I survived the first week of rotations. It was easier than I expected. Conference services takes care of catering events, room reservations that need A/V equipment, and the Guest House at the hospital. Conference Services at Presby is currently going through a big management switch so I didn't get to learn from the manager like I was suppose to. I got to see a little bit of behind the scenes about budget and payroll, but most days I got there in the morning and was sent to shadow conference services staff.
On Monday, I worked with Angelica and Ceasar. Ceasar is about 40 and just became a U.S. citizen a year ago. He amazed me because he learned how to speak English by listening to country music and watching TV. He can't read or write English, but he is a very good worker. Together, we prepared a catering for 150 doctors. We set up tables and made everything look pretty before they arrived. During their lunch we replenished food when it was getting low and made fun of an old doctor that always brings a zip-lock bag and fills it up with food. He tries to be sneaky by shoving the bag into his briefcase, but every time he makes a big mess on the table and floor around him. During our lunch break, Ceasar taught me how to Salsa dance. He said I need practice because I don't move my hips enough. After lunch I went to see my preceptor so she could give me my assignment for the week. My assignment was to plan our Dietetic Intern Graduation Party. Really? I just started this thing and you're asking me to plan on graduating. Wishful thinking. After all of the interns do this rotation and complete the project, the project is voted on and then used for our graduation party. I had to decide on a theme, color scheme, decorations, an ICE SCULPTURE, a menu, rental equipment, and plan a budget. I chose to do a Greek theme. Administration pays for the entire party and they don't have a budget limit, so I had to make one up. I went all out...My party will cost around $10,000! I hope I win!
On Tuesday, I got sent up the the Guest House on the ninth floor. I sat right next to a large window with a very beautiful view of Dallas. The Guest House is a hotel in the hospital. It is for family of patients or patients that need to be near the hospital for frequent or early morning treatments. The guest rooms used to be hospital rooms, in fact, half of them used to be the psych ward...kinda creepy. I learned how to discharge guests and make reservations. It was a slow day. Since it was the last day of August and I still had about $80 left to spend in the cafeteria, I decided to be courageous and try some sushi. They made it right in front of me, it was very cool. I got some spicy tuna California rolls, a salmon roll, a tuna roll, some shrimp rolls, a little ginger, and a glob of wasabi. It was very yummy except I felt like I was breathing fire out of my nose from the wasabi. I am not a fan of spicy stuff or ginger. I nearly choked.
On Wednesday, I got to follow around my preceptor, who is the supervisor of conference services. We had a few meetings about future caterings with production staff and entered catering orders into the computer for the next week. I also helped out with another doctor's luncheon. After lunch I was let go to work on my project.
On Thursday, I was sent up to the Guest House again. I did some research on area hotel rates and typed up some policies and procedures to go into the training manual. I had to go into every room and make sure everything was working. All I found was a burnt out lamp light bulb...I thought about taking a nap in one of the beds. Since I was so familiar with the rooms by then, I was able to show some prospective guests the rooms. They praised my customer service skills to the front desk lady who later e-mailed my preceptor. I had a very good evaluation for the week. Every Thursday afternoon the interns have class. This week we learned about counseling and motivational interviewing.
On Friday, I got to shadow Jared, the interim manager for conference services. He just started the position on Monday so he was still learning and training. He has been an Administrative Resident at the hospital since January and is completing his Master's Degree. It was weird because he isn't even a year older than me, but he is working in administration. Since he has access to pretty much everywhere in the hospital he gave me a tour. I finally got to see patient rooms, surgery rooms, and my favorite...the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). I got to see the cutest, tiniest babies I have ever seen. Jared is working on several big projects for the hospital. One of them is an $80 million renovation of surgery rooms that will take about five years from start to finish. Another one has to do with lowering the room rates in the Guest House. I helped brainstorm some ideas with him. It was very interesting to be a part of the behind-the-scenes planning of these projects. I was super excited when he said I could leave at 11:30.
I went to the Galleria to kill some time. It is a huge mall in Dallas. I became a member of the Godiva Chocolate Rewards Club =) If there is a Godiva store in your area and you like chocolate I highly advise you to become a member. You get a FREE piece of chocolate every month!! YUM
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