The reason I don't read instructions

[jackfaire]

A few years ago I was working for an answering service. Our whole job was

when someone called for one of our clients to take the call and then follow the

instructions on their account.



Our clients were all kinds of professions, doctors, plumbers, veterinarians, etc. So

anyway this particular Dr. had instructions that if his patient said it was an

emergency that along with paging him you were to advise them that they need

to call 911 as he may not get to them right away.

So anyway this is the conversation I had with the wife of one of his patient's.

M= Me
SC=Stubborn customer
SM = Stupid manager

M) Thanks for calling Dr. *****'s Office he is not in right now may I take a message?



SC) Yes my husband is having chest pains it's an emergency and I need you to

page the doctor and have him call us right away.



M) *completely oblivious as to where this is going to go* Certainly ma'am not a

problem I will page the doctor immediatly *already typing the information into the

program and setting it up to page him* Now the doctor has said that he strongly

advises you call 911 if you feel this is an emergency situation as he may not

immediatly respond to the page.



SC) Why aren't you going to page the doctor? I just told you this could be an

emergency I want you to page the doctor please just page the doctor right now.


M) *Confused wondering what I just said.* Yes certainly ma'am and I am paging

the doctor as we speak I was just letting you know that if this is an emergency

situation he does advise you call 911.


SC) Look my husband doesn't like 911 so your going to stop telling me no and

page the doctor.


M) Ma'am I am paging the doctor


SC) NO page the doctor now *click*

Now I understand that under the current circumstances of something might be

happening to your husband that is beyond your control your panicking and not

thinking straight so in all honesty I let it go and didn't give it much thought. Yes of

course after I paged the doctor.


Next is the part that really and truly boggles my mind after the doctor calls the

patient and everything gets calmed down the patient's wife tells the doctor that I

had refused to page him for her. The doctor rather than explaining that if I

hadn't paged him he wouldn't have known to call her turns around and calls my

manager and demands to know why I refused to page him. Again expecting

someone in this loop to point out that obviously I had but the manager instead

apologizes to him and offers to reprimand me for it and will have me write a letter

of apology to the patient's wife.



Then of course my manager comes to speak with me.

SM) *gives me a quick run down reminding me of the specific person* So why did

you refuse to page the doctor for her?



M ) *Titling my head to the side in a dumbfounded look* Uhm I didn't



SM) She says you did



M) Uhm but I didn't. If I refused to page the Dr. then how did he know to call her?



SM) *gets this look like that thought had never even occured to her*



M) All I did was follow the Dr's instruction's to the letter exactly as you yourself

typed it into the system.


SM) *Moment of silence and then* I will need to review the call then get back

with you.


So I figure okay that's the end of it she will listen see I did right and congratulate

me on keeping my cool in a tough situation. Woops I mistook the company for

some other one.


SM) *Back in her office again* Okay so I listened to the call and now you need to

write a letter of apology to the patient's wife.


M) Wait so you heard me say I was going to page the doctor *she nods* and you

heard me say the doctor advises 911 also be called *nods* then what did I do

wrong that I need to apologize for.


SM) You told her to call 911. You shouldn't have done that.


M) But the instructions on the contract that you typed into the system say we

should. *Nods* so I am supposed to violate the contract?


SM) No just don't tell patients to call 911 in an emergency *this is where her logic

made my head explode*


M) *Calmly I said the following* Okay I understand your position on this *No I

didn't* but as I did nothing wrong and did everything right by doing my job I am

not going to write a letter of apology. *Of course fully expecting at this moment

to be fired*


SM) I will write up the letter and then you will sign it or you will be fired. We are

done here. *I walked out and was never asked to sign any letter but knowing

her she just signed it for me and sent it. I was there a couple more months

before I left*


So after all that I was in the wrong even though I followed my job the way

everyone but the patient's wife wanted me to and I even did it the way she

wanted me too she just didn't think I did.

[mikoyan29]

Wow...just wow.....

It's an emergency...911 is for emergencies....but don't tell someone to call 911....

Interesting.

[spookysonata]

I'd give the lady the benefit of the doubt since maybe she was in a blind panic (although if I were having chest pains I would sure like 911), but you manager? Jellyfish spine. She knew she was wrong, she just was afraid to contradict the customer. I HATE those managers; it gives the rest of us a bad name.

Good for you for keeping your cool.

[jackfaire]

I'd give the lady the benefit of the doubt since maybe she was in a blind panic (although if I were having chest pains I would sure like 911), but you manager? Jellyfish spine. She knew she was wrong, she just was afraid to contradict the customer. I HATE those managers; it gives the rest of us a bad name.

Good for you for keeping your cool.

My department is in need of a supervisor soon and I am terrified that they are going to promote me.

[hinakiba777]

Your manager not only has a jellyfish spine. She has jelly for brains. If you're going to be contradicting at least explain it. Don't just nod at Jack.

SC) Look my husband doesn't like 911 so your going to stop telling me no and

page the doctor.

Also while I understand the woman's panic, if this is an exact quote, then. ....wow.Just wow.

[jackfaire]

Your manager not only has a jellyfish spine. She has jelly for brains. If you're going to be contradicting at least explain it. Don't just nod at Jack.



Also while I understand the woman's panic, if this is an exact quote, then. ....wow.Just wow.

Not exactly but she did at one point say that her husband didn't want her calling 911.

[otakuneko]

Wow...just wow.....

It's an emergency...911 is for emergencies....but don't tell someone to call 911....

Interesting.

Don't forget to add...
even if you have been previously explicitly instructed TO tell someone to call 911.

[LillFilly]

A LOT of doctor's offices advise that if it's an emergency to call 911. There is NO WAY you should have gotten in trouble for that. There should have been someone to report that to.

Whenever I get someone who doesn't want 911, it's usually because they don't want to pay for an ambulance ride! They say "Oh, I'll just drive myself/my husband over later!"

[EvilEmpryss]

Whenever I get someone who doesn't want 911, it's usually because they don't want to pay for an ambulance ride! They say "Oh, I'll just drive myself/my husband over later!"

Another possibility: He's a frequent flyer and the ambulance company and local ER know he's 1) exaggerating or 2) flat out faking. They get really annoyed by people who cry wolf, but they get downright pissy with drug-seekers.

[EricKei]

So...your manager wanted you to both break the law by breaching your contract (telling you to NOT do what it says) AND expose your company -- and perhaps even yourself due to quote-unquote "negligence" -- to liability by not alerting someone to the "911" option...

"Jelly" is too much of a compliment for someone like that. Perhaps "ooze" wpuld be a better descriptor. At least jelly has a use...

[EvilEmpryss]

"Jelly" is too much of a compliment for someone like that. Perhaps "ooze" wpuld be a better descriptor. At least jelly has a use...

It's appropriate. One sometimes requires "jelly" when one is about to get screwed.

[Seshat]

Chest pains can mean heart attack.

There are ads in Australia specifically telling people to be aware of the signs of a heart attack and call 000 (our 911 equivalent) if in ANY doubt AT ALL. Apparently the 000 responders are trained to identify whether it's "send an ambulance NOW" or not.

So yeah - by saying 'contact 911', you are potentially saving the guy's life! By NOT saying 'contact 911', you may be .. well, not saving his life.

[trailerparkmedic]

I can't believe your manager would do that. What if the guy was having a heart attack and didn't hear back from the doctor right away and died? 911 is there for a reason!

Not to mention your manager is an idiot for yelling at you for doing your job.

[elsporko]

The problem was that you pointed out how the manager is wrong, and its not like a manager should admit they are at fault. Thats the first step to getting respect from those you manage and everybody knows being respected and not hated means the manager isn't doing their job right.

[Andara Bledin]

SM) You told her to call 911. You shouldn't have done that.


M) But the instructions on the contract that you typed into the system say we

should. *Nods* so I am supposed to violate the contract?


SM) No just don't tell patients to call 911 in an emergency *this is where her logic

made my head explode*

Wow. This is the point, in my mind, where I inform said doctor of the fact that the manager has informed you to not follow the contract. That's just... seriously... WTF? What happens if someone dies because they were too panicked to call 911 and were relying on the doctor being able to get there quickly?

^-.-^