on mat leave, supervisor has sent an email about work issue to home account basically v upset about the content and tone of it.

[minxofmancunia]

Without going into too much boring detail my job involves 1:1 clinical work and a LOT of admin. As a group of clinicians we often dicatet letters and ask others to sing if we are away/on leave.

My last friday in work I dictated my last few letters and requested that my clincal supervisor check one report (as I was unsure as to whther the format was right) and I would pop in briefly to check the rest this week or next (they're not urgent letters all discharges).

yesterday had a horrible email to home account from clinical supervisor stating i shouldn't have left admin for thers to "tidy up" and accusing me of being bad at time nanagement which would be an issue we would need to bear in mind to deal with when I'm back (in a years time!) and it would affect my next appraisal in 2011.

Feel sick with anxiety and quite angry about this, I'm 8 months og moving house on Monday (which has been a nightmare) and just finished a clinical masters some of which I've failed so will have to re-sit in a years time. She knows all of this. she cpopied her email into the operational manager.

Is it ok for her to do this when I'm on leave esp. considering she got some of the information wrong? The tone was very curt and abrupt. Colleagues have noticed her manner towards me in recent weeks has been off hand to say the least and have offered me support but i've tried to brush it off as i know she can blow hot and cold and says nasty things in the heat of the moment.

Also she's a consultant dr and ime they seem pretty untouchable when it comes to the way they speak to people and a law unto themselves tbh.

Am sick with anxiety about this forcing myself to eat because of the baby and not sleeping very well.

Just wondered if anyone had any advice on how to deal with this? Don't want to cause myself more stress but have had it up to here with her inconsistent attitude (falling over herself with praise one minute, throwing accusations around the next).

Did you speak to this supervisor before you left to ask her if she would check or did you leave it in an e mail.

If she already said she would check it for you, then she has no right to be stroppy about it now and I would gently remind her of this fact.

It would maybe be best to do this face to face when pop into work next week. Let her know how much this has upset you but don't let her think this is just about the pressures you are under with pregnancy, house etc.

I think there is almost always a bit of tidying up/taking over when a colleague leavse on mat leave and she is being unreasonable and looking at the pregnancy as a way to find fault with your work. Is there any way she could have a problem with it?

A problem with you being pregnant I mean?

I did leave a few things until the last minute tbh and she does have a point about these bloody diary sheets we're supposed to fill in that i keep forgetting about.

I'm happy to address these issues and I did get v v anxious in the last few months at work finishing clinical work for masters and still taking on new patients.

it's the way it was done tbh, a really harsh email as soon as I'm out of the office. I'd have been quite happy to talk about things in sv before i left but nothing was brought up.

the report is one she originally said she'd do but handede back to me to do a couple of weeks ago as she sadi she didn't have time. She's done this a few times before and I've then done a report which has subsequently been ripped to shreds by her for being too long, not having the correct info etc.etc. Once she's amended them and they've been retyped a few times I always wonder why she didn't just do them herself in the first place! btw I don't deliberately do them like this, they are autism specifc reports and supposed to be done by a member of the autism team that Im not on. Never had any guidance in how to do them just told to get on with it which i try to do!

There are other issue which i now feel she's nit-picking at me about a bit. She's gone on and on about my letters being too long and told them they mustn't be anymore than 2 pages. I've worked really hard on this even with quite complex cases where there's a lot of info. But my colleague i share an office with regularly writes long letters (4+pages) and one trainee dr writes letters of up to 8 pages or more! They have different supervisors and are not pulled on this. just seems to be v inconsistent.

Don't get involved. And don't start going over old things from the past. Now is not the time for this.

Write a short polite letter/email stating that you are sorry if there has been any difficulty with this and to let you know if they need you to take any further action.

And then go shopping for baby clothes

A similar thing happened to me a few weeks after giving birth and I was a in a state afterwards because I thought the letter I was sent wasn't justified. At first I wanted to rant and rave to my line manager (who sent the letter) and personnel but three months down the line I've just let it go.

I'd be lying if I said I wasn't bothered by it because nobody likes to get a ticking off, especially when you're pregnant or you've had a baby but i've got to the point where work has become so inconsequential I just couldn't give a toss anymore!

In my opinion, the best thing you can do is forget about it. I know it's hard and upsetting but if she's anything like my boss she'll expect you to come out all guns blazing and probably loves causing strife among her work colleagues so don't give her the satisfaction. At the end of the day, a job is just a job but your baby is far, far more important.