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​Giving Staffing a Good Name

Lyndon B. Guro, PTA, March 12, 1968 - February 24, 2013
 
Lyndon was a Stambusher many years ago. Our own Fred Salazar grew up with Lyndon and brought him onboard with Stambush. One spring break about ten years ago, Lyndon, Fred, Luke Stambush (who was about 7 at the time), and I went skiing in Utah and had a great time. I never really hung around Lyndon before or after that, but I do remember what a nice, helpful, happy, easy going person he was and Luke remembers Lyndon very fondly also. At the funeral, I introduced myself to Lyndon’s mother and a huge smile came over her face and said, “Oh you work with Eric” (That is what a lot of Filipino people call Fred because his real name is Frederick).
 
My Deepest condolences go out to Lyndon’s family and friends. Here in our Stambusher world, I am also sad for Fred as well as our own Jose Agra, PTA who also grew up with Lyndon. It can’t be easy to see a childhood friend pass away so early.
 
Here is How I am Told It Happened (Maybe It Will Help Somebody)
 
Lyndon was a motorcycle rider. While he was driving down Highway 6, a truck cut into his lane, and he moved far to his left to avoid it. Unfortunately, there is now a curb in the middle of Highway 6 and Lyndon hit the curb and crashed. Lyndon was kept alive so that his organs could help someone else. He was then allowed to pass away. At the funeral, his sister Lala talked about four different strangers who received life-saving organs from Lyndon, and at that time all were recovering well. I heard Lyndon was not wearing a helmet.
 
Goodbye Lyndon. Thanks for the good times.
 
Selling My Motorcycle
 
For those of you wondering: yes, I have taken my motorcycle to the garage for my mechanic to sell. Actually, I had decided to sell it several months ago, but I procrastinated. After hearing about Lyndon, I pulled the trigger and took the bike to the shop.
 
Really?
 
Having been in business for over 23 years, we have seen a lot of things that have made us say “Really?” This article is dedicated to some of those “Really?” moments. Of course, I have thrown in a few “Really?” moments we’ve heard about competing staffing agencies too.

    1. A customer calls me and says she does not like our therapist because our therapist did not say “hello” and had some wrinkles in her lab coat. Therefore, she wanted to replace that therapist. The very next day, the customer calls me again and says, “don’t replace that therapist; everybody here loves her."
    2. Our therapist tells Fred he does not want to do contract anymore and would like a letter of reference so he can get a full time job. Of course, Fred writes the letter. About a month later, one of our customers calls and says she used a new agency (because we didn’t have anyone) that has a time sheet identical to the Stambush timesheet minus our logo. The reference letter Fred wrote for the therapist to get a full time job was also used as a reference for the therapist to help his agency get this Contract, as if Stambush was recommending him. About two months after that, we try to register “Stambush.com”, “Stambushphysicaltherapy.com” and various other Stambush.com related domain names only to find out that this therapist already registered our names. Years later I talked to two therapists who said they worked for that therapist, and he still owed them money for work they did.
    3. A PT with a big reputation for being a great therapist comes to interview. He scores 40% on our test. He then gets mad and says the questions were wrong.
    4. A therapist takes our test and only misses one. Then, she complains that the one she missed is the only one she knew was right and the ones she got right were just guesses. (Fred said later, “Then she missed them all”).
    5. Staffing agency gives its applicant a competency test along with the answers. The therapist asks, “why are you giving me the answers at the same time you are giving me the test?” To which the agency says, “Oh you have a license so we know you are good. Just grade yourself and turn it back in.”
    6. An “All American Boy” therapist joins Stambush. He then passes the competency test and drug test; the customers, staff, and patients love him. One day he does not show up for work. On the third day, we go to his house, and no one is there. We terminate him. A week goes by and we hear nothing. Later, he calls to say he went on a crack binge in Galveston.
    7. An agency makes customer agree to pay 8 hour guarantee. The therapist works 6 hours and is then sent home so productivity looks good. The agency pays therapist for 6 hours but gets 8 hours’ pay from the customer.
    8. A very pretty lady comes for interview with short skirt, etc. She passes our test but for the first time ever, a voice in my head says “make sure you keep your office door open, Scott.” When talking about people she had worked for in the past, she worded it like this: “I did John. I did Joe.” No, we did not hire her.
    9. A therapist from another agency totally bombs our test, and we cannot hire her. When I get back to the office, I have an email saying that I made her feel like she was taking her board exam all over again and that I was not fair because I did not give her time to study. This person had 20 years of experience.
    10. I give a CPR class and test to group of PTA students. One student says “Oh, this will be fun. I used to teach CPR." As the class goes on, she keeps incorrectly finishing my sentences, and I have to correct her. So, I start asking her to be quiet, and then I start telling her to be quiet. When it is her turn to perform the CPR on the mannequin, she does everything completely wrong. Then, when I try to correct her, she talks so much that I can’t get a word in edgewise. I kick her out of class.
   11. An OT gets sent home from a facility for using the patient’s bedpan to shave out of. Her excuse? “I was trying to save him money and he said it was OK.”

 
I hope you enjoyed these “Really?” moments. Some were funny at the time, but most were infuriating.

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