I am a single mother of two and I recently got fired from my medical assisting job for having a rude, and combative patient who made a racial slur at me removed from the clinic, and this was after I asked the physician and she told me I could do it!!! I found a much better job in the same field with much better pay and excellent benefits in less than two months, so you are thinking, whats the problem, right? Well the problem is is that the other two medical assistants that are there don't like me because I'm guessing that they think I am too slow and I don't have enough skills to be working there. I will admit that my previous jobs did'nt give me enough experience like it should've done, but I can learn if I am given a fair chance. My original preceptor told the Rn manager that she no longer wanted to precept me because it was frustrating her and she was beginning to have an attitude. The manager then put me with another preceptor after that, but that didn't work out because she totally went off on me in front of a patient talking about I was being combative of all things to say. These girls are being extremely rude and nasty towards me, they don't even speak to me when I come in in the mornings. I have been extremely upbeat and nice to them even though the girls have been nothing but nasty towards me, and now I feel like I am at the end of my rope. I have only been there for four weeks, and I feel so inferior and stupid when I am there. I can't do anything really by myself unless I am assisting with pap smears, or doing an EKG. I get compliments from the patients all of the time about how well I am doing, but I don't feel like everybody that I am working with feels that way. The Rn manager told me that I have to bring my medical assisting textbook to work with me and study, she has told me in front of the other medical assistants that I am lacking a lot of skills and she also told me that she will not be waiting the whole 90 day probationary period to determine if I will stay also in front of the other medical assistants. I feel like such a child when I go to work. I instantly get sick when I pull into the parking lot, my stomach gets all bubbly and feels like its tied into knots, my head starts hurting, and my mouth gets dry instantly. I really need a job because I am not in a posistion to be without a job, but I don't know how much longer I can go on like this. This is an excellent place to work and get experience, but I don't feel confident, and I am always on the edge because the other medical assistants are always pulling me into meetings with the Rn manager and just bringing up every little mistake that I make. I am trying to finish up my pre requisites for nursing and I know that I will have soo much knowledge if I stayed, but I feel so down and depressed, I just don't know what to do. Any advice is more than welcome. Sorry for the extremely long rant.
Today was by far the worst day ever. I wound up leaving work early for the second time today because of the way things were going. My current preceptor was very rude and hostile today, again. A couple of weeks ago, I came to work and did the things that I usually do at the start of the day. Let me say that they do things very structured there, so there are only some things that I can do and some things that I can't. So, to not just be standing around, I do some incomplete charts, restock the exam rooms, and any other busy work that needs to be done. So, after I got through doing what I was supposed to do and could find nothing else for me to do, I went to my preceptor and I asked her did she have anything else for me to do. She told me no. So I am left to walk around and basically look like a dunder head. My first mistake that day was the fact that I didn't go to the RN manager, and ask her what should I do. Ofcourse the RN manager caught me standing around looking bewildered and she asked me what am I doing just standing around. She brought me to the preceptor, and asked her did she tell me that there was nothing to do. The preceptor said yes she did because there was nothing for me to do which she could think of. Then she says that I could have stamped the refferals, and all this other crap that she could have told me to do when I asked her. So after I was given my assignment, the rn manager said, "Now you should'nt be bored". She asked me by the way prior to stating that I should'nt be standing around was I bored. I shook my head yes, and smiled because I thought she was joking. Okay so today, when the patients started coming in, I asked my preceptor could I vital the next patient. She says, "Yeah go ahead because we would'nt want you to be bored". So I told her that I was not bored. So then she says thats what I told the RN manager. I did'nt say anything else, I took the chart from her and I vitaled the next patient. Then another situation that happened was the doctor walked in on me doing the vitals of another patient and gave me a verbal order to give a patient a dressing wrap. When I came out of the vital room with the patient, I went to the doctor and I pulled out my note pad and asked her to repeat to me what kind of dressing she wanted. The doctor said that my preceptor told her that I was'nt experienced with dressing changes so the preceptor would be doing the procedure. So when I ran back into my preceptor, she asked me why was'nt I getting the supplies, and I told her what the doctor told me. So she told me that I WILL be doing the dressing change and she further stated that how was I going to get the experience if I don't do the procedures. So I went and gathered what I needed, there was some things that I couldnt find so I went back to the preceptor and asked her where the supplies was. So she told me where the supplies where at, she knew that I was'nt experienced with dressing changes and she purposely set me up to fail. She did'nt tell me where to find the dressings at, she didn't tell me how to apply the dressing, or how she wanted the dressing applied or anything. So we went in to the room with the patient and I was asking her step by step how to apply the dressing, when she starts yelling at me in front of the patient. I held my peace and I applied the dressing as best as I could. Unsatisfied with my performance she took the ace wrap and completed the rest of the procedure because I didn't wrap the wrap around the thumb first, excuse me for not being able to perform well in a hostile environment. I then went out and found the RN manager and told her that I needed to talk to her. Actually I went to her before the dressing change incident happened, but my preceptor said to tell the manager that I am doing a dressing change and that I will meet with her after I finish what I am doing. So after the dressing change the manager brought me and the preceptor into the lunchroom. I wasn't allowed to talk, everytime I tried to talk and state my side of the story, I was interrupted. When I tried to explain what was said by the preceptor, it was explained away by the manager as that the preceptor was trying to relay what it was that I was supposed to do. I told her that that was not what happened. I was then told by the manager that I haven't been able to get along with neither one of the preceptors (This is the second one) and something is going to be done about this really soon in front of the other preceptor who was nodding in agreement. I left for my lunch break shortly after that and I told my preceptor that I was leaving and she was like yeah yeah yeah. At that point I left and took all of my belongings, and my lock to my locker because I was actually going to quit. I went home and I called the administrative office and I filed a grievance with them on the manager. I am soo sick of going through this. I have never had a job where there was soo much hostility. The preceptor admitted to the manager in front of me that she was rude and hostile because she felt that I am not catching on at all. How can I catch on or feel confident with you saying demeaning things and being hostile towards me. I don't even know if I am going to work tomorrow, I am soo sick of being treated like the dumb a@# medical assistant. They are very condescending, and now I find out that they are mocking me, and I think they are moving to try to get me out, and try to get me to quit. I really feel like they are antagonising me. I don't know what I am doing wrong. I still can't vital patients by myself because the preceptors claim that I can't take a decent blood pressure. I have been there for one month for crying out loud. I know how to do a blood pressure, I wouldn't have been able to graduate from school if I couldn't take a blood pressure. I am just flat out tired. I am really trying to hold on until after the holidays for my childrens sake, but I don't know if I can. I come home exhausted from work because I have basically walked around upset all day. I just don't know what to do. I have made sure not to stand as if I have an attitude, I have made sure that I talk to them with respect, I know I am doing everything right. Even the patients know how bad the hostility is between me and the preceptors because they always offer words of encouragement. I just don't now what to do. I have a house note to pay and I have two children to raise by myself, I need this job. But I don't want to drive myself into the nut house because of it. I am recovering from major depression from two years ago, and now I find myself falling back into that hole because of this job. I have stress anxiety and performance anxiety. My mouth gets dry, my underarms and the palms of my hands gets sweaty, I am just a ball of nerves when I go to work and it should'nt be that way. I worry when I get home because I know I have to get back up and go in in the morning. I just don't know what to do anymore. Sorry, I know this is a long rant.
We had a pt come in straight from the ER s/p MI. She was c/o SOB, tightness in the chest area, heaviness in the chest area, lightheadedness and generalized weakness. She also c/o some brusies that just popped up on here leg and she said that she didn't hit herself on anything. The pt was on coumadin. Anyway the MA ran out the room and obtained a pulse ox on the pt and put it on her, as well as measured the width and the height of the bruises. Her initial assesment of the pt to me was more nursing than medical assisting. I have never been in a situation like that to know that I could do something like that. It has never been in my scope of practice. So because I don't have those skills that they have they look at me like I am an idiot or something.
If the MA was measuring bruises on a patient having chest tightness and SOB that's not nursng, that's just plain stupid. Don't let that impress you. The bruises do not matter when a person can't breath. The pulse ox was a good idea. By the way, why did the patient come straight form the ER to a clinic???? Especially as you said S/P MI.
We had a pt come in straight from the ER s/p MI. She was c/o SOB, tightness in the chest area, heaviness in the chest area, lightheadedness and generalized weakness. She also c/o some brusies that just popped up on here leg and she said that she didn't hit herself on anything. The pt was on coumadin. Anyway the MA ran out the room and obtained a pulse ox on the pt and put it on her, as well as measured the width and the height of the bruises. Her initial assesment of the pt to me was more nursing than medical assisting. I have never been in a situation like that to know that I could do something like that. It has never been in my scope of practice. So because I don't have those skills that they have they look at me like I am an idiot or something.
If the MA was measuring bruises on a patient having chest tightness and SOB that's not nursng, that's just plain stupid. Don't let that impress you. The bruises do not matter when a person can't breath. The pulse ox was a good idea. By the way, why did the patient come straight form the ER to a clinic???? Especially as you said S/P MI.
The patient was d/c'ed from the ER and was to follow up with the clinic for further treatment. The clinic that I work at serves the uninsured and the underpriviliged, so alot of these patients don't have any money and they are very sick. So I just don't know what to do. Besides that I had to file a grievance with the administrative office because of the manager and the other MA's treatment of me. I called to tell them that I wasn't returning yesterday and I called this morning to let them know that I wasn't coming in today because I didn't want to come back until I had the grievance meeting. When I called to call in today, the manager asked me why was I calling her because I had already established that I wasn't coming back. I told her that thats not what I said and she further stated that that is what I said to her and she wished me well and hung up on me. Even if I could go back to work, I wouldn't want to go back there because it was a problem from day one. I don't understand how people can look at themselves in the mirror everyday and not be ashamed of themselves. So so much for that. Thank you all for your support, I really got some great ideas and I did try to out them to use, unfortunately it didn't work. I still do welcome any other comments, I greatly appreciate everybody's input.
I'm sorry things didn't work out, but as you said, it wasn't pretty from the beginning.
Do not lose hope. Somewhere there is a job for you that will be willing to train you.
That's the problem with Medical Assisting. Most courses are only 9 months long, and very vague at that. I'm not sure about your school, but I only had a month's worth of externship. (I worked full-time and OT to get it all in one month.) It would be so much better to have more on the job training.
I hope you find a great job soon, and continue to further your education. Good luck! :)
Yeah, well I am still fighting, they had no right to treat me the way that they did. I am tired of searching for jobs. I have two children and a house note to pay for. I am flat broke and I have so many bills that I don't know what I am going to do. Thanks for your support.
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giada23
46 Posts
Today was by far the worst day ever. I wound up leaving work early for the second time today because of the way things were going. My current preceptor was very rude and hostile today, again. A couple of weeks ago, I came to work and did the things that I usually do at the start of the day. Let me say that they do things very structured there, so there are only some things that I can do and some things that I can't. So, to not just be standing around, I do some incomplete charts, restock the exam rooms, and any other busy work that needs to be done. So, after I got through doing what I was supposed to do and could find nothing else for me to do, I went to my preceptor and I asked her did she have anything else for me to do. She told me no. So I am left to walk around and basically look like a dunder head. My first mistake that day was the fact that I didn't go to the RN manager, and ask her what should I do. Ofcourse the RN manager caught me standing around looking bewildered and she asked me what am I doing just standing around. She brought me to the preceptor, and asked her did she tell me that there was nothing to do. The preceptor said yes she did because there was nothing for me to do which she could think of. Then she says that I could have stamped the refferals, and all this other crap that she could have told me to do when I asked her. So after I was given my assignment, the rn manager said, "Now you should'nt be bored". She asked me by the way prior to stating that I should'nt be standing around was I bored. I shook my head yes, and smiled because I thought she was joking. Okay so today, when the patients started coming in, I asked my preceptor could I vital the next patient. She says, "Yeah go ahead because we would'nt want you to be bored". So I told her that I was not bored. So then she says thats what I told the RN manager. I did'nt say anything else, I took the chart from her and I vitaled the next patient. Then another situation that happened was the doctor walked in on me doing the vitals of another patient and gave me a verbal order to give a patient a dressing wrap. When I came out of the vital room with the patient, I went to the doctor and I pulled out my note pad and asked her to repeat to me what kind of dressing she wanted. The doctor said that my preceptor told her that I was'nt experienced with dressing changes so the preceptor would be doing the procedure. So when I ran back into my preceptor, she asked me why was'nt I getting the supplies, and I told her what the doctor told me. So she told me that I WILL be doing the dressing change and she further stated that how was I going to get the experience if I don't do the procedures. So I went and gathered what I needed, there was some things that I couldnt find so I went back to the preceptor and asked her where the supplies was. So she told me where the supplies where at, she knew that I was'nt experienced with dressing changes and she purposely set me up to fail. She did'nt tell me where to find the dressings at, she didn't tell me how to apply the dressing, or how she wanted the dressing applied or anything. So we went in to the room with the patient and I was asking her step by step how to apply the dressing, when she starts yelling at me in front of the patient. I held my peace and I applied the dressing as best as I could. Unsatisfied with my performance she took the ace wrap and completed the rest of the procedure because I didn't wrap the wrap around the thumb first, excuse me for not being able to perform well in a hostile environment. I then went out and found the RN manager and told her that I needed to talk to her. Actually I went to her before the dressing change incident happened, but my preceptor said to tell the manager that I am doing a dressing change and that I will meet with her after I finish what I am doing. So after the dressing change the manager brought me and the preceptor into the lunchroom. I wasn't allowed to talk, everytime I tried to talk and state my side of the story, I was interrupted. When I tried to explain what was said by the preceptor, it was explained away by the manager as that the preceptor was trying to relay what it was that I was supposed to do. I told her that that was not what happened. I was then told by the manager that I haven't been able to get along with neither one of the preceptors (This is the second one) and something is going to be done about this really soon in front of the other preceptor who was nodding in agreement. I left for my lunch break shortly after that and I told my preceptor that I was leaving and she was like yeah yeah yeah. At that point I left and took all of my belongings, and my lock to my locker because I was actually going to quit. I went home and I called the administrative office and I filed a grievance with them on the manager. I am soo sick of going through this. I have never had a job where there was soo much hostility. The preceptor admitted to the manager in front of me that she was rude and hostile because she felt that I am not catching on at all. How can I catch on or feel confident with you saying demeaning things and being hostile towards me. I don't even know if I am going to work tomorrow, I am soo sick of being treated like the dumb a@# medical assistant. They are very condescending, and now I find out that they are mocking me, and I think they are moving to try to get me out, and try to get me to quit. I really feel like they are antagonising me. I don't know what I am doing wrong. I still can't vital patients by myself because the preceptors claim that I can't take a decent blood pressure. I have been there for one month for crying out loud. I know how to do a blood pressure, I wouldn't have been able to graduate from school if I couldn't take a blood pressure. I am just flat out tired. I am really trying to hold on until after the holidays for my childrens sake, but I don't know if I can. I come home exhausted from work because I have basically walked around upset all day. I just don't know what to do. I have made sure not to stand as if I have an attitude, I have made sure that I talk to them with respect, I know I am doing everything right. Even the patients know how bad the hostility is between me and the preceptors because they always offer words of encouragement. I just don't now what to do. I have a house note to pay and I have two children to raise by myself, I need this job. But I don't want to drive myself into the nut house because of it. I am recovering from major depression from two years ago, and now I find myself falling back into that hole because of this job. I have stress anxiety and performance anxiety. My mouth gets dry, my underarms and the palms of my hands gets sweaty, I am just a ball of nerves when I go to work and it should'nt be that way. I worry when I get home because I know I have to get back up and go in in the morning. I just don't know what to do anymore. Sorry, I know this is a long rant.