training provided...maybe...
Well I found myself in a situation a couple weeks ago where I had to decide between two interesting job offers. I decided to take the job that seemed more pleasant, staff seemed very nice, office was well cared for, and the schedule seemed flexible enough for my family (originally thought it was a four day work week schedule), plus only five minutes from home...it was a dream come true. Realty set in the very first day. Was told during the interview that experience wasn't required, that they would train me. First half of the morning I sat down and listened for three hours, going over requirements and specifications for the job. Understandable. Came back from lunch and was basically thrown into the situation with very little training. When I had the opportunity to have someone help me, I was paged to go into another room to help another patient. My employer would advise, "we'll go ahead with a 24-2 sita fast", a what?? A sita what? Is that in this room...walking out bewildered, and having the patient look at me odd as well. This was nonstop, with the feeling that they believed I wasn't catching on. I went home realizing that maybe this wasn't for me. I walked in the next day though, determined to learn, determined to have them train me. I asked for training, but was told an hour later that I don't need anyone to follow me around. This led to a frantic day of "not being quick enough" for my employer. Days went by, and piece by piece I've started to grasp certain concepts, but still completely puzzled by their way of training, or lack of. Finally settling down on the schedule situation, not only is it not a four day work week..., but the one extra day off that I get every two weeks can only be on a Monday, Wednesday, or Friday...only if no one else has taken it off, which they mostly have...which leaves me taking off a day that my kids aren't with me(with their dad instead, shared custody) and defeats the whole point of getting the day off. Can not take off any day during spring break with my kids because one of the office mgr.'s already has it off, and I can only assume takes it off every year. There goes that. Well, a new girl started Tuesday..same position, altered schedule. They trained her in the same fashion they did with me, but by day two she's already calling to say that she quits. They believe that it wasn't due to the work or training, that she was offered more pay at her other job....I tend to disagree. I wonder if they really believe that their training program is working, or if they're just too busy to train anyone correctly?? I'm curious to see what happens with the next trainee, should start relatively soon...applications are coming in. I know I have options, stick with the job and learn as much as possible here and there or to look for a new job. Has anyone out there ever been thrown into a position with very little training?? How did you manage?
You don't explain what the work is so it is difficult to address the issue. It appears that it is in health care. If this is the case are you working directly with patients? Are you are a nurse? A nurses aide? A medical assistant with education? Without some additional information it is difficult to even provide some thoughts. There is a serious disconnent between what a lot of applicants think "training" means and what companies think it means. As a rule, companies do not think it means attaching someone to your hip as a private tutor. They think it means giving you a list, having someone explain something once and then maybe a bit of practice time (if you' re lucky). There is an expectation that you have a certain level of knowledge and that you just need a bump on their specific details. If you really don' t know what they' re talking about, ask for a list of these terms and a list of the procedures. See if that helps. You' ll have to study it on your own time of course, but it could smooth the way.
I am currently in the health care field as an assistant, working with patients directly. It's not a field that I'm familiar with, but decided to give it a try. I previously worked for eight years in public service, but needed to change my career due to an accident. My employer was aware that I did not have previous experience in the health care field, but it was listed on their ad that experience was not required. I understand that this has provided a challenge for both the employer and I, and I am more than willing to learn. But the training that has been provided is not sufficient for what they are asking me to do. I have asked for help several times, only to be to shown how to do it (then in the middle of learning it, being called into another room to assist with a patient). That leaves me with only half of the knowledge needed to do the particular thing that I was orginally asked to do. One of the supervisors is extremely impatient, and expects me to know what he is talking about. He is so rushed and frantic to get things done that he tells me to "hurry up". It's not that I'm slow, but when I'm unfamiliar with something, it may take a minute longer to figure it out and perform it correctly. And as he stresses to me, our patients need to have the utmost confidence in us. Which is understandable. I addressed this issue with the human resource, even discussing my first day of training with her. She acknowledged that it was not the best way to train, but added that it's how the doctor likes for it to be done. I understand that holding my hand all day long is not an option, nor do I want that. But all I do ask for is sufficient training, if you want the patients to have confidence in me then show me the right way to do things so that I can do my job competently. If you ask me to perform a test on a patient, then at least show me where the test is locate and what procedures to follow to administer the test on the machine. If it was only walking the patients to and from the room that would be easy, but using an instrument that could possibly injure them for life and having very little training with it I would think would be a huge liability. If it wasn't for one of the assistants helping me whenever she could I would have already given my notice. I just keep reminding myself that it will get easier as the weeks progress...just please, no more telling me to "hurry up" then asking why it's not done correctly. Thank you for your input.....anything would be appreciated.
I am not sure I how really helpful I personally can be in this situation, there are some others around who are actually in this field and hopefully they will chime in and offer some suggestions. You might try putting a shorter version over on the Health Fields boards. My initial thought is that your management is being very shortsighted and irresponsible in putting patients in your hands without some additional oversight and training. But here are somethings that you might do for yourself in the meantime. If you are using equipment ask if there are manufacturer instructions for use that you could read. Use these as part of self-training. When someone uses terms that you don't understand write them down and then ask what them mean. I know that at first this may be akward but it will help. Find someone who is willing to spend some extra time before or after your shifts. None of these are perfect solutions but they might help get you over the hump. | |
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