The Job

I'll be starting day 4 today of this new job, a Help Desk Manager at a medical software company. I won't mention the name here because they claim to be pretty diligent about web crawls and such, looking for posts of their name and advising you to at least write a disclaimer that your views are not theirs, blah, blah.... They claim to be pretty diligent about a lot of things. all listed in the employee handbook I had to read on day one. Everything from not using your phone except for emergencies, don't email people but call instead, how exactly to host a meeting, how many times per day to check your voicemail & text when you are off! Four tests followed to make sure I understood these proclaimations. But after three days there I've found it's a little more smoke and mirrors than strict policy. Especially since I failed the HIPAA test and they brought it back to me to retake...with my original, marked with all the correct answers. "Just need it for your file," the adminstrative assistant said, which I guess also has to at least appear diligent in its preparation.

All and all, it's OK so far. They are better in some respects, and they could use improvement in others. The most awkward part is seeing how much I have to learn. This software is very robust. It's used in ER departments so it houses intake information, triage, test orders, prescriptions, etc., all used live by doctors and nurses while working on patients. So there's not only a lot of software development I need to understand but hospital terminology and process also.

I hate this part... the first weeks and months of a job where you don't know anything, don't know the history of anything. I like to KNOW what I'm doing and want to be able to make decisions and join in on discussions and generally confirm I'm not an idiot. Many of you will not be surprised with my precious demeanor in these types of situations. I tend to observe and hold back a bit, taking it in and registering the information in a way that my mind will remember it for future reference (because, dear God, my memory seems to get worse every year). Therefore, you can imagine my face through all of this. Most likely, it is much the face I had in bars as I people-watched while my friend was off getting a drink. More than once I had some guy approach me and say, "Geez, smile already!" Hey, I get absorbed in what I'm doing and the face isn't mean, it's just.... intense.

Maybe I'm diligent too, so maybe I'll fit right in.