When you go into a field you absolutely love, you find it hard to see the flaws, but when you do, they shine. It's an unfortunate shine too. There are a few things that I truly dislike about my work setting... I'll place them in bullet format.
Oh my good God, putting a bunch of raging hormones in one small space is such a drama/gossip fest. On my first week of employment I had two girls go off to talk and one of them stated "Don't worry, Val, it's not about you." I responded with, "I don't care if it is." Then since that response was given, I have made a point to become civil with one of the girls who ran off chatting about something.
I began working on Saturdays and the girls who work on the weekends love to talk trash about other girls that work during the week. I can't for one second say that it's something I am comfortable with. The trash talk is quite irritating. Please know that the girls I work with aren't teenagers, nor are they of the younger twenties age group. I think that's what throws me the most.
On Friday of last week, one of the girls quit. I had a feeling about her from the beginning that made me unsure about her. She is in school, and has been attending school to become a Veterinary Technician. But, after two full weeks, she realized that she really rather work with children. While it sucked that she quit, I understand from previous experience for myself. I was the opposite. I went through Medical Assisting courses to find that my heart was not within the people aspect of the Medical field. Some people just have to come further in their profession to see what is ideal for them. Once the girl left the premises, everyone began to talk and vent their frustration about her leaving, all having some type of input which was negative and almost like adding fuel to the fire. Some girls spoke about how her quitting placed a wrench in their plans, and while I definitely understand that, because it did for me as well, it's not something we can change by complaining about.
Monday, everyone was back in the office and then I was having people ask me, "Did she say anything to you about potentially quitting?" While, it really was no ones business if she had or not, I told them that I had no communication with her about her decision, and that it did throw me off-guard, as well. As the day progressed, the hiring staff began printing out submitted resumes from the posted ad via Craigslist. The first one printed out and I went to pick it up thinking it was someones' invoice I had printed. Once other girls in the office saw that resumes were being printed out, they flocked to the printer and began reading them. Some of the resumes were submitted with cover letters and the girls began to laugh at them. I found that to be quite disrespectful to those potential employees, and it pissed me off. These girls were talking crap and I thought to myself, "This was my resume just 3 weeks ago being dissected by nosy eyes, and minds."
Later on Monday, I was putting in a German Shepard, of 13 years who had been encountering limping issues which weren't getting any better, for euthanization. I walked with them, spoke sweetly with Angel (the canines name) while attempting to get her into her resting space with her family. It got to me a bit, no question, but I stayed strong enough to leave the room without including myself into the situation and its entirety. As I went back into the office space, one of the leads there, started reprimanding me about some things that truly should have been addressed away from other people and clients. It made me feel like I was being scolded for something that I was informed was appropriate initially.
Near the end of my shift on Monday, the Veterinary Technician wanted to let me know that lunch will be provided on Wednesday due to drug reps coming in. Then once that was completed, she asked how I was doing. While I wanted to let her know how belittled I felt from an earlier conversation with the Lead and myself, I just shut my mouth, and replied with "There is a lot to learn, but I feel okay." She said "So you're not going to up and quit tomorrow, are you?" I told her that wasn't my intention. By the end of my day, Monday I was truly thankful to have had the day following off. It felt like a very draining day, and I needed a cold one to follow it.
- The strength needed to have an animal euthanized
Since I have begun working at the hospital, I've only had 2 euthanizations get to me. One was the one I mentioned in the previous section, and the other was a beautiful orange and white cat who was brought in due to lack of eating. The cat hadn't eaten in nearly a week and had dropped over 5 pounds within that period. The owners were caught off-guard because they truly went in for an appointment, to fix the probable cause. Once 10 minutes went by and the woman's husband showed up, I had a slight feeling I knew what was about to come. However, I went to the back as they were carrying the cats body to the back to do paw prints for the owner. I, then, overheard the Veterinarian state that when she was feeling around the stomach, she felt lumps all throughout the body, and she knew then, it wasn't going to be a curable visit for this feline.
I now know where the medication for euthanizing an animal is, and I try to avoid it as much as I can, but it's nearly inevitable because it's near an area where the main source of vaccines are kept. And with drawing up vaccines for the patients, avoiding that area is just impossible.
- Turnover seems to be high and many employees are unhappy
Those who have stayed, have been there for a long time. The average is 7 years, which is great to see numbers that way. But, that's not accounting for all of those so many current employees speak of. So many of the employees I talk with during the day, complain about so much. They complain about the atmosphere, the crazy clients, and even the doctors. I find that many of the girls who work up front are out to complain about anything and everything. To me it seems very insincere with what tends to be said.
Over-time is straight time. No time and a half, or double time. I found that out today when I received my check. :-/ If I were salary, I'd understand, but I'm just hourly. That's kind of a pain in the butt.
When I come home from work, I truly give the biggest hug and nicest pats possible to my pets. My job makes me aware of how lucky I am to have the pets I do. Everyday I learn something new, and I believe for the continued career path, I'll always learn. I love the animal aspect of my career path, I love the doctors I work with, and I love the happiness within the pet owners heart.
