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previous ~ ~ ~ next This rambling entry brought to you by my lack of sleep and overworked burn-out. Thank you for your attention. You might be better off visiting a random entry. This note was sent out from my current boss this morning: First of all, sorry for the impersonal email. With the holiday weekend approaching many of you are scattered about. We will group next week to talk more about this. Ok, first of all? In spite of what I say below (about my current boss being the best--which, on the whole, I really do stand by) he kinda, sorta forgot to let me know about this prior to the e-mail going out. Because I always love getting phone calls and having no idea of why I'm getting them. Second of all? This was really, really sudden, and it happened in the middle of the week which makes me think that, in spite of calling it a layoff, it really isn't. Third of all? I'm relatively sure this is directly related to a recent issue that came up. Or series of issues. Psycho Ex-Boss #2 has the it's-your-problem-not-mine-deal-with-it attitude. Which is one of the reasons I got so frustrated with her when she first started working here. Patient Relations (Complaints) is supposed to be all about advocating for the patient and being on that person's side. She didn't have any desire to help people at all and her two favorite phrases were: "Well, what do you want, then?" and "What do you think I can do about that?" In other words, "I could really care less what you want or what your problem is." This has been an ongoing issue off and on. Occasionally I got calls saying that Psycho Ex-Boss #2 wasn't helping a particular person and transferred them on to my current boss (who is also the Psycho Ex-Bosses' Boss) for follow up. Since I never heard anything back, I figured that it wasn't a big thing. (Often people have unrealistic expectations of a do-able turn around time. Those not in healthcare don't understand how long it can take to get the charts and get a doctor or nurse manager to review it and come up with a response. Given that, often the "I'm not getting feedback" or "I'm not being helped" calls are resolved with a simple explanation of why whatever is taking so long. And so it's not a big thing.) Then there was a big hullabaloo... oh, maybe a little over a week ago, about a patient who contacted multiple authorities as well as going on up the chain of command to our corporate ladder. That meant our CEO came down like the wrath of God because the whole thing made him look bad, and we certainly can't have that. But this person who went on up our chain of command? He initially e-mailed me, I immediately responded saying it would be forwarded appropriately and his future contacts would be with Psycho Ex-Boss #2, and to please call me if he had any further questions or concerns. So he tried following up with Psycho Ex-Boss #2. In his letter of complaint, he quoted things Psycho Ex-Boss #2 had said to him, and had them dated and timed! I'll rummage around and find the e-mail where he quoted her, but the basic information conveyed was, "I can't help you, and I can't tell you what's going on. What more do you think I can do for you? Go away." Ok, so she didn't actually say, "Go away." Regardless, I can't help but think that this is most likely related because last Friday, Psycho Ex-Boss #2 had a meeting with our CEO. And then Wednesday she's gone? Anyway... that's entirely too much information about my bosses, but I just wanted to write about it because it really bugged me. And shocked me. It's a mixed blessing because I can't help but be inmmensely relieved that Psycho Ex-Boss #2 is gone. And I'm a bit apprehensive about my new work-load since I'm already feeling overwhelmed. *Explanation of bosses: Ok, when I first started working here in November of 2000, I had one boss, the Anal-Retentive Boss who shall henceforth be known as the ARB. She was the Risk Manager. I reported to her and did the Patient Relations (read: Complaint Department) work. Then the hospital created the Patient Relations Manager position, and my Very First Cool Boss (VFCB) was hired for that. So I reported to both of them and had to juggle responsibilities. Then the ARB got fired in November of 2002. Generally speaking? It's a really, really bad idea to fire a Risk Manager without having a replacement lined up. Fortunately, they had yours truly who had been intimately involved in all the Risk Management functions. I was able to (barely) keep my head above water. Then VFCB announced that she would be leaving at the end of December because her mom had breast cancer, again. Ouch. (The good news is that her mom is doing really well now, and it looks like everything is in remission.) And while I was really proud of the VFCB for being such an awesome person, I was panicked at doing the work of three people without support. Fortunately, they got someone from a temp agency to do the Patient Relations work, and I did the Risk Management work, and we both (barely) kept our heads above water. After 6 months and me threatening (very nicely, of course, but threatening all the same) to quit, they finally got in both a Risk Manager and a Patient Relations Manager. I was immensely excited about this, no, I was ecstatic about this. You know, for the 2 weeks it took me to get to know them. Then I was horrified. These two were almost immediately dubbed Psycho Boss #1 (Risk Management) and Psycho Boss #2 (Patient Relations). They were awful. Terrible. Totally uninterested in doing their jobs and only wanting the money/prestige/fawning that accompanied the position, none of the work. So guess who they expected to continue actually doing the work. You got it, me. So after 6 months of this slowly escalating and finally an inappropriate write up (They set me up. I absolutely, positively couldn�t believe it, but they really did set me up.), I went to the Psycho Bosses' Boss. This meeting consisted of me threatening (very nicely, of course, but threatening all the same) to quit, if my reporting structure didn't change ASAP, and the Psycho Bosses' Boss reassuring me that he wanted me to stay put and would make appropriate arrangements. So since October or so, I've been reporting to my current boss, who is, honestly, the best boss I've ever had. He cares about what's going on and wants to make a difference. Which means that Psycho Boss #1 and Psycho Boss #2 were now renamed Psycho Ex-Boss #1 and Psycho Ex-Boss #2. While they're not terribly imaginative, and certainly not very short, titles, I find that it's much too satisfying writing the whole thing out to abbreviate it. So Psycho Ex-Boss #2 has now been part of a "budgetary cut". And that was a ridiculously long explanation, which is why I put it down at the very bottom. How many days until finals? What was one good thing that happened today? Miscellaney: Tell me what you think. cat :: cat's Site �::cat's Comment(s)�:: After reading that entry I really wonder: Why do I miss working so much? :-) Seriously though, I'm glad you don't have to deal with Psycho Ex-Boss #2 anymore. I'll keep my fingers crossed that her replacement is a decent human being. [2004-09-02 23:21:35] Tessa :: Tessa's Site �::Tessa's Comment(s)�:: Evidently I forgot to mention that the replacement for Psycho Ex-Boss #2 is me. Except, you know, that I don't get a promotion or raise and don't get other duties removed from my to do list. :) Hey, but at least I'm never bored! [2004-09-19 03:34:08] Tessa :: Tessa's Site �::Tessa's Comment(s)�:: Which means, of course, that (in my humble opinion) the replacement for Psycho Ex-Boss #2, is, in fact, a decent human being. :) [2004-09-19 03:34:54] Keeping my vow ~ ~ ~ Disgruntled Most recent: The REAL surprise party - Monday, Jul. 11, 2005 Still not here - Wednesday, Jul. 06, 2005 Moved - Thursday, Jun. 30, 2005 I survived - Thursday, Jun. 23, 2005 Go see her. Now. - Thursday, Jun. 02, 2005 |
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