Did I just screw up for being honest? (Scribing Related)

[CrossDown]

Throwaway account here. So Ive been scribinf for about 3 months now. The Chief Scribe asks us to give him the holidays in which we are available to work because he needs to get that sorted now. So I went ahead and told him that I will probably resign in December so I can properly prepare for the MCAT in May. I am balancing school, scribing (2 12-hr shifts), and other volunteering just fine right now. But I didn't want to jeopardize my MCAT study time and efficiency (say if I study during downtime when scribing) when I begin studying. I absolutely have to work twice a week with no exceptions. I know I can always balance my time and all that, but this is the first job I have had while in school so I am still scared about throwing MCAT time into the mix. I planned on grinding out alot of studying during winter break when I don't have classes to worry about. So I told the chief scribe that I will most likely have to resign in the middle of December so he can have plenty of heads up time to find a replacement if needed, which I thought was me being as honest as possible.


Then he sends me an email telling me that if this is my final decision then they are going to replace me right away, which I don't get because they hire to like 130-150% staffing anyways I think? If I get fired today, I have 200 hours logged, I heard if you've only worked for a short period of time you shouldn’t list it on AMCAS? Obviously 200 hours isn't anything compared to those with 2K scribing hours, but I feel like I've learned about the medical decision process of physicians and seen alot for it to be worthy on my applications? Or am I just blowing smoke up my own butt?

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[DrHart]

Yeah you screwed up. You put your 2-weeks in when you're two weeks away from quitting. You don't say you're gonna quit in a couple months for other things.
My move would be to say you've reconsidered so you can keep your position. Then quit in December. 200 hours is fine... and plenty enough to put on your AMCAS. But if you wanna stick around, play the game.

 

[CrossDown]

Yeah you screwed up. You put your 2-weeks in when you're two weeks away from quitting. You don't say you're gonna quit in a couple months for other things.
My move would be to say you've reconsidered so you can keep your position. Then quit in December. 200 hours is fine... and plenty enough to put on your AMCAS. But if you wanna stick around, play the game.

I understand that I should have just put in my 2 weeks. but I don't want to get scheduled to work on Christmas Eve/Day and/or New Years Eve/Day, quit a few weeks before that, then have them scrambling to find replacements for me. I thought I was just being nice to give them a good heads up. It honestly doesn't matter if they keep me for an extra week or month or two. I enjoyed talking with physicians and getting the firsthand experience of the medical decision process, but I am not gonna be devastated or anything even if they decide to drop me after this week. I just want to get some opinions on whether or not I should list it on my AMCAS. I have been keeping a little notebook about my experiences every time I work so I have some things I can talk about. Just don't know if only working 3 months there would look badly upon.

 

[ChymeofPassion]

Real world career moves vs. Pre-med obsequity. Quick, turn this into an MMI prompt!

I second telling them youve reconsidered and then quitting at a proper time. He had given you an out, "if this is your final decision". Say it isn't.

 

[CrossDown]

Real world career moves vs. Pre-med obsequity. Quick, turn this into an MMI prompt!

I second telling them youve reconsidered and then quitting at a proper time. He had given you an out, "if this is your final decision". Say it isn't.

Youre right. I should do that

 

[Planes2Doc]

Add the 200 hours to AMCAS. His response was kind of ridiculous considering that it's no secret that scribes are mostly pre-meds. In fact, I think you probably did a nice thing letting them know about your plans down the line versus a two-week notice. So this is uncalled for on their end. In the future, give only a two-week notice and make no sacrifices on your end for them. As you can see, they will fire you for whatever reason at any point, so no one should feel guilty about walking out on them. The only people that will ever be loyal to you are your immediate family members. Never ever place your grades or MCAT in jeopardy because of that.

I'm honestly not sure what these scribe companies expect from their employees. Scribe companies deal with probably worse turnover than car dealerships with their salespeople.

 

[CrossDown]

Add the 200 hours to AMCAS. His response was kind of ridiculous considering that it's no secret that scribes are mostly pre-meds. In fact, I think you probably did a nice thing letting them know about your plans down the line versus a two-week notice. So this is uncalled for on their end. In the future, give only a two-week notice and make no sacrifices on your end for them. As you can see, they will fire you for whatever reason at any point, so no one should feel guilty about walking out on them. The only people that will ever be loyal to you are your immediate family members. Never ever place your grades or MCAT in jeopardy because of that.

I'm honestly not sure what these scribe companies expect from their employees. Scribe companies deal with probably worse turnover than car dealerships with their salespeople.

I understand for them to get mad at me if I resigned the day before Christmas and I was scheduled to work. I dont get it either. He said it takes alot of time and money to train us, which I KINDA get. But our training was online anyways sooooo idk. Plus we get like minimum wage so. But then again I dont know the logistics behind it all. I never planned on compromising my grades, and especially the MCAT.

 

[Planes2Doc]

He said it takes alot of time and money to train us, which I KINDA get. But our training was online anyways sooooo idk.

Boo hoo... Cry me a river. I know a guy that owns a medical office. The office staff either have high school diplomas or finished finished community college or vocational school. He would never hire a college student from a good school that plans on going to professional school (medical, nursing, PA, etc). Why? He has a business to run, and it takes time and money to hire and train people. That's why he looks for career-seekers, not people looking to use his medical office as a stepping stone toward professional school. If these scribing companies are so concerned about training costs and turnover, they should try and get vocational programs started, the kind you see being advertised during daytime television. If scribes were similar to medical assistants, then that would take care of these issues. But since they are targeting pre-meds, they should fully expect to run into these kind of issues. It's their problem, not yours.

Plus we get like minimum wage so. But then again I dont know the logistics behind it all. I never planned on compromising my grades, and especially the MCAT.

Good thinking! I'm glad you're making good decisions and are unwilling to compromise your grades and MCAT. Too many people unfortunately do that, and don't realize that these jobs won't make a poor application look good.

 

[CrossDown]

Good thinking! I'm glad you're making good decisions and are unwilling to compromise your grades and MCAT. Too many people unfortunately do that, and don't realize that these jobs won't make a poor application look good.

Yeah I was thinking Id rather have a good MCAT with less scribe hours than a mediocre MCAT with excess amount of scribe hours (of course if I am assuming more study time means i’ll score higher). But worst case scenario I get dropped within the next couple weeks. I’ll only have worked with this company for 3 months. Will that be an issue?

 

[Planes2Doc]

Yeah I was thinking Id rather have a good MCAT with less scribe hours than a mediocre MCAT with excess amount of scribe hours (of course if I am assuming more study time means i’ll score higher). But worst case scenario I get dropped within the next couple weeks. I’ll only have worked with this company for 3 months. Will that be an issue?

Here's what to do if you want to see whether it's an issue or not... After you're done working, call their HR department and ask them to confirm the dates you worked. Then ask if you are eligible for rehire (it's a loophole for finding out if someone was fired or not). If they say no, I might leave it off since that will show you're fired. If they say yes, I would put it on your application. Make sure you are doing volunteering after. Then when asked why you stopped scribing, say it was to focus on your grades, MCAT, and volunteering that was more meaningful to you.

 

[Coltuna]

Is this scribeamerica?

 

[CrossDown]

Is this scribeamerica?

What other scribe company pays minimum wage haha

 

[CrossDown]

Here's what to do if you want to see whether it's an issue or not... After you're done working, call their HR department and ask them to confirm the dates you worked. Then ask if you are eligible for rehire (it's a loophole for finding out if someone was fired or not). If they say no, I might leave it off since that will show you're fired. If they say yes, I would put it on your application. Make sure you are doing volunteering after. Then when asked why you stopped scribing, say it was to focus on your grades, MCAT, and volunteering that was more meaningful to you.

Im still doing volunteering now and I never planned on stopping even if I did end up getting accepted fairly early.

Will AMCAS know if I got fired though? I guess only if they called and asked?

 

[Coltuna]

What other scribe company pays minimum wage haha

Physassist and Elite Medical Scribes to name a couple lol.

 

[Planes2Doc]

Im still doing volunteering now and I never planned on stopping even if I did end up getting accepted fairly early.

Will AMCAS know if I got fired though? I guess only if they called and asked?

Here are the only ways they would know you were fired:

1. You tell them.
2. They call and ask if you're eligible for rehire, and are told "no."

If you are overly concerned about this and it's eating you up inside, I would suggest leaving it off your application and resume. Unless this job was posted on your Facebook, Linkedin, or other social media account as well as posted on the company website, then no one would find out about this job. There is no such thing as a central jobs database that stores peoples' employment history. If you leave it off your resume and application, it will be as if it never existed. Problem solved.

Though you end up wasting those hours which sucks, but there are worse things. Either way, I believe you are making the smartest possible decision.

 

[CrossDown]

Physassist and Elite Medical Scribes to name a couple lol.

Oh right right haha. But yeah this is SA

 

[CrossDown]

Here are the only ways they would know you were fired:

1. You tell them.
2. They call and ask if you're eligible for rehire, and are told "no."

If you are overly concerned about this and it's eating you up inside, I would suggest leaving it off your application and resume. Unless this job was posted on your Facebook, Linkedin, or other social media account as well as posted on the company website, then no one would find out about this job. There is no such thing as a central jobs database that stores peoples' employment history. If you leave it off your resume and application, it will be as if it never existed. Problem solved.

Though you end up wasting those hours which sucks, but there are worse things. Either way, I believe you are making the smartest possible decision.

Gotcha gotcha. Yeah i’ll give them a call whenever I leave. But now Im afraid that if they decide to fire me they’ll just make some BS up like my charts arnt good or something. I mean, I know Im not perfect but Ive been off training for a while now so that wouldnt make sense?

 

[Coltuna]

I would say you're fine. You're not being fired. You gave them your "2 weeks" and they decided not to take it. However, I don't understand why they want to let you go immediately? As someone who's been a chief scribe, I would've loved to have been given 2 months notice every time.

 

[Planes2Doc]

I would say you're fine. You're not being fired. You gave them your "2 weeks" and they decided not to take it. However, I don't understand why they want to let you go immediately? As someone who's been a chief scribe, I would've loved to have been given 2 months notice every time.

I agree with this. I don't think they would fire you, but who knows. Don't be afraid if they fire you. In fact, think of it as a blessing, as you were just gifted additional time to study. Make the best out of any adverse situation, because that's what you'll be doing for the rest of your life as a doctor!

 

[CrossDown]

I would say you're fine. You're not being fired. You gave them your "2 weeks" and they decided not to take it. However, I don't understand why they want to let you go immediately? As someone who's been a chief scribe, I would've loved to have been given 2 months notice every time.

Who knows? Im not a full timer either. Yeah I thought I was being respectful, I understand it takes time to find, hire, and train new people, which is why I am giving them this much time, plus they are making holiday work schedules so I dont want to screw anyone over. Oh well, i’ll just bite the bullet for a little longer

 

[CrossDown]

I agree with this. I don't think they would fire you, but who knows. Don't be afraid if they fire you. In fact, think of it as a blessing, as you were just gifted additional time to study. Make the best out of any adverse situation, because that's what you'll be doing for the rest of your life as a doctor!

Im just afraid if I get fired it might not be a smart idea to put the hours on my app, and thats like half of my clinical hours. I know 200 isnt a whole lot but its a big chunk for me.

 

[Coltuna]

Who knows? Im not a full timer either. Yeah I thought I was being respectful, I understand it takes time to find, hire, and train new people, which is why I am giving them this much time, plus they are making holiday work schedules so I dont want to screw anyone over. Oh well, i’ll just bite the bullet for a little longer

Yeah and at least at my site, we kept track of all employee anticipated end dates like years in advance and kept them on while training another scribe. Again, I feel like you're not being fired technically. ScribeAmerica keeps track of reasons for resignation or discontinuation of employment, and I'm guessing you would technically be eligible for rehire if someone called. Work out the details with your Chief Scribe to make sure it's evident that you left on good terms.

 

[CrossDown]

Yeah and at least at my site, we kept track of all employee anticipated end dates like years in advance and kept them on while training another scribe. Again, I feel like you're not being fired technically.

Thats true, if they wanted to fire me they probably would have done so roght away

 

[Coltuna]

Thats true, if they wanted to fire me they probably would have done so roght away

added more to previous post.

 

[CrossDown]

added more to previous post.

Gotcha gotcha. I got an updated schedule a few days ago and I was still scheduled so I guess Im good? I’ll talk with the chief scribe again before I leave. I told them I will rethink it through

 

[Planes2Doc]

Im just afraid if I get fired it might not be a smart idea to put the hours on my app, and thats like half of my clinical hours. I know 200 isnt a whole lot but its a big chunk for me.

Legally, I do not think they can hold your hours "hostage." I know that when people are hired for jobs, former employers are asked about rehire eligibility as a codeword for being fired. I am honestly not too sure if ADCOMs actually go beyond the verification of start date/end date/hours. Can @Goro, @gyngyn, or @LizzyM chime in?

 

[Goro]

Legally, I do not think they can hold your hours "hostage." I know that when people are hired for jobs, former employers are asked about rehire eligibility as a codeword for being fired. I am honestly not too sure if ADCOMs actually go beyond the verification of start date/end date/hours. Can @Goro, @gyngyn, or @LizzyM chime in?

The verification stuff is outside my scope of responsibilities. My understanding is that there are schools (n = ???) that do verify numbers.

 

[LizzyM]

The verification stuff is outside my scope of responsibilities. My understanding is that there are schools (n = ???) that do verify numbers.

Ditto. I've only known one or two instances where something was verified and those were cases where the whole story smelled fishy.

 

[CrossDown]

Ditto. I've only known one or two instances where something was verified and those were cases where the whole story smelled fishy.

Fishy as in like listing a crazy amount of hours?

 

[UniSushi]

Depending on the scribe company and your employee contract with them, they might be doing this to get back your employment on-boarding costs (drug tests, background check, TB tests) by letting you go off early.

For the company I work for, if an employee/scribe does not fulfill the 6-12 month commitment or at least 250-300 hours of work, then he/she is required to pay the company $250 for these “lost costs” that were put into the process of hiring them.

Maybe they are tying to get rid of you before you fulfill your commitment by December so they can ask for those costs back.

Edit: If you do decide to quit, speak to them about re-hiring possibilities for when you are done with your MCAT. Tell them that you enjoy the job and you are still interested in working with the company. They may put your employment on hold and then let you work again whenever you are done with your MCAT. (My company allows this for the scribes).

Another possibility is to just work with a different scribe company after your MCAT. Your scribe company may or may not have a non-compete clause in your employment contract, but if they do, you may have to get an email "go-ahead" confirmation from your old scribe company's HR sent to your new scribe company before you get hired. If they don't have the clause, then you can just apply and get hired with a different company. They'll ask if you've worked as a scribe before. Just say yes and tell them you had to quit because you had to study for the MCAT. They would understand.

 

[benjamin94559]

I dont think that not being eligible for rehire implies that you got fired. I remember when I quit my job at KFC I wasn't eligible for rehire just because I voluntarily quit and I cant imagine scribe places are much better

 

[LizzyM]

Fishy as in like listing a crazy amount of hours?

No -- more like making statements during the interview that suggested that the entire entry was a fabrication. for example, not being able to state a single thing that they did as a volunteer and were very vague about the activity.

 

[SterlingMaloryArcher]

I understand that I should have just put in my 2 weeks. but I don't want to get scheduled to work on Christmas Eve/Day and/or New Years Eve/Day, quit a few weeks before that, then have them scrambling to find replacements for me. I thought I was just being nice to give them a good heads up. It honestly doesn't matter if they keep me for an extra week or month or two. I enjoyed talking with physicians and getting the firsthand experience of the medical decision process, but I am not gonna be devastated or anything even if they decide to drop me after this week. I just want to get some opinions on whether or not I should list it on my AMCAS. I have been keeping a little notebook about my experiences every time I work so I have some things I can talk about. Just don't know if only working 3 months there would look badly upon.

Good for you for trying to be courteous to your employer (and coworkers!!) but I have to agree I would never do this with a company that I know doesn't appreciate it (I just get that feeling from scribeamerica)

At my last job, I did provide a 6 weeks notice, because I was a manager, worked there for 5 years, knew they appreciated me; so it's not always wrong to do, but any chain company that pays you minimum wage and you haven't worked for long, no.

Here's what to do if you want to see whether it's an issue or not... After you're done working, call their HR department and ask them to confirm the dates you worked. Then ask if you are eligible for rehire (it's a loophole for finding out if someone was fired or not). If they say no, I might leave it off since that will show you're fired. If they say yes, I would put it on your application. Make sure you are doing volunteering after. Then when asked why you stopped scribing, say it was to focus on your grades, MCAT, and volunteering that was more meaningful to you.

Very very good way to go about this!

 

[Goro]

No -- more like making statements during the interview that suggested that the entire entry was a fabrication. for example, not being able to state a single thing that they did as a volunteer and were very vague about the activity.

I've seen this before as well. My school doesn't verify numbers, but it's easy to tell when people fake experiences, whether volunteering or research.

 

[CrossDown]

Good for you for trying to be courteous to your employer (and coworkers!!) but I have to agree I would never do this with a company that I know doesn't appreciate it (I just get that feeling from scribeamerica)

At my last job, I did provide a 6 weeks notice, because I was a manager, worked there for 5 years, knew they appreciated me; so it's not always wrong to do, but any chain company that pays you minimum wage and you haven't worked for long, no.



Very very good way to go about this!

Would you think 200 hrs will be looked badly upon? Idk, I guess Im salty about this situation. I’ll talk to the manager again, but if they are looking to replace me already and I won’t know until last minute, I might as well leave now and start studying? Or just grind out whatever time I got left

 

[SterlingMaloryArcher]

Would you think 200 hrs will be looked badly upon? Idk, I guess Im salty about this situation. I’ll talk to the manager again, but if they are looking to replace me already and I won’t know until last minute, I might as well leave now and start studying? Or just grind out whatever time I got left

I used to be a manager, and I was THE manager to talk to about proper disciplinary documentation.

You say you have been working there for about 3 months, many states honor a 90-day "probationary employment period" and is your state a right-to-fire state? Even if it is considered a right-to-fire, and you are out of your probationary period, you could still collect unemployment. If you have already told your manager that you changed your mind, but they still replace you, you will have a good chance at winning the unemployment hearing which basically comes out of their pocket - and they know that so I think they might be careful about firing you for "no reason." Big companies are usually good about getting their ducks in a line (making a paper trail) before letting someone go and it doesn't seem like they are trying to do that. If they start writing you up for petty things, they're getting a paper trail.

Additionally, while every site is different, it often takes big scribe companies a month or more to get a new hire through the onboarding process, health clearance, classroom training, and floor training. Take this in consideration as well. Look up your company policy on leaves of absence (I'm pretty sure they have one.)

If you're good at your job, and don't have any recent (meaning any) discipline in your file I'd say don't worry too much about it, you told your manager already that you changed your mind; if they fire you file an unemployment claim against them. You may be salty towards them but you don't have to work with them, you work with the doctors so it shouldn't be too hard to go into work 🙂

As for does 200 hours look bad, well, 3 months would look suspect to me as a hiring manager (so this may be just an experience for your AMCAS and not your resume) but I'm not going to claim to be the authority on what medical schools think about that.

 

[CrossDown]

I used to be a manager, and I was THE manager to talk to about proper disciplinary documentation.

You say you have been working there for about 3 months, many states honor a 90-day "probationary employment period" and is your state a right-to-fire state? Even if it is considered a right-to-fire, and you are out of your probationary period, you could still collect unemployment. If you have already told your manager that you changed your mind, but they still replace you, you will have a good chance at winning the unemployment hearing which basically comes out of their pocket - and they know that so I think they might be careful about firing you for "no reason." Big companies are usually good about getting their ducks in a line (making a paper trail) before letting someone go and it doesn't seem like they are trying to do that. If they start writing you up for petty things, they're getting a paper trail.

Additionally, while every site is different, it often takes big scribe companies a month or more to get a new hire through the onboarding process, health clearance, classroom training, and floor training. Take this in consideration as well. Look up your company policy on leaves of absence (I'm pretty sure they have one.)

If you're good at your job, and don't have any recent (meaning any) discipline in your file I'd say don't worry too much about it, you told your manager already that you changed your mind; if they fire you file an unemployment claim against them. You may be salty towards them but you don't have to work with them, you work with the doctors so it shouldn't be too hard to go into work 🙂

As for does 200 hours look bad, well, 3 months would look suspect to me as a hiring manager (so this may be just an experience for your AMCAS and not your resume) but I'm not going to claim to be the authority on what medical schools think about that.

Gotcha thanks for the insight! I was recently out of the 90-day probation period and got a pay raise for that as well. Im only part time so I dont think I would be able to file unemployment? Money isnt an issue at all so I probably wont bother filing for unemployment (don’t know if thats smart but I hope it doesnt get to that point). And I understand what youre saying about the resume vs AMCAS part. Thanks!

Edit: my state is a fire at will state