Seaplane and Lilabelle Jonson had been contemplating returning to Earth for some time, which offered many services geared toward senior needs and activities. They fondly remembered the natural beauty of their home planet, and also they'd be closer to their son, who was involved in very important engineering work there. On the other hand, increasing factionalism, ongoing climate change, and other worrisome factors seemed to make Earth a very stressful place – not the ideal setting for retirement. Moreover, JE staff had called Seaplane out of retirement recently to help deal with threatened, and indeed actual, attacks.
Pondering this situation with its weird mix of pros and cons, Seaplane asked the staff if there might be some way for Lilabelle and he to semi-retire at Jonson Station, at least for a while longer. Of course, they already had their own personal quarters, along with access to all the facilities offered at the station. But as they aged, both began to need more medical attention and even help with daily activities.
JE staff met to discuss the situation, and soon it became clear that Jonson Station lacked sufficient medical services, not only to meet senior needs, but also to cope with other health issues which had recently come to their attention. Some nearby colonies, which lacked medical facilities altogether, had asked Jonson Station for assistance, but alas the station had little to offer them.
After much debate about various scenarios, they decided to upgrade the station's infirmary, but they realized at least some medical staffing would be necessary as well. However, with the human crew already stretched thin, and in view of the excessive consumables that would be required to accommodate more humans, it became increasingly clear that the best solution would be an advanced robotic doctor.
Consequently, they asked Sarah to develop a special android to serve as the station doctor. Fortunately, a number of medical expert systems were available, and these could be incorporated into the new android's programming. They decided to name the new medical android Galen, in honor of the ancient Greco-Roman physician. To perform his role adequately, Galen would need a positronic brain capable of the full autonomy required to make good medical judgments.
Sarah had to import not only positronic brain components, but also special memory to cope with the complex medical software that Galen would employ. She also needed to add enhancements to his visual acuity and manual dexterity to better accommodate detailed medical procedures.
Finally everything was in place and ready to assemble Galen into an operational medical android. Sarah proceeded to create Galen in the android fabrication workshop, although this particular project required extra steps and time to complete, given the special enhancements involved. But soon Galen came to life, ready to begin his career in the Jonson Station medical facility.