My Autobiography: David Balleza K(C)atague: Ten Days at Whitney Oaks Rehabilation Center

Thursday, March 15, 2018

Ten Days at Whitney Oaks Rehabilation Center

Today I am transferring MACRINE to Manor Care, another rehab home near us in a private room. I will be paying extra dollars from my personal account, since private room is not covered by Medicare or my Insurance- Blue Cross Blue Shield. My decision to transfer her are based primarily on convenience and on some services and miscommunication here at Whitney Oaks, Carmichael.

Manor Care is only 5 minutes from our residence whereas Whitney Oaks is 30 minutes and heavy traffic all day.

In general Services at Whitney Oaks are good. There are several excellent nurses, nursing assistants, PT and OT personnel and other services ( social and activity). However one rotten apple can ruin the basket.

An incident of miscommunication: Macrine takes her Levo-Dopa ( Sinemit) for her Parkinson 3 times a day after each meal. If she takes it before her meal, she is too sleepy to eat. Moreover if she takes it with an empty stomach, the side effects are more pronounced. I communicated this to Rehab Doctor as well as all the nurses in all shifts. I thought this was written in her Chart, but evidently not. The order in the chart is to give her Levo-Dopa at 7AM, 12 Noon and 4PM. I was surprise to see 4PM in the order, since at home she gets it after 6PM after our early dinner. Macrine's supervise meals are served at 7Am, 12n and 5PM

Anyway when I am around, the nurses give her Sinemet right after meals. Yesterday, there was a new nurse on Macrine Station. I took a break from 3 to 5PM to let the cleaning lady inside our house. When I came back, Macrine was drugged and would not wake up for her dinner. I was suspicious that the nurse had given her Parkinson's medication. I confronted the nurse and she confirmed she gave it at 4PM as written in the order. Thus it confirmed that my request to give her meds after each meal was never revised in her chart order.

Macrine slept for 3 hours ( from 5 to 8). I requested her meals be refrigerated and served after she wakes up. The CNA ( nurses aid) was very accommodating as well as the night nurse supervisor. When Macrine woke up, her dinner was microwaved and she eat it with gusto. I stayed with Macrine until she was ready to sleep at 10PM.

Another incident and major error could have occurred last night if I were not around. At About 9PM, a vampire( travelling personnel who withdraws blood) came to our room asking us for Macrine's blood. I was suspicious and I ask her what is the purpose and who ordered her. She was not able to answer, so she left our room and went to the other wing. I ask the nurse who order the blood test. She did not know. Fifteen minutes later, the vampire came back to our room and draws blood from Macrine's room mate who just checked in that afternoon. When she finished I thought It was Macrine's turn. However, the vampire left our room and waved good bye, saying that it was not needed.

Lesson Learned: Always ask if you feel suspicious orders not explained to you!

I am writing this before I drive to Macrine to get her ready for the transfer to Manor Care this afternoon. I am thanking all the Whitney Oaks personnel who did their best to serve Macrine and her rehabilitation needs during this last 10 days. Special mention and thanks to nurse( Debbie), Assistants-Martha and Anna and the social and activity heads who are both Filipino-Americans.

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Highlights of My Professional Career

In my more than 40 years of professional career, I have experienced both working rank and file, as well as supervising the work of subordinates. I have worked in four private firms and the Federal Government, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), where I retired. I enjoyed the challenges and difficulties of both types of job situations. This is the highlights of my work experience story.

My first job after completing my doctorate degree was a Chemist for Chemagro Corporation in Kansas City, Missouri. It was a subsidiary of Bayer Corporation, a German conglomerate. I worked for the analytical chemistry department comprised of about fifty people; half that number was either chemists or biologists. My specific task was to develop analytical methods for the detection of pesticide residues in plant and animal tissues. I worked on my own, similar to six other bench chemists, and we all reported to the same supervisor.

The firm sponsored my visa conversion from a student to a permanent resident, and I was able to legally work and reside in the United States with my family. The company generously took care of its employees. At the end of each successful year, everyone received a 13th month salary bonus. The employees and their families celebrated wonderful annual Christmas parties in a downtown Kansas City hotel, with dancing and free drinks for the whole night.

Inasmuch as I enjoyed and loved working for Chemagro for five years, I found a new job which offered a substantially higher pay. Due to my exemplary work performance, my supervisor preferred and lobbied for me to stay with the company. I had to turn him down because they could not match the package presented by my new employer. It was also a chance for me and my family to move and live in the US west coast, where the mild winter climate is bearable compared to the Midwest.

My next job was at the agricultural research division of Shell Development Company in Modesto, California. I was a Research Chemist, and again I worked individually, same as five other chemists who all reported to a supervisor. My specific duty was similar to my previous job. I worked for them for five years, until the company decided to get out of the pesticide business. They closed their research facility affecting the jobs of more than 200 employees.

My third industrial job was with the agricultural research division of Stauffer chemical company, located in Richmond, California. I was a Senior Research Chemist doing the same project as my two previous jobs. I worked for twelve continuous years for the company, with outstanding annual job performance. I became a Principal Research Chemist, the highest attainable non-supervisory position.

One day in 1986, my supervisor informed me that my job had been eliminated, and I had one day to vacate the facility. It was the most dreadful lay off experience in my life. I felt anger, sadness and humiliation to be dismissed from work with one day notice, after all the years of hard work invested for the company. This was an unforgettable incident and was the gloomiest point in my professional career.
The company terminated sixty research employees, who were upset of the bad news.

One of the chemists was distressed and expressed his outrageous anger by threatening the company and its workers. He told his supervisor of his intention to bomb and burn down the laboratory. He was immediately escorted by the security staff out of the building and into his car. He was informed to leave behind his personal belongings; they will be mailed to his residence. He was warned never to show up again near the company premises or risk getting arrested.

My supervisor was kind and allowed me to take my time to pack up my belongings. It took me two days to clear up my workplace, after toiling for a long period in the same jobsite. We were provided clerical help and office space, in preparation to look for another job, such as updating our resumes, and using the computer and copy machine. We were given six weeks of separation pay plus benefits.

Fortunately, with the help of a friend who is a Church parishioner, I found another job thirty days after leaving Stauffer chemical company. He hired me as a senior research chemist and as a group leader with two technicians to supervise. It was in the same field as my expertise in my previous three jobs spanning the last twenty one years. My new employer was Chevron Chemical Company, and which was located in the same area as my former employer.

This job gave me the introduction and basic knowledge of managing the work of subordinates. I worked for Chevron Company for four and a half years. The company decided to consolidate their research facilities in Texas, and lay off all its research employees. This time I had enough distress and agony from working, and eventually getting laid off from several private companies. To avoid going through any more miserable layoffs, I made a vow that I would never again work for a private company.

In my work experiences, there were noticeable and unavoidable jobsite occurrences. One can never miss the office romantic relationships between co-workers, both illicit and permitted. Though it was frowned upon, there was a boss and staff relationship, which was used as a ploy to get ahead in the company. Some relationships had chemistry, no pun intended, but some never worked out. Oftentimes, there was a sense of distrust among bench chemists for some workers who unjustly obtained preferred work assignments.

Some employees resorted to bribing superiors to get special privileges, such as being able to attend choice conferences and meetings in exciting venues or locations. Likewise, politics was always present at the worksites. It was during an era when various forms of harassment, equal opportunity and discrimination laws were not yet enforced in the workplace. Occasionally, an unexpected chemical explosion happens in a laboratory setting, where luckily no one got seriously hurt.

In the three private companies I worked for, I was able to publish scientific journals for some of the research studies and analytical methods which I developed for the respective companies of Chemagro, Shell Development and Stauffer.

After deciding and making a vow to avoid working in the private sector, I made my new goal which was either to work for the state of California, or the Federal government in Washington, D.C. Four months after I lost my job in Chevron, I was lucky and joyful to be hired by the Food and Drug Administration as a review chemist in the fall of 1990.

In 1994 I was promoted as an Expert Research Chemist with a GS-14 rating. My expertise was on Anti-malarial and Anti-parasitic drug products. In 1997, I was again deservingly promoted to Chemistry team leader, supervising the work of six Chemistry reviewers including five with doctorate degrees.

As team leader, I was responsible for prioritizing, assigning, and assuring the technical accuracy of all chemistry, manufacturing and control issues for all new drug applications submitted to the Division of Anti-Infective Drug Products, Center of New Drugs.

It was part of my responsibility to give advice, instruct and promote high morale and teamwork in my group. My work in the FDA is confidential, until the drug patent on the products I worked on has expired. There are manufacturing supplements that I have approved that are now open for the public in the Internet.

In 1998, I won the Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Award. The citation reads, “For outstanding accomplishments in fostering the objectives of the EEO Program by hiring minorities and encouraging their professional growth while providing excellent leadership.” I have received numerous certificates of appreciation, awards in leadership and communications, commendation for teamwork and excellence in the accomplishment of the FDA mission. I have also received several letters of appreciation from private industry for my review work.

There are many good things working as rank and file while enjoying doing one’s job individually. It is a humbling, satisfying and productive experience, if one can work in harmony with one’s immediate supervisor. Working individually develops one’s skills in goal setting and scheduling. But in general, the financial rewards are less than a person who has supervisory responsibilities.

Managing the work of others has its challenges. Moreover, it develops one’s skill in handling and developing people, and the compensation rewards and benefits are better. Due to additional duties, responsibilities and leadership, supervisory work can be more stressful than working as a subordinate. However, supervisory jobs give one more personal growth and satisfaction, based on my personal experience. My work in FDA as a team leader managing the work of six scientists had been the happiest and rewarding work experience in my career in Chemistry. You might also like:

Thursday, March 15, 2018

Ten Days at Whitney Oaks Rehabilation Center

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