Performance Evaluation time...

As of today, I've completed three years at the hospital. So, in honor of that dubious anniversary, I had my annual performance evaluation yesterday.

I've worked in places where you just sit with your boss for a half hour or so, coffee in hand, and discuss the past year in your work life. I've also had far more extensive evaluations, where you have to go through a series of questions with an HR person who doesn't know you at all, yet decides if your answers are good enough to keep your job and/or have a salary increase.

The University seems to string it out. Each year you have to take a series of computer-based learning tests that are of a general nature for a hospital (fire safety, personal protective equipment, age variables, chemical safety, etc.) and more specific departmental tests, (ergonomics for the workplace, pathology safety, preanalytic conditions, etc.) Luckily, I have the ability to log into the U. system from home and do them a little more comfortably than I would at work. Downside - working from home doesn't get me paid for doing them like it does for the full-timers. That's taken me most of the last ten days to accomplish fitting into my schedule.

Then we have a practical competancy. This year we had to show proof that we could do a type and screen for the blood bank. It involves not only drawing the sample, but proving that you know how the computer works to get everything registered. Thankfully, I only had to hang around the lab for two days to get that accomplished.

And finally, yesterday, I got to sit down with the supervisor and have the one-on-one chat. What did I accomplish in the last year? What do I want to accomplish in the upcoming year? What kind of continuing education would I like to have?

And, then...get this. She carried on and on about how valuable I am to the department - that if it hadn't been for Dean and I this last year, the department would not have the excellent crew we have; our training of new staff was superb and *blah blah blah*.

"I don't want you to think I didn't want you to train people...I just kept hearing that you had not wanted to train anymore." (Bullshit. If you hear something like that on the grapevine and don't check it out from the person it involves, then you're not much of a supervisor. Besides, I never said I wanted to quit training people.)

Then she gives me her 'flirtatious' wide-eyed look. "You're so patient with people...that's what makes you a good trainer...I don't know how you can handle taking two or more people out at a time. I've found it really hard to make sure the new people know what they're doing. It takes a lot of work to train people to do the job right." (BINGO! When she came into the department and took away my trainees for the first two weeks of their hire - before my old boss stepped in and straightened her out - she listened to her "posse" who told her that I was *too slow* to be a trainer. Don't you love it when the person who is supposed to be in charge listens to everyone else instead of being competant enough to handle the job she was hired for?)

Her next comment was a hint to let me know she knew I'd applied for the new position. "If you would be leaving the department for any reason, we'll feel a tremendous loss without you; I don't know how smoothly training will go without your expertise." I mentally rolled my eyes at that one - sounds like she's figured out she doesn't want the constant responsibility of training to me.

And then..."Your teaching at KCC...you had to have a Master's for that, right? I just looked at her and laughed. "I don't have a Master's." "You don't?" "Oh, someone told me you did..." (There she goes, listening to everyone else instead of asking me directly.) "Well, why can you teach the class at that level without a Master's?" I leaned over into her personal space and said, "Because I'm GOOD at what I do and KCC knows it." She kind of deflated and sat back in her chair and finished wrapping up the interview.

Applying for a new position was a good thing. Even if I don't get it, I think she understands that she can't be pushing me or the others in her age group around. We may wait a bit, but we *will* push back.

Answers should be forthcoming on the new hires. The supervisors working with the project are meeting this afternoon.