Chief Doctor
Chief Doctor's Log, October 27th 1909 The new wing of the hospital has finally been completed. While Dr. Towford has kindly compared the process for attaining funds to drawing blood from a stone, the impossible has been achieved. Hopefully now our conditions will improve enough that our patients will not catch further illnesses during their stay. I had dare to believe, insofar as I am capable of it, that we would not need a second wing at all. Alas, my predictive models could not match the reality: we have seen record numbers of Immigrants come to Mira in the last few years. Speculation that the rush would decrease as our neighboring countries regained stability seems to have been poorly based. Still, it provided occupation in a much needed time and our staff are all the happier. Looking forward, Dr. Hewitt has proposed adding secondary rooms to the new corridor between the hospital and the Immigration hall to be dedicated to the mental acuity tests he has been developing. His research over the last few years, while child's play compared to the knowledge of the Memoria, is nothing short of innovative for the times. With these we may be able to allow more people into the country than we could before, once we can prove that they are, indeed, more intelligent than a box of geode fragments.
When one asks for a leader, they don't often think of a manager. Yet that is what the Chief Doctor at Northern shore has become, against all odds. What was once supposed to be a simple overseer position has become one of the most respected staff at Northern Shore. This is in no small part due to Dr. Gearmo, the current holder of the position. His insight (and a couple hundred years of experience) made him a perfect candidate for the position.
Career
Qualifications
The Chief Doctor of Northern Shore is not only expected to be a qualified medial professional, but a competent manager. While the position is still relatively new, the basic expectations that have been set include a Doctorate's, five years of managing a hospital or similar medical institution, and ten years in the medical field as a doctor.
Career Progression
The position of Chief doctor doesn't have a direct path of progression. Rather, it's one of several similar positions one can take related to managing medical professionals. This being said those applying for the position are expected to have managed some form of medical institution in the past, and work well with breuacracy.
Perception
Purpose
The Role of Chief doctor is, primarily, to manage the various medical professionals at Northern Shore. This includes everyone from the Inspection officers to the nurses in the onsite hospital. They also serve as chief point-of-contact for anyone or anything related to foreing illnesses or contaimants that may need to be examined in one of Poartlind's hospitals. They also ensure that all their staff keep-up-to-date on the latest medical procedures and trainings, no matter their position.
Social Status
The Chief Doctor, while respected as a medical professional, isn't quite viewed on the same 'honorable' level of other doctors as it's believed they spend most of their time sitting behind a desk shuffling paperwork around. This disservice is mainly because the position of chief doctor is still a relatively new one, and not much is known about the long-term benefits or responsibilities.
Demographics
As of now there is only one Chief Doctor position, although at the rate Northern Shore is expanding second-in-commands may need to be hired or promoted from within.
In terms of the demographics who hold the position, the only current tenure is held by a Mechanical, skewing the data points somewhat.
History
The Chief Doctor role was first created in 1900, as part of the Immigration Consolidation project. At the time only a few doctors and nurses were planned; the Chief Doctor's job was to oversee the Inspection Officials who would be observing the immigrants who entered the country for illnesses and undesirable traits that might negatively impact society. When Northern Shore first opened in 1903, The Chief Doctor had a small office set off one of the main hallways. However, when the Blue Fever epidemic struck much of the known country in 1905, the hospital was rapidly expanded to accommodate the number of immigrants who had either contracted or were suspected of carrying the disease.
It was at Northern Shore that the cure for the epidemic was found, and with it newfound respect for the role of Chief Doctor. The role was added to the main council overseeing Northern Shore and given far more responsibilities than the role had previously held. The current holder of the position, Dr. Gearmo, has recommended that should he ever step down the position be divided in two, that whatever human steps up to take his place is not instantly overwhelmed.
Operations
Tools
The Chief Doctor's main tool are his logbooks; it is in these that all interactions regarding the staff and medical history of the patients kept at Northern Shore are recorded. Dr. Gearmo has insisted that his internal databanks are more than capable of handling the information, however the Council has insisted on a hard-copy that can be accessed should Dr. Gearmo be unavailable or decide to move on.
The Chief Doctor's office also holds a variety of Medical textbooks and reference materials; Dr. Gearmo has insisted on the staff being kept trained on the latest advances in the medical field. A small closet holding the usual Doctor's acrutriments stands in a corner of the office; Dr. Gearmo has found that patients are more receptive to him if he looks like a doctor.
Workplace
The Chief Doctor's office was, when Northern Shore first opened, nothing more than a small closet off to one side in the main Immigration Hall. After the Blue Fever Epidemic of 1905, the office was moved and expanded to better accommodate the responsibilities-and the paperwork-that the role now held. Dr. Gearmo made good use of the expansion to cover one wall with bookshelves of textbooks and reference materials.
The office sits cleanly between the main immigration hall and the hospital, allowing easy access to both workplaces. While staff do not often transfer between the two positions, Dr. Gearmo encourages a semi-regular rotation so that the doctors on the inspection team do not fall out of practice, and the doctors in the hospital can get frontline experience.
Dangers & Hazards
One would not normally think the role of Chief Doctor does not carry many hazards, aside from that of foreign illnesses. Even less so considering the current Chief Doctor cannot catch any known illness. However, even a mechanical will find themselves hard-pressed to manage a mob that can easily become a riot. While security are on site to ensure that disgruntled immigrants do not cause a scene, all it takes is one man with a knife to cause a panic. Dr. Gearmo has expressed on more than one occasion that he is thankful that one of the doctors on staff, Anthony Hewitt, is also a certified and capable Mage.
This being said, Dr. Hewitt can also be a hazard in and of himself if he's in a grumpy mood without any jerky to snack on...
Type
Administration / Management
Famous in the Field
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