Vice Management

Vice Management is the heart of Primary Care and the service that all others revolve around. Once a patient has been screened by a Record Proctor, they will be assigned to a Vice Management Administrator (VMA) who will guide them in their Vice journey. While a VMA will propose a recommended plan of action after preliminary observations, it is ultimately up to the patient to determine how large of a roll they want their VMA to play in their Vice journey. Some patients choose to pursue rescission on their own while under the supervision of a VMA, while others seek guidance and Branch support from their VMA.

While everyone’s journey will look different, a high-level overview of Vice Management is covered below. Throughout their Vice journey, patients are likely to encounter many different kinds of agents, ranging from Solutions Architects to Blight Specialists. Learn more about these agents in Our Team: Primary Care.

The Classification Process

Upon admission by a Record Proctor, the patient may be provided a preliminary classification based on existing behaviors. Even though the Alpha classification is the most common, it takes a few months of observing the Vice’s behavior to accurately classify it as an Alpha Vice. Additionally, classifications are not guaranteed to be correct upon initial observation due to a Vice’s intentionally deceptive behavior—seen in Epsilon Vices—or even due to the early life stage similarities many classifications share, such as Alpha and Xi Vices.

A VMA will not begin rigorous treatment until a confident classification has been made. This can take anywhere from a month to half a year depending on the Vice’s classification and early life stage behavior.

Learning about the different Vice classifications can provide a patient with the vocabulary and understanding to aid in prompt classification. In the larval stage, Vices do not initiate many Branches, so paying attention to changes in personal behavior or symptoms can help speed up this process. For example, Zeta Vices are known for excessive feeding in the larval stage, so uncharacteristic levels of fatigue may be indicative of such.

Treatment Plans

Once a confident classification has been made, the Vice Management Administrator will sit down with the patient to determine their goals. Goals can be as simple as the VMA monitoring Vice growth or as complex as devising a plan for rescission.

Many patients enlist the help of a Vice Management Administrator to monitor Vice growth, while some are looking for guidance in managing their symptoms. This often entails a VMA reaching out to Blight Specialists and AV Specialists. VMAs can also draft and facilitate a treatment plan that includes a schedule of regular instigated Branches to tame Vice growth and learn about the Branch Policy. This treatment typically leads well into the VMA performing rescission, using their experience gathered from multiple Branches to rescind the Vice in an efficient and timely manner.

Activity Monitoring

Similar to the Activity Monitoring provided by Traffic Coordinators in Urgent Care, Vice Management Administrators can keep watch over a patient’s condition throughout the Vice’s life cycle. Some patients may request additional treatment, but many prefer to self-treat, with the bird’s-eye guidance from a Vice Management Administrator. The VMA is available to provide recommendations and warn against potential changes in Vice behavior. Regular check-in sessions are recommended, averaging once a month for the VMA to re-asses their status. Regular Vice management scans are a vital part of this treatment.

Symptoms Management

In addition to activity monitoring, some patients request symptoms management. This treatment entails the referral of the patient to other specialized agents. The patient’s VMA will assess their status, and if applicable, will refer them for blight management, patch calibration, or AV enhancement therapies. This treatment also often overlaps with Branch maintenance, as the management of symptoms often entails taming a Vice with regular committed Branches.

Branch Maintenance and Support

Throughout a Vice’s life cycle, Branches are an incredibly common phenomenon, especially in its adolescence. Certain classifications have transparent and simple Branch Policies, while those with a higher threat level are difficult to pin down. In the event of a simple Branch Policy, a VMA is often able to “manipulate” the environment in the Observation Chambers to mimic its advent. Complex Branch Policies often require repeated Branch instigation, a process wherein the VMA will “trigger” a rogue Branch rather than attempting to concoct the perfect environment that is often too specific or complex to recreate.

VMAs use these Branches to gather data about a Vice’s Branch Policy, often aided by a Solutions Architect, who attends the Branch as a pseudo Adjunct and observes the Branch Domain from afar. Branch Coordinators are also sometimes recruited as backup when performing Branch maintenance for Vices with a lower threat level. Branch Administrators, however, are a necessary addition when addressing a Vice with a higher threat level. VMAs also use these Branches to perform regular commits so as to keep the size of the Vice core under control.

If possible, during Branch maintenance, a VMA or Branch Administrator may attempt rescission if the conditions are appropriate; though, Branch maintenance is typically focused on gathering the data necessary for rescission.

Rescission

Rescission treatment plans require repeated, intentional Branch instigation. If performed too quickly in succession, Branch instigation can result in rogue Branches or even prompt changes to the Vice’s Branch Policy as a defense mechanism against the new threat. Because of this, a VMA will likely establish a “cool down” period between instigated Branches, and rescission treatments can last anywhere from a few months to multiple years. Learn more about the different rescission options in Services: Rescission.