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Auburn Annie · 12-15-2007, 10:16 AM

Thank you everyone. I'm not worried - made it many years without work as my husband is fully employed and has the health insurance coverage. It just would have made things easier on him.

Yuri, it's a hospital laboratory. Some of the work is in-house (for patients) but much of it is outpatient blood draws for nursing homes and personal residences. The hospital has been through very hard financial times (pension payments are being taken over by PBGC in January as they owe over $20 million) and the lab has been the engine driving the financial turn around lately, so the administrator is under considerable pressure to keep the customers happy and the revenue coming in - something that's hard to do with a shortage of bench people and phlebotomists. In years past they could take a nurse or someone with a biochem background and train them up to whatever tech position they needed to fill, but no longer. Now the techs have to be certified before hiring, already trained, and testing urine, blood or tissue samples is not a glamour job.

I could be kind and say my former supervisor simply did not have the capacity to train and otherwise deal with a non-tech person. I'm sure she's very competent at her work, but makes a lousy mentor.

Also, the lab is a very weird, insular place. In the two months I worked there, not once did I see another lab person eating in the hospital cafeteria. Most ate in the lab "lounges"; in my case, a tiny table for 4 surrounded by orange lockers near the two toilets - not exactly a relaxing atmosphere. There was a small TV, microwave and refrigerator. Most brought their lunches although some bought stuff upstairs and brought it down to eat. They never left the "maze" as I called it. There's a whole hospital beyond the lab walls and, other than the phlebotomists who *had* to leave to do their work, nobody ever left! I brought my lunch 4 days a week, bought once, but always went up to see who was there and had lunch with various people (nursing home secretary, nurse managers, cardiovascular techs) and said hello to others, everyone from accounting and business office, security and housekeeping, to the CEO and CFO who ate lunch in the cafeteria.

Anyway it was just one of life experiences best put behind me. 2008 is supposed to be a bang-up year for Capricorns - we'll see!

12-15-2007, 10:16 AM	#9
Auburn Annie Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Upstate New York Posts: 3,101	Re: Once more into the breach, dear friends Thank you everyone. I'm not worried - made it many years without work as my husband is fully employed and has the health insurance coverage. It just would have made things easier on him. Yuri, it's a hospital laboratory. Some of the work is in-house (for patients) but much of it is outpatient blood draws for nursing homes and personal residences. The hospital has been through very hard financial times (pension payments are being taken over by PBGC in January as they owe over $20 million) and the lab has been the engine driving the financial turn around lately, so the administrator is under considerable pressure to keep the customers happy and the revenue coming in - something that's hard to do with a shortage of bench people and phlebotomists. In years past they could take a nurse or someone with a biochem background and train them up to whatever tech position they needed to fill, but no longer. Now the techs have to be certified before hiring, already trained, and testing urine, blood or tissue samples is not a glamour job. I could be kind and say my former supervisor simply did not have the capacity to train and otherwise deal with a non-tech person. I'm sure she's very competent at her work, but makes a lousy mentor. Also, the lab is a very weird, insular place. In the two months I worked there, not once did I see another lab person eating in the hospital cafeteria. Most ate in the lab "lounges"; in my case, a tiny table for 4 surrounded by orange lockers near the two toilets - not exactly a relaxing atmosphere. There was a small TV, microwave and refrigerator. Most brought their lunches although some bought stuff upstairs and brought it down to eat. They never left the "maze" as I called it. There's a whole hospital beyond the lab walls and, other than the phlebotomists who had to leave to do their work, nobody ever left! I brought my lunch 4 days a week, bought once, but always went up to see who was there and had lunch with various people (nursing home secretary, nurse managers, cardiovascular techs) and said hello to others, everyone from accounting and business office, security and housekeeping, to the CEO and CFO who ate lunch in the cafeteria. Anyway it was just one of life experiences best put behind me. 2008 is supposed to be a bang-up year for Capricorns - we'll see!