STARFLEET MEDICAL MANUAL
CHAPTER ONE
STARFLEET MEDICAL MISSION
Starfleet Medical is the division of the United Earth Starfleet responsible for all health needs of Starfleet members to include the staffing and operation of all medical facilities, the administration of Starfleet medical policy, and the deployment of Starfleet medical personnel to address any health concerns relating to the United Earth Starfleet. Starfleet Medical is commanded by the Starfleet Surgeon General who is directly responsible to the Starfleet Chief of Staff for Starfleet's state of medical readiness.
CHAPTER TWO
STARFLEET MEDICAL PERSONNEL
Starfleet Medical is comprised of Starfleet physicians, nurses, medical support personnel, and medical corpsman. Qualifications for entry into the Starfleet medical branch adhere to the following:
Starfleet Physicians
FIRST PUBLISHED
JANUARY 2147
Physicians in the Starfleet must hold a medical degree from an accredited university. Physicians hold all manner of positions across Starfleet Medical ranging from medical practice, administration, to the setting of Starfleet medical policy. Starfleet physicians must obtain a commission either through the Starfleet Officer Candidate Course or a direct appointment commission with the consent of the Starfleet Surgeon General.
Starfleet Nurses
Starfleet nurses must hold at a minimum a Bachelor's Degree in Nursing from an accredited nursing university program, have successfully passed the United Earth Nursing License Examination, and hold certification to practice nursing through the United Earth Ministry of Labor and Industry. Starfleet nurses must obtain a commission in Starfleet under the same provisions as Starfleet physicians.
Medical Support Personnel
Starfleet medical support personnel include laboratory officers, laboratory technicians, pharmacists, and dentists. All personnel assigned to a laboratory in a Starfleet medical installation are required to either be Starfleet science officers, with an appropriate scientific billet code, or Starfleet Crewman holding the rating of Scientist's Mate. As Starfleet Medical does not possess either a dental or pharmacy corps, these positions when necessary will ether be held by civilian medical contractors or outsourced to a civilian medical installation or clinic.
Medical Corpsman
Starfleet personnel assigned the rating of Corpsman may perform any support duties within a Starfleet medical facility as well as adminsitrative assistant functions in Starfleet Medical offices. Entry into the rate of Corpsman will be determined by Starfleet Training as a result of basic training performance and prior medical experience subsequent to entering Starfleet.
CHAPTER THREE
STARFLEET MEDICAL FACILITIES
Starfleet medical facilities may be divided into Starfleet hospitals, Starfleet clinics, and Starfleet medical departments.
Starfleet Hospitals
Starfleet hospitals are major medical facilities under the command of a Hospital Director in the rank of Captain. A Starfleet Hospital is considered a "tenant command" of a larger Starfleet installation which in turn provides administrative support, maintenance, and security needs.
Starfleet Clinics
Starfleet clinics are Starfleet medical facilities integrated into a major headquarters or other significant Starfleet establishment. Starfleet Medical Clinics are commanded by a Chief Medical Office in the rank of Commander. Starfleet clinics typically operate during set "working hours" with after-hours medical issues either handled by a duty section medic or referred to a civilian medical facility.
Medical Department
A medical department is a branch of any Starfleet command which is authorized to maintain its own medical staff. Medical departments are usually components of smaller Starfleet installations and are commanded by a Medical Officer in the rank of Lieutenant. Space bound medical departments include the medical staff of the Starfleet Shipyard as well as medics assigned to space vessels. A shipyard medical department operates in the same manner as a shore-based installation while starships may possess a single corpsman reporting to the ship's Executive Officer.
CHAPTER FOUR
STARFLEET HOSPITAL OPERATIONS
A Starfleet hospital is a permanent Starfleet unit required to operate twenty-four hours a day in order to provide for the ability of regular and continuous medical care to Starfleet personnel. A Starfleet hospital's operating schedule may be divided into "normal working hours" as well as "after hours" with both operated by medical personnel standing duty watches (Reference: Starfleet Administrative Manual: Chapter Four).
The normal working hours of a Starfleet hospital are generally 0730 to 1700 and during this time the senior hospital leadership is on site. The dental clinic, outpatient clinic, and pharmacy are open to patients, and most surgeries are performed. The "night shift" of a hospital is divided into two separate watches observed by the hospital emergency department and hospital ward personnel. In addition, Starfleet hospitals maintain a duty watch schedule similar to other Starfleet facilities.
HOSPITAL DUTY WATCHES
Medical Duty Officer
A Medical Officer typically with the rank of Lieutenant. Oversees the hospital duty watch and reports any unusual occurrence to the Hospital Director.
Medical Liaison Officer
A junior medical officer who assists the Medical Duty Officer and also serves as a direct link to the wider Starfleet installation to which the Starfleet hospital is a tenant.
Shift and Duty Rotations of a Starfleet Hospital
Duty Medic
A Starfleet Corpsman who assists the shift leadership and provides a communication link to the ward duty shifts.
Duty Laboratory Officer
A Science Officer who oversees the operation of the hospital laboratories during a given watch shift.
Duty Laboratory Technician
A Scientist's Mate who assists the Duty Laboratory Officer and also operates general laboratory tests during after-hours periods.
Duty Nursing Officer
A Starfleet Nurse who oversees all nursing actions during a standard duty watch and reports hospital nursing functions to the Medical Duty Officer.
Quarterdeck Officer
A junior officer who maintains the hospital quarterdeck and serves as an initial point of contact to the public and other visitors to the hospital. a hospital quarterdeck is continuously manned throughout the day.
Duty Section Member
All additional personnel of the duty section who maintain positions to operate the Starfleet hospital.
WARD SHIFT WATCHES
Duty Shift Supervisor
A senior Medical Officer who oversees all activities of the various hospital wards and serves as a counterpart to the Medical Duty Officer for ward affairs.
Duty Ward Supervisor
A Medical Officer who oversees activities of a single hospital ward during a regular duty shift.
Duty Ward Nurse
A Starfleet Nurse who oversees nursing actions on a particular hospital ward.
Ward Shift Member
All other Starfleet medical personnel who serve on a hospital ward during a particular ward shift.
CHAPTER FIVE
MEDICAL ADMINISTRATION
All Starfleet medical facilities, clinics, and hospitals are responsible for maintaining both patient records as well as qualification and training records of all Starfleet medical personnel assigned to a particular medical unit. All qualifications must be appointed by the senior most medical officer only after proper training and certification has been verified. In addition to Starfleet medical qualifications for watch and duty stations, Starfleet physicians may also hold a hospital ranking to determine seniority amongst staff physicians.
Department Head
Senior most physician of a hospital, reporting to the Hospital Director
Attending Physician
Supervising physician overseeing patient care
Medical Fellow
Fully trained physician undergoing additional sub-specialty training
Resident
Licensed doctor in specialty training. The senior most such doctor known as the "Chief Resident".
Intern
Recent graduates of Medical School
Starfleet Nurses likewise have a similar hierarchy, normally determined by the structure and size of the hospital. Typical seniority titles are Nurse Intern-Resident, Clinical Nurse Specialist, and Nurse Practitioner.
In accordance with the Starfleet Administrative Manual (Chapter Three), consideration for higher commissioned rank through direct appointment may be granted by the Starfleet Surgeon General.
All other medical professionals must be commissioned through standard training and enter Starfleet in the rank of Ensign.
