Can’t do this …

[ChangingRound]

I’m working in admin and have now been asked to minute meeting (Children’s safeguarding) for cover when the team are off sick. As there’s always someone off sick I’ll be called to go it soon. I was asked to shadow and I hated it, really not my thing. Totally out of my comfort zone.
My MH is being affected, can’t sleep at night can’t concentrate in the day.
Can I refuse to go it? I feel my anxiety is so high I need to speak with a doctor. If I get signed off what do I say to work?

Is it in your job spec?

even if it is, if you explain the above to your line manager, then any decent manager will immediately find an alternative

If you get signed off as you’re Ill you say that and provide the doctors note.

to clarify the issue is you need to minute meetings if someone is off sick and the thought of it has impacted your mental health causing insomnia and anxiety?

have you spoken to your doctor? Are these new conditions or escalations of existing ones?

Hi, it depends why it is affecting you this way in my opinion.

When you say it is 'outside your comfort zone', what specifically is the issue you are having?

On first look from me it sounds fair enough, minuting meetings is a skill many people can learn so I think if you get understanding/support at the start it is a fine task to be asked to do.

Just talk to your manager and explain you don’t feel read to take on the task, see if your manager will help you figure out a solution. You really shouldn’t make yourself sick over it, so try not to worry

They’ve told me that it’s within my grade and that I only need to cover for sickness and holidays. There’s always someone off every week. I’m worried about going in Monday now.

It depends on why you feel you can't do it. Are you unable to take minutes or do you dislike the topics you need to listen to and minute? What are your normal tasks?

I’m going to speak with the doctor on Monday. I do struggle with anxiety but have managed it ok up until now. I didn’t enjoy listening to the content and found it hard to get notes down. Also I’m not good at putting reports together, it’s not something I’ve needed to do before.
I type letters from audio, answer the phones, post.

Have you sat In during these meetings to see how they go? I have taken minutes before and, once you know all the names, it becomes pretty routine as the talk is around the same issues. I don’t think a GP can sign you off for a particular part of your job, that sounds more like occupational health who would have insight into your job.

If you need training to write minutes then you should request it. It does seem like a basic admin task...

They can right a fit note to say you can work if xyz. Problem is they might then start capability proceedings.

Yes I’ve shadowed and each meeting is different with professionals, police, etc.
I never asked to do this and it’s impacting my mental health. My stress levels are feeling high.

Can you ask for training in minute taking if you need it? It’s a normal task for an administrative role, and easy once you get the hang of it.

Is it now part of your job description? Have you talked to your manager about it? If it’s now an essential part of your job and they need you to do it you may want to think about if you want to continue doing this job or not if you really don’t want to do the minutes. It could be time to start looking for a new job?

Minuting a meeting isn't hard, once you get the hang of it.

What most pp seem to be missing is the nature of the meetings, which I think is what op is finding traumatic.

Safeguarding meetings, where police and other authorities are involved, can be harrowing. Really traumatic. At the very least you should be fully safeguarding trained and there should be support available, it's not as simple as grabbing a pen and notepad and writing up business results etc.

You need to raise this URGENTLY with your manager and HR. Also the safeguarding lead for training requirements. Raise it to the gp so it is documented that this particular aspect is causing you stress, and see if there is any OH support at work.

Are you allowed to record the meeting to check minutes afterwards?

Not sure what you can do if it’s in the job description. You need to ask for help improving in this area or change jobs.

Are you having therapy for anxiety? Whilst you might be able to get signed off, that won’t really resolve this issue, will just kick the problem down the road for a few weeks. You need to get support to deal with it properly.

Dictaphone

That's all you need. Tell them they need to order one in and you will record, then write it up and then delete recording

I gather the OP already works in this area and is exposed to harrowing content, it’s the minutes part she’d find difficult. OP, I hope you get help for your anxiety or minute taking, as it shouldn’t be spoiling your weekend with worry about next week.

@ChangingRound I've been taking minutes for 23 years OP, still hate them is it a Teams meeting that is being recorded? Would you find it easier to type the minutes verbatim and then tidy them up after? A lot of my colleagues do this

Oh and I also look at previous minutes and copy the style of writing in them @ChangingRound

Great advice!

You haven’t said why you’re anxious OP. If you have an admin role I’d expect you to be able to take minutes, with training. So if you don’t want to cause it’s new/hard, the YABU.

A basic admin task is something you could ask someone with no experience to do.

Minuting a safeguarding meeting is not a basic admin task. It needs to be clear and accurate. It could impact a case. It could be used as evidence in court.

Op, you just need some support and training. Is there someone in the team who does this job well and is approachable? Ask them for help. Get them to go in with you and both take the minutes.

I used to take a lot of minutes. Study the last few sets of previous minutes. How are they written? Are they brief action-type minutes or are they more detailed? What's the language used like? Who are the attendees? Is it the same people each time? Who is invited to this meeting? Take a check list of attendees with you and tick them off when you get in the meeting room. If you type fast then I suggest you take them on the laptop. Open a word document. If you have the agenda items then stick them in at the top then type underneath each one as you get to that item. Listen carefully and just type everything you hear. You can then go back at the end and edit it all into logical points or sentences. It's probably not the perfect way to take minutes but it used to work for me.

Other suggestions... Get to the meeting room early. Get yourself set up so you're ready to go. Have your checklist ready and tick people off as they arrive. Record the meeting if you can (MS Teams is great for this!). If you don't hear something and it's important (a number or person's name) then ask the person to repeat. Get the minutes typed up after ASAP (so you don't forget what happened). Send a copy to the person chairing to check and approve. Circulate them ASAP.

I used to dread minuting meetings but that was back in the day when I had to scribble it all on a notepad. It did get easier but it wasn't my favourite task by any stretch. It's a useful skill to have though and the more you do it the easier it becomes.