Don’t worry guys, I actually do have to work hard at my job, but tell me that’s not a catchy title.
October for me was marked by increased confidence and comfort in the job that was basically given to me before my interview. For those of you that don’t know where I work, I am a medical assistant at Neighbor Health Center, which is a nonprofit clinic serving all ages and a significant population of individuals who are uninsured or underinsured. This means a lot of things about the work environment I’m in. On one hand, it’s a Christian organization with no shortage of believers on staff; a place where we truly do have the opportunity to serve people from innumerable cultures, languages, and backgrounds. On the other hand, it is a place that can be busy and chaotic, where staff at every level face the threat of overextending themselves into burnout. Yet, I am beginning to feel comfortable there in that tension. While September at work left me feeling in over my head and overwhelmed by how much I didn’t know, October taught me how much I could learn just by trying anyways and asking lots of questions.
Perhaps even more significant for me though was the opportunity over the past month to begin to know my coworkers. I learned that our Ultrasound technician also hails from the Midwest, that one of my fellow medical assistants has a daughter about to graduate high school, one of the nurses spent over a decade in BSF (Bible Study Fellowship), and that my supervisor leads a small group outside of work. There are some incredible people working at Neighbor Health, but I’ve realized I won’t have the opportunity to learn at all from them unless I make it a point to ask good questions not just about my job, but about the more important things in their lives. It’s easy to recognize that our patients at Neighbor Health walk in the door with diverse backgrounds and perspectives, but it’s critical to understand that the same is true of the people working there every day.
Looking back on 2 months of working in the clinic, there are two times in a workday I look forward to the most. One is the space I get with each patient when I’m done asking about their medical history and medications, and instead get to ask about their day or tattoo or outfit while I take their blood pressure; the space where we get to connect for just a few moments. The other time I look forward to is the time before our first patient shows up, the calm before the storm, when I get to connect for even a few moments with the staff.
My nugget of advice after this month is to make a point of learning about your coworkers this week. Instead of working through lunch, sit with someone and talk. Instead of spending the last 15 minutes of the day preparing for the following day, take that time to learn about the person next to you before they leave. Find out what’s going on in people’s lives at work and follow up on it.
Alright, I’ve rambled enough.
With love,
Emma :)