The next morning, Miss Burton sat down with the clinic supervisor. "The problem with you," said the supervisor with a wry smile, "is that you are so good at every task we have given you that we have given you too many. I'm very sorry about what happened yesterday. It wasn't your fault that you'd gotten behind. We must define your job now so that you know what is expected of you and which tasks have the highest priority. Also, I will be able to see how you are doing according to the job description, so if you fall behind because you are too busy, I will soon find out and we'll figure out a solution before we get into a crisis.
"We can't afford to replace Miss Campbell, who used to be in charge of the contraceptive supplies, but we are going to assign that task to Mrs. Fenton, the business manager. Will you teach her the system you have developed?" Miss Burton nodded in agreement.
"Our outreach worker won't be back for a while, but I have a volunteer who is willing to take on some of her work," said the clinic supervisor. "Do you think you could still make a few presentations, though not as many as before? People seem to enjoy your presentations so much, and you are so experienced at it now that preparing can't take very long."
"Yes, I would be willing to still make some," Miss Burton said, "but this is still quite a bit more work than what I was originally hired for, and I think I should get more money."
"Well, as you know, our financial situation is difficult," the supervisor said. "I'm not sure if we can find the money to give you an increase, but we'll try." Then they discussed which aspects of the job were most important and wrote up the following job description.
__________ Miss Burton's New Job Description __________
Job Title: Clinic Aide
Date: October 1990
Reports to: Clinic Supervisor
Job Summary: Provides support for medical and program staff and provides family planning and education through a variety of means.
Job responsibilities: Sees patients before the doctor and nurses. Takes patient history. Counsels patient on all available contraceptive methods. Is responsible for giving introductory presentations on family planning when clients are in the waiting room. Enters statistics on clinic's family planning acceptors on a weekly basis. Analyzes statistics quarterly and prepares them for FPAC staff or for presentation when given three days' notice. Makes informational presentations to public groups on an occasional basis.
Qualifications: Secondary school diploma. Knowledge of basic medical procedures. knowledge of contraceptive methods. Ability to do mathematical calculations.
Attitudes and Personality Qualities: Friendly and respectful attitude towards clients. Ability to deal with sensitive questions in a pleasant and professional manner.