Troubling Departure - Part 1

[DrDMatthews 0]

Brought to you by: Debbie Matthews, Caroline Curtis & Kat Schawnsee

 

They were in the CMO's office, behind closed doors. Neither of them spoke. Debbie leaned against the side of her desk, her arms tightly folded in front of her, a frown etched on her face. Caroline Curtis, the ship's counselor, paced the floor in front of the desk just as disturbed as Deb about their new patient.

 

The problem they faced was one neither of them ever expected. It wasn't that uncommon for a member of the crew to crack a little under pressure. But Kat Schawnsee? Never!

 

Yet that was precisely what they were dealing with. And this wasn't a panic attack or a minor bout of insecurity. The Reaent's Chief Security Officer appeared to have suffered a full blown breakdown.

 

Deb certainly hadn't seen it coming. She'd know Kat for years. She'd lost count of all the near misses they'd been through together. Schawnsee was always uncommonly poised in the face of danger. It was one of the attributes Debbie admired most about the security chief. But Kat's life had changed during the past two or three years. That change was something Debbie was keenly aware of as her own life had taken a similar turn. Both women had fallen in love and married. But along with the new found joy and security there came a very real element of fear....a fear the CMO dealt with on a daily basis....a feat that had finally overwhelmed Kat Schawnsee.

 

She couldn't get over the irony....she and Aidan were discussing their own futures....debating about whether or not to take the next step in their lives. That conversation was interrupted by Angel's frantic call for help. Debbie was still reeling from the sight of her long time friend when she was brought into Sickbay. Kat was clearly unglued. She had fallen to pieces and Deb feared it would take both time and serious effort to put those pieces back together again. Is this what she had to look forward to? Would another crisis arise that would send Deb over the edge?

 

Squeezing her eyes shut, the CMO forced herself to remain calm and focused. She and Caroline had to develop a recovery protocol for Kat and they had very little time. The ship was due to arrive at the starbase within 24 hours. They had to decide if Kat Schawnsee would remain aboard or if she would be transferred to another facility for therapy.

 

"What do you think, Caroline?" asked Debbie, turning to face the still pacing counselor. "Is this something you can handle or does she need more intensive treatment than we can provide?"

 

"I think..." Caroline said slowly, her eyes turned towards the floor in thought, "that she has been very severely frightened. All of this crew has, in one way or another, within the past few months; some have dealt with it better than others..." She paused, then turned, facing Deb with her arms crossed.

 

It was hard, surprisingly hard, really, not to feel defensive right now. She had helped Kat, at the time of the incident that was the tacitly acknowledged root cause of this relapse. She had helped her, had eventually declared her fit to move on -- the woman had showed progress, which was all that could be expected of anyone after such an experience. And Caroline had thought that was enough. For most of the crew it had been, but Kat had at the time been one of the most affected and there was a niggling voice at the back of Caroline's mind that said she should have done more. But there was no way she could have known that. She knew it now, but hindsight was 20/20. The future she could only guess at like everyone else. Everything beyond that she stuffed into a quiet corner of her thoughts to deal with later and forced herself to speak as analytically as possible.

 

"Kat suffered a great deal over the...loss and subsequent return of her husband. In retrospect, perhaps she returned to duty before she was ready for that step -- and recent events have certainly given her little time for reflection. The problem...I would venture to say she has allowed it to prey on her enough to perhaps cause more deep-seated anxieties than she has suffered from before..." She realized that, overcompensating, she sounded almost mechanical, and let her voice soften a little bit, leaning back against the wall of Deb's office. "Ideally, I would say she needs rest -- real rest, away from her duties, away from the stresses of shipboard life, and with an honest, dedicated diagnosis and treatment regimen by a stationary medical team. Even more ideally I'd like her husband to be able to go with her, but I know that's probably not practical..."

 

She paused again, then rubbed a hand down her face tiredly. Looking at Deb, she could see the concern and tension on the other woman's face, and she smiled as reassuringly as she could. "I'm sorry you've been faced with this, Deb...I know you're worried about her," she said gently. "I had hoped I had averted some of the potential for reactions like this at the time...unfortunately the brain is as unpredictable an organ as the heart..."

 

"This isn't your fault," replied Deb softly as she met the counselor's gaze. "You did the best you could. I know I didn't see this coming." The CMO walked around to the front of her desk then again turned toward Caroline. "I realize she was very upset after this last mission. But then she seemed to calm down. I thought she was okay." She smiled ruefully while shaking her head. "But she's not okay....not by a long shot and we don't have the resources to help her."

 

It stuck in her craw to admit it but Caroline was right. Schawnsee needed a definitive diagnoses followed by an extended treatment protocol. And she needed to be somewhere other than Reaent....someplace quiet and stress free....like a stationary medical facility. And the chances of Angel being allowed to join her were slim and none. Those were the facts and there was no denying them but it still irritated Deb. Her irritation went beyond what she should have felt regardless of her friendship with the patient. But that was another issue she would have to deal with privately before it overwhelmed her as it did Kat.

 

"Do you have a facility in mind?" asked Deb, resigning herself to the inevitable. "We'll be docking pretty soon. I'd like to have the arrangements finalized in time to discuss them with Kat and Angel. We'll inquire about him accompanying her but I wouldn't hold my breath, if I were you."

 

Caroline nodded slowly, appreciating Deb's reassurance (commiseration, really) but now preoccupied by the details. "I can make some calls; our current destination is a decent waypoint facility and their staff psychologist, Davenport, is a good one, and they'll be able to arrange her transfer further inland, so to speak, if it seems necessary. The question, I suppose, is whether she'll be willing to go -- and whether we have any other options if she isn't. Clearly our current circumstances are reopening old wounds, perhaps on a regular basis."

 

She ran a hand down her face and turned her eyes towards the door. "I will speak with her when she wakes up...do you want to be involved in that conversation or shall I take care of it?"

 

"I'd like to be there, if you don't mind," replied Deb. "I own her that much. But there is something she must understand. She really doesn't have a choice." The CMO slumped into one of the chairs facing her desk and studied the ceiling of the small office. "Right now, she's a danger to herself and the crew and her condition isn't going to improve unless she's treated at a certified psychiatric facility.'" Debbie glanced over her shoulder at Caroline, her expression one of deep regret. "She can't stay on the ship. She isn't fit for duty. She has to go whether she wants to or not."

 

 

Caroline nodded, glad to see that Deb shared conviction on the subject. If the discussion to convince the CMO had been as difficult as it might prove to be with the patient, this could have been a very long afternoon indeed. Longer than it already would be, anyway...

 

 

"She does..." she said quietly, nodding agreement. "I just wish I knew of a way to make this easy." Laying a hand lightly on Deb's shoulder, she gestured towards the door. "I suppose we might as well do it sooner than later." Tapping the door control, she looked out into the main bay.

 

Kat began to wake up. She slowly opens her eyes and starts to look around. The sedative that had been given to her was quite strong. She was able to move her head but its lasting effects on her body didn't allow her to sit up just yet. She looked around as if looking for someone but not finding them. Her muscles began to quiver in expectation of getting up and getting out, before being seen.

 

The CMO was a couple of steps behind Dr. Curtis as the two women walked across the main ward toward Kat. Things were quiet but she doubted they would be for long. As they approached Commander Schawnsee, Debbie could tell the security chief had awakened. She stepped up her pace a bit until she stood bedside Caroline. "She's awake," whispered Deb. "I'll call Angel so we can get this over with as soon as possible."

 

Caroline nodded sidelong at her and then took up a position next to Kat's bed, catching the CSEC's eyes as they flashed around the room. "Morning, Kat..." she said, keeping her tone light and waiting for the other woman to acknowledge her.