[lmd]

Hi everyone I am a new poster but have been reading the posts for ages for the information and so that I don't feel so alone!

So here is the story, I was on call this weekend and have been doing everything that I am supposed to do when on call - not going out, staying within a certain range of the hospital etc. but for some reason I missed the call. I was at a mall about 5min drive from the hospital and had my phone in my purse along with my boyfriends phone which went off about three times while we were there and I heard and answered it each time. However, when I got home and checked my phone for the time I realised that I had missed a call from the hospital for a vascular case about 4hours prior.........I never heard the call!! I feel so bad! I have been on call a few times before (I am only 6months in on my newgraduate program) but have never actually been called in. I would have loved to have done the call.........I definately need the $$ what should I do?

[MsLeylaBar]

Where I work, if someone is not answering when on call, you will get in trouble, the manager or director would certainly want to talk to you, especially if they had to look for another person frantically to come in on your behalf. I would apologize and tell them it was an honest mistake.

If the hospital do not provide you with a pager, maybe you should get one on your own. You can have that on vibrate plus your cellphone just in case you are in loud places.

[ShariDCST]

I don't know about the Technology "down under" but there have been past issues here in the US with people going to malls and other very large, metal framed, enclosed public areas, and not being able to get a good signal on their cell phone (or pager.) In the past this was a bigger issue than it is now - but that's in the US. You said your boyfriend's phone went off, but yours did not, if I read it correctly. Are the two of you using the same network/company, or the same style phone?
It might be worth the trouble to go back to the same place, and watch how your phone responds to different areas of the building - inside stores, inside the common areas, closer to the center, closer to the outside, and so forth. If you hit a significant area where you get a "No Signal" or "Searching for signal" message on your screen, then it's possible that your phone did not pick up the call, but the system stored the message that you had one you didn't get, which is why you got the "missed call" message later on. Check with your cell phone carrier as well as to what limitations your particular phone, calling plan or carrier might have with signal transmission and the location of cell towers. About 10 years ago here, I took call for a hospital that gave us pagers to carry, and the signal wouldn't get to them if we went in to certain malls because of the location of the tower and the construction of the building. That could solve the technical problem.
But the personnel issue with not being immediately available for your call back is a whole different issue. The fact that they could not reach you for an important case is likely to have serious ramifications, especially, as MsLeylaBar stated, they had to call in someone else on the spur of the moment and that person had to come in and cover for you. I don't think the $$ you missed out on would be the primary concern - the patient's safety should be paramount. Probably your best bet is to go to your supervisor and address the issue up front, but this being Monday already, that's probably already been done. Best wishes on getting this sorted out.