Monday, January 14, 2008

Exit interview

I am realistic enough to know that not everybody loves their job here and that people sometimes leave with hard feelings, but when you get a note like this months later from a medical technologist who spent two years with us, you have to feel good:

Hello Mr. Levy,

I had the most incredible experiences working at BIDMC and miss it so much! There is a palpable sense of community within the hospital that is almost impossible to find anywhere, especially in an urban setting. Trust me, I have had a few rotations around Boston and constantly yearn for the comfort and kindness of BIDMC employees. If it had not been for my wonderful position at the hospital and the strong support of my colleagues, I would have not gone back to graduate school to obtain my nurse/nurse practitioner degree.

I hope after my studies I may just find a path back to BIDMC. All the best to you and your hospital.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Great compliment to you and your leadership, Paul. The only sad thing is that this person went from one extremely labor-short profession (medical technology; "lab worker" for laymen), to another labor-short profession, nursing. As a former medical laboratory director I feel obligated to put in a plug for the lab people - even though just as scarce, they are underpaid relative to nurses due to invisibility. And if you think they just run machines, not so. There is no one as attuned to strict quality control and proper process/procedure as a laboratorian.

Anonymous said...

I too enjoyed my greater than 15 years employment at BIDMC. I learned much and made a great many friends. I weathered the rocky times during the merger and rejoiced when it became apparent that the institution would survive. It gave a great feeling of pride to know I may have played a part in the financel turn around.

It was with more than a touch of regret that my position was eliminated. I was further saddened when it became apparent that there was virtually no assistence available to me to find another position at BIDMC. The HR staff were less than helpful and almost invisible. At times my HR contact was more concerned with relating her job experiences than helping me with my situation. After applying for several open positions and being told that it would take weeks to months before I would hear back, I finally took a position elsewhere.

I was puzzeled by the situation and BIDMC's lack of concern for retaining long term employees. I had always received excellent evaluations and praise for my work from the many departments I had contact with.

Although I enjoy my current job I miss being a part of the BIDMC family and the people that made it a pleasant place to work. It would have been wonderful it BIDMC were as vested in retaining employees as it is in providing quality health care.

Anonymous said...

I am sorry you felt treated that way. I'd like to learn more. You know how to reach me directly.