

“Captain, this is Lt Leah Hart.” After the brief introduction she left to continue the rest of her duties.

Yeoman Rand

“Welcome, Lt. Hart. Thank you, Rand.” As the door closed she waived to the chair next to her desk. “Have a seat, Lt. How are you settling in?”

Cpt. Asam, CO

Leah couldn’t help but laugh as she took a seat, crossing her legs at the knee. Her white nurse’s jumpsuit was impeccable and her boots without a scuff. “Ask me in a few days, or maybe a few weeks, Captain,” Hart said honestly. “I was on six ships in two weeks, and I’m just getting the lay of the land here, as it were.”

~Leah Hart, NP

Rende smiled, “Rand is very efficient at her job, and Dr. Kreed assured me that you and your particular talents were very much needed on board. She made all haste to get you here as fast as possible. Now I imagine you have questions.”

Cpt. Asam, CO

Leah nodded slowly. “I do. But first I feel we should chat about my role here. I understand fully that my presence was requested because of a specific crew member. But now that I am here, I don’t want you thinking that I am not committed to the ship and crew as a whole. I know how Starfleet Medical feels about what they consider extraneous staff on starships, but I for one think it’s crap,” she said bluntly. “I don’t want to be stepping in when things have gotten dire. My goal here will be to help prevent the kinds of issues that send people to Starfleet Medical for treatment and or end their careers. I also know that my psychiatry background is just a portion of my skillset, so I fully intend to use my emergency medicine background to help Dr. Kreed wherever I am needed.”

~Leah Hart, NP

Rende glared at her. “Let’s make one thing clear, Lt. If I felt your skills were extraneous, then you would not be here. The officer in question would be on their way to earth via a star base. No matter what Kreed may think. So let’s remove that chip, shall we.” Rende took a moment to sip at her water and relaxed her posture. “Now, as far as your duties go, that’s up to Lt. Kreed. I don’t micromanage my departments. You’ll find plenty to keep you useful. I also suggest that you check the auxiliary office in sickbay. Before you came, we had a second Lt. Farquharson, who was also a nurse practitioner and an excellent counselor. My Yeoman assures me he left all his notes. So as for your role as a counselor, you will find this crew will be quite used to having someone fill that roll. Does that inform you as to your roll here?”

Cpt. Asam, CO

Leah was nonplussed at the captain’s reaction. “It does help, yes. And I assure you, Captain, there’s no chip here. I’m excited to be here. My concern is that regardless if you’ve had someone in the role before, a crew can sometimes resent someone like me showing up. I want to be seen as part of the team, not some interloper here to make things more difficult for folks, because the reality is that my presence will make things more complicated for some, but only because I want to help.”

~Leah Hart, NP

“That applies to anyone, in any position, Lt. That also sounds like an obstacle you will have to overcome. I can order people to make appointments, but that will just make them resentful. That won’t help you. This is a good crew, and close. They’ve been through a lot. I’m sure you have what it takes to find your place with us.”

Cpt. Asam, CO

She sure hoped so. This was very different than working at a hospital and while she was nervous about it, Leah had been careful to keep that carefully under wraps. As much as her mother was incredibly difficult, her whole ‘never let them see you sweat’ perspective came in handy in her line of work. “I will certainly do my very best to do so, Captain.”

Leah shifted her leg down and folded her arms on the edge of the desk. “Can we talk about my first patient? I’d like to get your perspective on what you’ve noticed and the like. The fuller picture I have before I meet with him, the better I can evaluate all the variables.”

~Leah Hart, NP

“Cmdr Alden? He’s an upstanding officer, young, ambitious, and dedicated. He’s moved through the ranks quickly. He kept this ship going on his own through 2 inept captains and long spaces in-between with no captain. He’s a stickler for safety regulations, but he’s fair. The crew likes him and trusts him. I’ve hear a few making humored comments about his adherence to regulations, but if something is wrong they go to him without reservation. I am really surprised that command didn’t just promote him to captain. He’s earned it.”

Cpt. Asam, CO

Hart nodded, taking this all in. “And you had no concerns at all leading up to recent events? Any signs there was something more going on?”

~Leah Hart, NP

Rende took a deep breath. “I suspected he had an aversion to sickbay. He missed his physical and when I mentioned that I expected him and myself to show up for ours before the rest of the crew, to set the example, he hedged on it. Then of course I knew when Lt Kreed brought me into his office to discuss things. I’ve seen Cmdr Alden’s file, and I’m not surprised that there are lingering difficulties. However, we don’t know each other well. I’ve only been here at a month, and we work closely together, but we don’t know each other yet.”

Cpt. Asam, CO

Leah was thoughtful as she worked through everything in her mind. These pieces Rende gave her made sense and it was hard when a working relationship was new to know when to push or to even know the signs for a particular person. At length, she nodded. “All right, thank you for your input.”

She gazed at the captain, her deep brown eyes filled with determination. “I want you to know that sometimes my methods can be a bit unorthodox, but I always have my patients well being in mind when I do anything. The problem I have right now is that the commander and I don’t have a rapport yet. So we’re doing intense work immediately without that rapport. That complicates things, but it’s a situation I have a lot of experience with. The thing that is important to know is that I’m not here to fix anyway. I’m a guide. I take people down paths they are resistant to treading and can’t go down alone. And I can walk alongside them, but its their path, their journey. So long as they are willing to take each step down whatever path we end up on, there is hope for a good outcome.”

~Leah Hart, NP

Rende leaned forward, elbows on her desk. “Unorthodox is good, because no one fits in a mold. I know from conversations with Kreed and Alden and my Yeoman, he is very stubborn, and he does not trust easily on a personal level.” She locked eyes with Hart, “Too many people have failed him, Lt. I will not tolerate that here. I will not have him shunted out because he is struggling. We will not abandon him.” It was clearly an order. “I am sure he is feeling abandoned as well. Lt Kreed has allowed no one to see him. I have not interfered, but if I was locked away from the only people and things that mattered to me, it would not increase my desire to live.”

Cpt. Asam, CO

Leah drew in a deep breath and nodded. Did Rende understand that she couldn’t will anyone to do anything? “I for one am glad you haven’t interfered, Captain. I know it might seem cruel, but psyc holds are always hard, no matter how it happens or who is involved. They also very necessary. It is very temporary and one day could make a huge difference.” Leah leaned in, radiating care and understanding. “You are the Commanding Officer of this ship, and your first officer is struggling. Enough that we’ve been forced to take drastic action to protect himself from himself, and protect the ship and crew from actions he might take. You and I both know that if it was him vs the lives of the rest of your crew, there is no choice. But desperate people can make terrible choices and they don’t always think through their actions, to see the potential consequences. Myself, Kreed, and I suspect yourself too, would never be okay giving leeway and then having others on the ship come to harm. He has access to everything and is very intelligent. Until he is proven to not be a risk, he needs to be under our care. And I do mean care. I’m here now and I will do everything I can to help him find his way. I know I’m new here and you have no reason to trust me beyond what my record tells you. But can you trust that? Can you trust that after all my years in an ER and then working a psychiatric wing in a hospital that this scenario right now is what I know how to deal with?”

~Leah Hart, NP

“Let me reiterate, Lt. You would not be here if I did not. That question has been asked and answered. Let’s nit waste time repeating.” She looked at something on her screen and then back. “To be clear, yes at the moment Cmdr Alden is not okay which is why I agreed with Kreed to remove him from duty. And I will say this only once more,” her eyes became very hard, “We, all of us, will help him. He is not to be shunted off, abandoned, or put aside. If you should find you are not the right fit to help him, you are to tell me, so that I can find someone who can. Now, I suggest you get to work. You have an dire situation that has formed with a member of this crew. There is no time to waste.”

Cpt. Asam, CO

Leah swallowed down any retort and simply rose from the chair. She really didn’t understand. “Of course, Captain.”

She moved to the door, but paused for a moment to look at Rende. “You can all the skilled people at a person to help them through, but at the end of the door it’s up to Alden. Not you, not me, not Kreed, not his fiancee. He has to do the work. He has to choose to live his life. None of us can force him to make that choice. You yourself said that if you thought he would be better served back at Starfleet Medical he’d be there. But that contradicts what you’re telling me just now. I am not going to shunt him anywhere, but if I truly believed that he needed more care than could be provided here and that he was not in a place to truly serve in his current role, would you support me? Or will you have considered me to failed and move on to the next mental health expert?”

~Leah Hart, NP

“That would depend on the circumstances at the time, Lt. I can not predict the future, neither can you. I never said I would consider you failed. I said if you think you are not a good fit for him to tell me so we can find someone who is. That is not failure, that is doing what is best for your patient. There is no failure in admitting you are not the person for the job, it is failure to continue when you know it.” She gazed steadily at the woman, “Nor did I say that saying so would be cause for removal from your position. Now before you go further down the road of your career and command support for your diagnosis and all those worries and insecurities, go talk to your patient. Get to know him, assess him, assess the situation. I am sure Lt Kreed is as eager as I for your thoughts and perceptions. I would like your initial evaluation, minus confidential information, in two days. You are dismissed, Lt. Unless you wish to question me further.”

Cpt. Asam, CO

“No, ma’am,” Leah said. She gave a small bow of her head. “Captain,” she said, before stepping out of the room.

~Leah Hart, NP