...
Firebird said:
Since TNG never mentioned Dr. Pulaski again after the premiere of season 3, I think it's entirely reasonable to believe McKennah doesn't have to die to satisfy canon. Starfleet could have decided to table the ship's counselor program after the end of Kirk's five-year mission, or there simply wasn't enough time for Kirk to be concerned with getting her to the Enterprise during the V'ger crisis.
Maybe except for TNG season 3 "Who Watches the Watchers":
Picard: But now that he's here, you must remove all memory of his encounter with the away team.
Crusher: By erasing short-term recall?
Picard: It has been accomplished before. (TNG season 2 "Pen Pals")
Crusher: I am familiar with Dr. Palaski's technique. But I can't guarantee that it will be effective on Mintakans. Their lie-zone levels are much lower.
Back on topic.
I agree with Firebird, McKennah doesn't have to die. She could also be transferred or something like that.
And we'll see what will happen with Continues and how many episode they can and are still able to make after episode 7.
At FedCon last May (before the fan guidelines) Vic Mignogna described what the last episode and specificely that last scene of Continues would look like, but we (the audience) had to promise to never tell, sorry.
For now I'm just looking forward to episode 7.