[Dr. Spears, vials and tribulations]

Edward was standing in front of the pharmaceutical cabinet. All the vials inside were lined up according their detailed labels, however something wasn't right. Standing beside the doctor was Ensign Ba'vek, the pharmacy officer. Edward had his tricorder out and was scanning the vials that were under the label 'Corophizine'. To the credit of the pharmacist, he realized something was wrong moments after he opened the cabinet. When using the same system of organization for such a long time, the patterns of colour became subconsciously familiar.

Ba'vek had realized that the vials in the place of the Corophizine, which was normally a dull yellow colour, were a deep green-black. The colour change was drastic, which meant something was wrong. Either the wrong drug had been ordered, or the drugs were contaminated.

Edward closed his tricorder and said "It's a damn good thing you realized this Ensign. The entire batch of Corophizine is spoiled. I'm going to take a sample to the lab and see what the problem is, but I need you to take the rest out of the stock and destroy it. Also make sure that none has been loaded into any of the hyposprays, or any of the med kits. Get one of the techs to help you track down that drug at any cost."

Ba'vek nodded and said "Yes doctor."

Edward held the vial in his hand up to the light in sickbay. Corophizine was an important first line antibiotic. Edward wasn't sure how much of the ship's stock was affected, but after re-supply he couldn't take any chances. For now they would have to rely on alternative antibiotics in case of infections. The vial was not even transparent anymore, but rather a cloudy consistency.

Edward wondered what in the world had happened to his drug shipment. Normally antibiotics were processed in a perfectly sterile environment and loaded into the vials at the facility before being packed up for shipping. As Ed walked into the medical lab he spotted Petty Officer Thatcher working at a scanner on some samples. Edward coughed lightly to let her know he was there, and when she was done with what she was looking at she turned and said "Oh, hello Doctor Spears."

Edward held up the vial and asked "Have you ever seen this happen to Corophizine before?"

The lab tech frowned and examined the vial. She then shook her head and said "No, never. It's not supposed to be that colour though that's for certain. Want me to throw it under the scope?"

Edward smiled at her use of slang terms. The lab techs often spoke in a language almost entirely their own. The CMO nodded and said "Prepare a couple of slides. I want to take a look at it too. Can you also examine the vial and see if there are any signs of tampering? I want to know if this was accidental contamination, perhaps at the supplier; or if it's intentional.

The tech nodded and said "I'll let you know when the slides are ready."

Edward smiled and said "Thanks. I'm going to go take a look at how many vials were actually affected. Ensign Ba'vek is recalling the whole stock."

She nodded distractedly as she got her equipment ready. Edward headed back into sickbay. Ba'vek wasn't back yet, but Head Nurse Tyson was sorting the vials of the drug on a tray. Her set were all the vials that had come from the cabinet in sickbay, but there were still the aid stations and med kits to check.

Edward asked "What do you think happened? A problem at the manufacturer?"

She shook her head slowly and said "I'm not sure. This doesn't look like any normal contamination. I have a bad feeling about it. It seems... Dangerous somehow. I don't really feel comfortable even handling the stuff. I'll be happy when we dispose of it."


Edward nodded and said "I've got Petty Officer Thatcher prepping a small sample to look at under the scanner. I want to see if this stuff is even the drug we ordered. Why don't you go and re-stock the cabinet with some tier two antibiotics. I'll take over the inventory here."



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CO Commander Angela Kren - USS Broadsword (NCC-80864)
CMO Lieutenant Commander Edward Spears, MD - USS Victoria (NCC-74963)

Derek Walter - SM
schwaschwa@gmail.com