Work rant

[yessisan]

Ugh! I am so disgusted by having worked at the ob/gyn dept at my work yesterday. I work at a clinic and I was sent to the ob/gyn dept to train, so that I can get more hrs. I am an on call staff but my dept is adult medicine. Anyway, I went to work for 4 hrs at this other dept and because it’s a non-Catholic clinic, they had me watch a dr and his assisitant insert an IUD on a Catholic patient I know I’m not supposed to judge, but it makes me mad these people fall for this! And worse of all that I had to witness this!

Anyway, I also was rooming a patient under the supervision of the above mentioned assistant, and when asking for her pregnancy history, to confirm what we had on our computer, I saw she’s had 1 pregnancy and it ended up in elective abortion. This girl is only 21, but for me, being Catholic, pro-life and having lost 2 babies this yr (w/in 9 months of each other), it makes me SICK! And of course sad

How can I accept working there when I have to witness things like these? I know I could say no to help with an abortion if it came to that, but it just kills me to know those things about patients and also, I don’t like the fact that I have to give patients information on birth control and help the drs with that stuff.

How can I deal with this? I don’t know what to do. I can say I don’t want to work there but it can get me in trouble at work.

 

[whatevergirl]

Hi yessisan–wow, that is a tough spot. I would talk about this with your priest, and you know this already, pray about it all. I can’t say really what I’d do, in some way, you could be called to help these women who are unaware of alternatives to ABC, and on the other hand, this might not be the place for you. I think talking to a priest would be best–I will pray that you will have a sense of clarity about it all, from God, very soon!

 

[StCsDavid]

Yours is a tough spot to be in. Perhaps your purpose there is to pray for those who should know better but don’t. Christ can be seen in every person we meet, but sometimes what we see is Christ dead in the tomb, and that can be the saddest sight. Yet we know that by grace, Christ can resurrect within the hearts of the most prolific sinners. Pray for the conversion of these souls you encounter. There likely is no one else praying for them, yes?

 

[Viki63]

" I don’t like the fact that I have to give patients information on birth control and help the drs with that stuff."

You could let them know that it’s against your religious beliefs. I think they have to respect that.
As a nurse I’ve lost the chance at several jobs because of not wanting to refer for abortions or birth control. And almost got kicked out of nursing school for wondering aloud whether a girl had been counseled on alternatives before an abortion. (not in front of the patient, either).
Perhaps you could find another department to train in for extra hours? God knows there’s a huge demand for nurses, you should be able to write your own ticket.

Perhaps you could let them know that you can’t handle the emotional side of it, since you’ve had a difficult year with your own pregnancies.
You will no doubt run into worse than that. . .it helps to try not to judge but have compassion for people who are making bad choices. Probably no one ever taught them differently.
I took care of a man whose two wives came to sit at his bedside, with their several children – they all lived together. That was hard, as it was clear the woman were brain-washed. Not much you can do if you’re not asked for advice, however.

“If you judge people, you have no time to love them.”
-Mother Theresa

 

[thenewmrssears]

I am assuming you are a nurse or in nursing school?

Could you find a job at a clinic that doesn’t use these practices? Here in Atlanta we have some Catholic pro-life clinics that educate girls on NFP, adoption, etc.

I would tell them your beliefs. In some states the doctor, pharmacist, or nurse can refuse ABC based on these beliefs. I worked at pharmacy for a short time in high school, and the pharmacist there refused to give out ABC or the morning after pill. She still works there.

This is between a rock and a hard place. Maybe you are meant to work there to spread God’s News about contraception.

You could buy a few used copies of The Good News about Sex and Marriage and put them out in the waiting room… **

 

[yessisan]

I’m not exactly a nurse, I’m almost a nurse. I’m a medical assistant, and we actually do more than the nurses in our clinic but we get paid less than they do.

Anyway, where I work is the place that pays the most around here (I’m in California). Actually, this job was my way into the company. I plan on finding a different job, when I find one. Since it’s an insurance company, a hospital and a clinic, I can find all kinds of jobs, but I haven’t found anything of interest.

I’m going to try and see if they can send me to another dept for training. The only bad thing is that they never need trainees in the other depts.

I hope I can get something good out of this situation.

 

[Magicsilence]

I’m not exactly a nurse, I’m almost a nurse. I’m a medical assistant, and we actually do more than the nurses in our clinic but we get paid less than they do.

Anyway, where I work is the place that pays the most around here (I’m in California). Actually, this job was my way into the company. I plan on finding a different job, when I find one. Since it’s an insurance company, a hospital and a clinic, I can find all kinds of jobs, but I haven’t found anything of interest.

I’m going to try and see if they can send me to another dept for training. The only bad thing is that they never need trainees in the other depts.

I hope I can get something good out of this situation.

Yessi,

My father has to deal with these sort of moral dilemmas all the time (same dpmt.). Although you have less ‘power’ since you are not a doctor, you could, like my dad, try your best to speak the gospel wherever you can.

And yes, he is not supposed to speak to patients about religious beliefs, and yes, if a patient complained, he could lose his job, but that is his (very heavy) cross for Christ.

If you can, try and get the transfer to a less morally problematic dpmt. but in the meantime pray for God’s strength to get you through this. You’ve already got my prayers , for this and for your personal struggles.

God Bless,