The Importance of Being Organized and Professional – Part II
Clinicians have been socialized into playing their role. They have attended 2-8 years of graduate school, and often 2-4 years of clinical training experience. Besides learning how to provide care, they have also learned how to dress, how to talk, how to write, and how to behave in clinical team meetings. Peer Support Specialist are at a clear disadvantage in that your clinical training is much more limited. You will have to quickly catch up if you are to become a valued and trusted member of your clinical team. Your colleagues will be watching the following specific areas:
Dress and Appearance: Each setting will have spoken and unspoken expectations about clothes and appearance. These differ between parts of the country. Where I worked in New England, male physicians wore sports coats, psychologists wore ties, peer specialists wore casual shirts and slacks. When I moved to Colorado the expectations changed – psychologists don’t wear ties, and Peer Support Specialists were even more casual in dress. The rules are local and informal – but not hard to identify – watch others, talk to peers. You can push the boundaries on dress and grooming, but if you step too far outside the expectations, you may get unwanted attention and others may draw conclusions that may not serve you.
Attendance and Timeliness: Clinical work is typically labor-intensive and requires everyone to contribute. Poor attendance and timeliness will be seen as evidence that you are not willing to do your part. Be aware that people will be watching your timeliness and attendance, whether they say anything or not. If you are starting a new job, your colleagues will draw a conclusion about you in the first few months based on your attendance and timeliness. You will be seen as someone who “shows and up and contributes”, or someone who “can’t be counted on to be there”.
Organization: Because of the complexity of clinical work, most clinicians have learned to be organized in a way that allows them to complete multiple tasks as the same time. They keep an organized schedule and create timelines for complex projects. They can answer questions about where they are on a task and when it is likely to be completed. Being organized is seen as a part of being effective. You want to be organized because it will help you be effective and will build trust with your colleages.
Consistency: Being “professional” includes an expectation that you approach each client with the same level of energy and commitment to providing excellent support. Being engaged with clients who are interesting or attractive and not engaged with clients who are difficult or uninteresting will be seen as unprofessional. Your colleagues have been trained to provide care for every client and they will expect the same of you.
Language and Terms: Clinical work involves a lot of talking and writing. Your team members have been trained to talk in meetings and write in medical records, in a way that reflects careful work on their part. They use professional terms. They talk about their work in ways that emphasize their knowledge and skills. You will want to do the same. Watch other peers and look at their documentation to identify the ways to meet these expectations.
Knowing and Playing Your Part: Clinical teams consist of members who have different roles: They have all been trained to know and play their role. The quality of the work provided by the team depends on this. As a Peer Support Specialist, you need to know your role and be able to speak clearly about what you do and don’t do as a peer. Your colleagues will be watching to see whether you step in to play that role, or hold back until someone asks you to do your job. Some team members will not fully understand what you do as a Peer Support Specialist. Educate them. Show them by taking initiative that you know your role and are motivated to make a real contribution to the team effort.
Follow-up: Following up in clinical work involves doing what you’ve said you would do, and completing tasks you’ve been assigned. This is the area where more people will fall down than any other. If you develop a strong habit of always following up with things you’ve agreed to do, and to do them well, you will actually stick out in a positive way. You will gain a reputation as someone who can be counted on, and so will likely gain more opportunities.
Supervision: Clinical settings have some similarities to military groups. Everyone has a supervisor who gives them direction, and everyone is expected to follow that direction. The reality of this will vary with each team and each supervisor, but you will want to be aware that your attentiveness to your supervisor’s instructions will be important to the entire team. If they have to follow their supervisors, then they will expect you to do the same.
Lean Into the Work: Most clinicians are internally motivated to do their work in a way that benefits their clients. They chose to become a clinician because they wanted to help other people, and out of all the motivations that may guide their actions each day, that interest in helping their clients is often the most powerful. They will be watching you to see if that is true for you as well. Your comments in team meetings, your extra efforts to help clients, the way you write your notes will tell them whether you are also motivated primarily by the desire to help others recover, or are just trying to get your job done.