As a result of the economy and other factors, I’m currently temping while I look for a decent PR/writing/editing gig, preferably in the sciences. Currently, I’m working as a receptionist for a mental health advocacy group, where I have to field and sort calls from health care providers, family members, and consumers (a nice way to say “people with mental illnesses”).
I had never given receptionists much thought before, although I was always pleasant to them when I had a higher level job. Well, now I have a learned what a hard, thankless job they have, especially without benefits or decent pay.
Here are some more things I have learned:
I will always state my name, my organization, and the person I wish to speak to.
I will make my calls brief and to the point without telling my entire life story or rambling endlessly.
I will be courteous if the person I wish to speak with is not available and I will not command the receptionist to know his/her whereabouts at all times.
I will not expect the receptionist to be able to diagnose an illness, discuss drug therapies, or dispense legal referrals. I work hard to find people help, but if the experts in that subject are not available/at lunch/in a meeting/don’t want to be bothered, why does anyone expect the receptionist to be a doctor/lawyer/pharmacist?
And once I get back on the professional career ladder, I will reply to e-mails and voice mails every day without fail. People will call me, aske to be transferred to voice mail, and then a week later will call again and ask why there was no response to several voice mails and e-mails. To me, that just shows a lack of professionalism, especially when you’re supposed to be an advocate for people who cannot help themselves.
This job has also given me greater sympathy for the problems of the mentally ill. It is shocking how often schizophrenics and bipolar disease sufferers are arrested by the police and charged with crimes when what they need is medical care. I get calls every day from family members asking for legal referrals for their relatives caught in the legal system who really need therapy and care. I also discovered that mental illness lacks parity in insurance coverage so that while physical ailmants are often fully covered, drugs and therapy for mental health consumers are woefully underfunded. I go through chronic depression, but mine is manageable; I can’t fathom how one lives with the debilitation of schizophrenia or bipolar disorder, let alone helplessly having to watch a loved one suffer.
I suppose those should be different rants, sorry. I guess it boils down to
- Be mindful of your phone manners.
- Pay your receptionists more money and treat them kindly.
- Return your voice mails and e-mails promptly.
- Agitate for more funding for programs to aid the mentally ill.
Don’t hit.