Your Granny's Nurse: That'll Teach Me

As some of you may remember, I spent last summer, the summer of 2007, that is, unemployed. The Nursing Home I had been working at closed due to being sold to a local University for the purpose of renovating it into a Freshman Dormitory.

I had planned on spending the time off completing my book "Your Granny's Nurse: Compassionate Care of the Elderly", and doing some public speaking on the subject. Unfortunately, the closing of the home, and how the employees were shafted, left me with a bad taste in my mouth for the corporate Nursing Home industry, and my writing suffered for it. As of this writing, I have still not completed the book to my satisfaction.

By last November, I realized it was time to get back to work, and started looking for a job in earnest. I applied for several jobs in my chosen specialty, "Clinical Reimbursement Specialist", or CRS, for short. (Yes, I know what else those initials represent).

Of the interviews I set up, three were somewhat promising. One was a a Home about 25 miles from me in a small town north of here. Another was at a place in Columbus which was in a very exclusive area. The other was almost 100 miles away, but the Home was in bad shape, and I have always been a cheerleader for the underdog.(I'm a Browns fan..nuf'said.)

I initially accepted the job 25 miles north of me.  I was to start in early December. Then my dad died on December 2. I called the Administrator of the home with this news, and told him I would have to put off my start date for a week or so. He was not pleased, to say the least.As a matter of fact, he was rather rude and condescending.  I decided I could not work for a company which lacked compassion for their employees, and I declined their offer.

The second place, in the ritzy area, paid well, and was owned by a man I had worked with in his early days, as a pharmacy owner, just getting into the Nursing Home business. I liked him immensely in those days, and I thought he would be a good bet to work for now that he had "made it", and  owned several homes. My only reservation was that the home truly didn't NEED me. The majority of their residents were "old money', and paid privately for their care. My specialty is making money for the homes I work for, and this one certainly didn't need my expertise.  

When I interviewed for the job 100 miles away, I explained that I was considering moving to the area in a few months, and to keep me in mind should something become available a few months down the road. I liked the place. I liked the fact that they truly needed me, and I liked both the Administrator and the Director of Nursing.  I told them that while I really liked the idea of working there, I could not afford the expense of driving 200 miles a day. I explained to them that I would be receiving a small inheritance after my Father passed away, and we planned to move to the area with the money.

About two weeks after my interview with the home 100 miles away, I received a phone call from their Administrator. I was in the car, on my way to Ky., for my Father's funeral. She asked me to please reconsider taking the job, because they were desperate to have someone with my credentials and expertise help them become financially solvent.    She offered me a $1500 bonus to start the following week. I accepted, and told her I could use that money, along with my first pay check, to move to the area. 

A week later, I started the job. I relinquished my Unemployment benefits and was excited to finally be getting a real paycheck, and helping  out once again. Bill and I made several trips to the small town we wished to reside in, to check out real estate. 

On my first day, I learned that the bonus that was offered was to be paid out over a year's time. $300 in ninety days, $400 at 180 days, and $800 after a year. I explained that this was not what was offered, but was told by the Administrator "There's nothing I can do, Corporate won't let me". She was very convincing that the place really needed me. That was my downfall. I love being needed. 

I had already given up my Unemployment, and the holidays were fast approaching. I told them I would keep the job, and drive the 200 miles a day, as long as I could. This made every work day a 12 hour day, with the drive times of 2hours each way.

Within a couple weeks, I was absolutely exhausted. I contracted Double Pneumonia, yet I worked every day, barring one, when I went to the Doctor for an antibiotic. I really liked the job, and in three weeks, raised their revenue by tens, if not hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Cut to January 10. As I was driving home in a torrential rain, I stopped for gas. When I went to restart my car, it decided it wanted to stay right where it was. I had to be towed home, about 60 miles. not cheap, my any means.

I called off on Friday, and got my car into the shop. On the following Monday, I called the Administrator and told her my car was in the shop for at least a week, as the entire top portion of the engine needed rebuilt. I explained that it was going to cost me $2400 to get it fixed, and without that bonus money she promised me, I wouldn't be back until I could come up with the money. Remember, I had only received one paycheck, and had been living on Unemployment for the past several months. Her reply was to "Do what you need to do".

After two weeks, and numerous phone calls to keep her abreast of the progress, and to try to get some of the promised money to get my car out of the shop, I resigned. I explained in a lengthy email that I knew they needed someone NOW, and I was relinquishing my position to allow them to find someone who could actually be there.   

I reapplied for Unemployment, and it was approved a few weeks later.

The company appealed Unemployment's decision, although my claim went back to my original claim, and they were not responsible for any financial liability. They were, in my opinion, being petty and hateful.

I did not receive any notice from the Unemployment board of their appeal, until I received a notice that since I did not attend the hearing, they denied my claim, which had already been paid.

I re-appealed their ruling. I explained to them during the appeal hearing that I had been promised a bonus which was not delivered on, and that was a condition of my employment. I told them that I agreed to retain the position, because they needed help so desperately, although they knew it was causing me hardship. I told them that my car had broken down, and it was not like I could hitch a ride from a neighbor for a 200 mile round trip.  I told them I had tried for weeks, keeping the Administrator notified of my progress in getting my car from the shop, where it was being held hostage. I told them that I even paid into a fund which offers financial support for employees in need, but that support was never offered to me.

I lost. Their assessment was that I should not have taken the job when I found out the bonus was not forthcoming, regardless that I had already given up my Unemployment, and would have had to reapply, and would have had it rejected for giving up the job in the first place. I now have to come up with $2800 to repay Unemployment for the benefits I received after leaving there and starting my new job.

I guess thats what I get for trying to help out the underdog, for being the overly compssionate woman that I am.

 That'll teach me.



Here is a link to the article I wrote when I took that fateful job:

Yippee: Diving Back into the Workforce