"Stop passing the buck! STOP PASSING THE BUCK!!" (longish)

[MsCrankypants]

I know I tend to lurk more than post, but I had to post this one.

For a bit of background, I work in a call center; it's not your normal everyday call center, as I work in social services. As a consequence, I'm dealing with a lot of very angry people who feel they have very little control over their lives. I used to be convinced that the people I deal with need more hand-holding than most, but after reading all your stories on this website, I'm not so sure that's entirely true anymore. Anyway...

In July 2009, my home state decided to stop funding several "optional" services through Medicaid (for those of you not in the U.S., it's government-funded health care intended mainly for the very poor). These services include such "non-essential" health services as dentistry, vision care and podiatry. There are some very limited resources for obtaining dentistry and vision care (I'm still trying to figure out how those two things are non-essential, but that's neither here nor there). However, we have NO referrals for podiatry services. The SC in question was calling for...you guessed it...podiatry services.

She was an older lady, who initiated the call by admitting that she knew the state had stopped paying for podiatry services, but she now needed services and wanted to find out how she could go about getting services without paying for them because she could not afford to pay for them. Unfortunately, as I've said, none of the community organizations we've been dealing with for the last 7 months provide podiatry services. I don't have a single referral in any of my resource guides; if it was out there, it would be in my guides.

When I told this lady the above, she was less than pleased. "You HAVE to have something!" she cried. When I informed her that I, indeed, did not have anything, she became increasingly agitated. "Come ON! You have to have SOMETHING. You just need to find it!" The conversation went something like this:

Me: "I'm sorry, ma'am, I don't have any referrals to those services. I have plenty for other kinds of services the state has stopped funding, but none for podiatry. If -"

SC: "But you HAVE to have SOMETHING! What am I supposed to do now?! Where do I go? What do I do?!!!!!1eleventy!!!11!!! I'm going to be crippled! I'm poor! I can't pay for those services! The state referred me to a program that I have to pay for and I'm poor!"

Me: "As I was trying to say, if you receive Medicare (gov't funded healthcare for people over 65), maybe -"

SC: "I'VE ALREADY TRIED THEM!! I'VE BEEN EVERYWHERE! I'VE CALLED THE STATE AND THEY HAVE NOTHING! NOTHING!!!!!!!!!ELEVENTY!11111111!!!!!"

Me: "Well, ma'am, if Medicare has nothing and the state has nothing, I'm sorry, but we don't -"

SC *in that "knowing" tone*: "Oh, you KNOW you have referrals! You're just lazy! You know you can just get on your little computer and press a button and have a bunch of referrals for me! Computers can work miracles!!!" (note: The "you're just lazy" comment was Strike One).

Me: "Ma'am, I'm sorry, we have -"

SC: "Stop playing games! Stop passing the buck! STOP PASSING THE BUCK! You just don't want to help me because it's almost time for you to go home (note: it's 3 pm. I still have TWO HOURS to go) and God forbid you should have to actually DO SOME WORK!" (Strike Two...) "Where am I supposed to go? What am I supposed to do? I'm going to be crippled, and you don't even CARE! I'm poor! I'M POOR!" (tell me about it, lady. So's everyone else I work with)

Me: "Ma'am, if you'd only let me fini -"

SC: "Oh, stop passing the buck! Get on your little computer and work a miracle for me! You don't want to help me because I'm poor (whaaaat? I work with poor people ALL DAY, lady!) and I'm the wrong color! All these blacks and Mexicans -" (Strike Three; I'm not going to sit here and listen to racist BS on top of the crazy....YOOOOOUUUU'RRRRRRRE OUT!)

Me: "I'm sorry, ma'am, I'm going to have to terminate this call." *click*

After this call, I was FUMING. You call KNOWING that you're trying to obtain a service that is no longer available to you. You state you have called places that, logically, would have more information than I would, and yet you expect me to pull a "miracle" out of my ass. And then, when I have the temerity to tell you that I can't actually pull miracles out of my ass, call me lazy and a racist? You have some fucking nerve. Yelling at me and accusing me of racism, in fact, are bound to make me LESS inclined to help you.

I very, very rarely use my call-termination prerogative. Nine times out of ten, I can get a screamer calmed down enough to stop swearing and screaming and let me help them. It might take a fair amount of time, but unless they're drunk or on drugs (which happens exactly as often as you'd think in a social services setting), I can usually turn the call around enough to accomplish something. In the three years I've been working in my current position, I've only had to terminate maybe 2-3 calls, which is a fairly good average, considering.

However, if you're going to spew racist garbage at me, or otherwise be harassing, threatening or in any way abusive, you can bet I am going to terminate the call, no questions asked. I don't have time for you to sit there and argue with me about the finer points of my job description (note: "miracle worker" isn't on there); I have other calls waiting and when a call degrades to a point where I can clearly no longer help you, I'm hanging up.

It's one thing to be agitated and upset, because social services are labyrinthine and confusing enough, but it's inexcusable to play the race card regardless of your race. It upsets me, because I happen to be a minority from an immigrant family, and I've never used that as an excuse for poor behavior or as a free pass for any kind of public entitlements.

I did feel pretty bad initially telling her there was no way I could help her, but once the call degraded to the point it did, I felt fully justified in hanging up. Looking back on it, I should have told her to hold on a few minutes so I could "look it up in my little computer" and gone off to get some water, use the bathroom, read my email or something, just long enough to let her think I was actually looking, and then come back on the line with the "bad news," but I didn't think of it at the time. She had me agitated enough as it was.

[BowserKoopa1]

Meh, you just gotta understand how a customer's brain (which is very small in idiots like her) works.
See, they think that if they keep repeating the same bullshit over and over again, they're somehow going to get what they want. They probably believe that you have some sort of magic or power that will allow you to "do it just this once"
And when that doesn't work, they call you lazy and start throwing insults around. I dunno, maybe they think that by threatening you over the phone or in person will force you to give in to them.
Had it been me and she pissed me off, I would have been severely tempted to say, "Maam, I think I've found something here that you've been talking about. Oh wait, no I haven't! Have a nice day!"

[MaggieTheCat]

I feel for the woman, especially if she really does have a serious problem that WOULD cripple her if she couldn't get help...but that is absolutely no excuse to act like a hosebeast to the person trying to help you.

[MsCrankypants]

Meh, you just gotta understand how a customer's brain (which is very small in idiots like her) works.
See, they think that if they keep repeating the same bullshit over and over again, they're somehow going to get what they want. They probably believe that you have some sort of magic or power that will allow you to "do it just this once"
And when that doesn't work, they call you lazy and start throwing insults around. I dunno, maybe they think that by threatening you over the phone or in person will force you to give in to them.
Had it been me and she pissed me off, I would have been severely tempted to say, "Maam, I think I've found something here that you've been talking about. Oh wait, no I haven't! Have a nice day!"

Oh, believe me, I know all about the "keep pushing till they say yes just to shut you up." It's one of the main tactics they employ. Unfortunately, they, like most two-year-olds who employ this same tactic, fail to take into account that I am a bit wilier than the average two-year-old.

Unfortunately, I'm not allowed to hang up on callers "unprovoked." If they're just yelling and ranting but not swearing and being heinous, we're supposed to try and help them anyway, because most of the callers we get are "stressed out and feel powerless."

So usually if I'm getting nowhere with a caller like that (as I said, it's happened rarely, but it has happened), I'll more or less sit back and give them enough rope for them to hang themselves. It usually doesn't take long. This old lady was a tough nut to crack, but she eventually gave me just the opening I needed to end the call.

Most people are pretty good about accepting "No" and "I'm sorry, but you're asking me for something I don't have" or "I'm sorry, you're not qualified" for an answer, but we get the occasional Speshul Snowflake who expects us to come up with something we don't have, or bend the rules, or even work the occasional miracle. Since my name is not Miracle Max, nor am I married to Miracle Max, ain't happening.

[MsCrankypants]

I feel for the woman, especially if she really does have a serious problem that WOULD cripple her if she couldn't get help...but that is absolutely no excuse to act like a hosebeast to the person trying to help you.

I did feel bad for her, but once she started escalating the hostility when I didn't have an answer, all my sympathy pretty much went out the window. Never mind when she pulled the racist card.

[nuthing12]

There's no reason to feel sorry for her.

She may be crippled but at least it's a racist cripple we're helping to deteriorate.

[Wenchie]

I understand EXACTLY what you're going through with this. I worked for my state's CHIP (Children's Health Insurance Program) for 7 1/2 years before I was finally too burned out and had to quit. I was one of the people who processed the applications and enrolled the children, so I got to deal with all of the people who were denied for one reason or anyone. Death threats, swearing, anything else you could imagine. The call center was supposed to answer things like this, but since the person would have my name from the denial letter (first name only at least... EVERYONE in my department had the last name of "Smith" on the letters) they would ask for me specifically... so I had to deal with them.

[BlaqueKatt]

"ma'am you do not need a podiatrist, you need a proctologist to get either your head or whatever crawled up there and died out of your butt....thankfully that's covered"

[Hyndis]

I feel for the woman, especially if she really does have a serious problem that WOULD cripple her if she couldn't get help...but that is absolutely no excuse to act like a hosebeast to the person trying to help you.

I've had to seek some free social services before, but when I went to seek those services I went being completely humble and apologetic. After all, the services are free. I am not paying for them. Its all a bonus.

If I get something, great! If not, I'll just have to deal with it.

I seriously don't understand why people complain about free. Its free! Enjoy it. If its not available anymore you lose nothing.

[Mike Taylor]

This reminds me of the stories a friend of mine (now deceased) used to tell about the EW's she'd encounter while working for the social security office back home.

I will say this, at lot of dimwits learned to fear the wrath of a certain wheelchair bound woman with spina bifida.

[MsCrankypants]

I've had to seek some free social services before, but when I went to seek those services I went being completely humble and apologetic. After all, the services are free. I am not paying for them. Its all a bonus.

They're not necessarily free (there are clients who, if their income exceeds Federal poverty level standards, do have to pay something of a deductible), but you're right - there's no need to act entitled, whether or not you're paying for services.

Telling me I'm a crap worker when I can't do the impossible is out of line. It's not something I'm denying you JUST for the pleasure of saying no; I'm denying you because it's just not possible to give you what you are asking.

Of course, sometimes there IS pleasure in being the one to say no when people start acting like EWs, but you didn't hear that from me.

[RickSpangle]

Isn’t the whole story a condemnation of the modern world? Two unfortunate people making each others’ lives miserable and no-one doing anything to the ***holes who make decent healthcare unattainable for millions.

[MsCrankypants]

I don't actually set out to "make people's lives miserable." Unfortunately, saying "no" or denying eligibility is part and parcel of the job. I don't like doing it, but it has to be done on occasion.

This isn't to say that I'll accept shoddy treatment at the hands of an angry client. I'm not going to take harassment, abuse or offensive speeches lying down. I was trying to maintain my cool and be professional, but she kept cutting in and acting like the whole thing was a big game, and if she just taunted me long enough and hard enough, I'd magically have a solution for her. Which totally wasn't the case.

It wasn't my intent to make her miserable, and she didn't make me miserable, just hacked me off by saying that I was unwilling to do what I'm paid to do. "Working miracles" is, unfortunately, not in my job description, and it was a miracle that she was expecting.

[MadMike]

Isn’t the whole story a condemnation of the modern world? Two unfortunate people making each others’ lives miserable and no-one doing anything to the ***holes who make decent healthcare unattainable for millions.

Two things:

First, whether you intended it to or not, your post came off as a personal attack against the OP. We don't allow our members to attack each other.

Second, controversial topics, such as the healthcare issue are not allowed on CS. We have another board at www.fratching.com for those.

[trailerparkmedic]

I thought working at a credit card company call center showed me the worst in people. I can't even imagine how hard it is to work for any social service call center. I know firsthand that the systems aren't easy to navigate (at least the ones I've encountered), so I can see why you would get some angry people, but that lady was so beyond uncalled for.