I'm a PA/secretary to a consultant in an NHS hospital, Karina. It's a very high-stress job, especially when people seem to think that I want to work 60 hours a week and that things happen overnight: there's a 6-month waiting list for one type of scan (I hate telling people that!) then another month for that scan to be reported. The main part of that job is to type clinics, but as I said, I have a clinic secretary to do that. Lucky me!
My job is so varied though, some days I'm only on the phone once or twice, other days (like yesterday) I was on the phone almost all day and got next to nothing done. I even left 20 minutes late because I wanted to leave myself a neat-ish office!
I'm contracted for 37.5 hours and I easily work 40 as I don't take lunch breaks very often; though recently I've been only doing 9-5 not 8.30-5 (well, I can't charge around in a morning now!) But then again, I'm on BB for an hour or so a day, so maybe that's my lunch break?
We have to do something similar every year Ryn and I work in Healthcare too. They say it's to help track our career progression and identify opportunities for us - I think it's micromanagement and an opportunity to sack people. All the process does is stress people out. We're busy ALL the time yet they have the gall to tell us we don't do enough? I just had someone last week tell me they're giving me more work because I don't do enough, this person spends 50% of his day avoiding clients and talking to his wife on the phone! Ggggrrrrrrr. So can't wait to leave! (Sorry to hijack your thread there!)
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