Médicine du travail

Gotta love the French employment system… most jobs require that you meet with a médicine du travail, or work Doctor before starting new employment. I was a bit surprised that this was a requirement as I was hired to work in a kitchen for personnel and not patients, but a hospital it is and as such the rendezvous with the médicin was not only extensive but invasive! I should mention that my dad, who also started new employment around the same time as a guardian of an apartment complex, also had to undergo an appointment guaranteeing he was fit to work by a médicine du travail as well.

At my appointment I was coolly greeted by the médicine du travail, who did not speak a word of English, or if she did she was neither obliging nor courteous. So, I proceeded to answer a variety of work related and personal questions in my best French as she glanced down at me in annoyance over the rim of her glasses. Feeling very frustrated by the process, but also grateful as many of the medical terms used were very close to their English counterparts, I think I was able to accurately answer most, err… okay maybe a handful of questions, the rest I responded with oui ou non, hoping I was giving the right answer… yikes that can’t be good right?

Well, I am sure I did fine, until I was asked one personal (not work related) question, where I answered non, and she stopped, smirked and responded ‘non’. To which I became even more confused than my constant state of confusion, and repeated back what I understood the question to be, only to realize that I had reversed the context of the question and as such incorrectly answered it. So after changing my answer (which was the actual correct answer), the Doctor was a bit happier and a tad more pleasant and proceeded to continue asking about allergies, medications, family history, why I moved to France, what I went to school for…. and other relevant and non relevant interrogative style questions.

I should mention that to start off this whole process I was asked for my carnet de vaccination (vaccination card), which naturally I do not travel with (I don’t even know where it is). Well this was a bad way to start off the appointment and when I responded that I did not have one and that all of my vaccines were received in Canada, the médicine du travail, appeared offended and irritated that at the age of 33 I would travel without it. Now I don’t think it takes a Doctor to figure out that like France, Canada is also a 1^st world country, and as per WHO guidelines certain vaccinations are required for all citizens. So I was now faced with getting re-vaccinated or producing proof of vaccinations at my second appointment…. Yes that’s right, in order to work in a kitchen I had to undergo, not one, not two, but three medical appointments….

Following the barrage of questions, I was weighed, poked and prodded and made to touch my toes all while stripped down to my bra and underwear… really is this job even worth it? Then…  I gave a blood and urine sample, took a TB skin test and had my vision tested. Then I was sent across campus for a pulmonary x-ray, and finally I was sent home with a small plastic jar for another bodily sample to be returned my first day of work… really, I ask again; is this job even worth it?

So after tracking down my vaccination card… thanks Mom, and bringing it to my second appointment, (hee hee it’s all in English, which the witch, oops work doctor was annoyed with); I ended up having to get most of my previous vaccinations all over again. So what were initially two appointments now turned into three, with the third scheduled the following month for my second set of vaccinations.

All of this for a one month contract!! Good thing it was extended for an additional month until the end of March for a total of two months. And thankfully, it has been extended once more until the end of April. I can now say, that the experience with the médicine du travail, while somewhat excessive, was worth it, and I hope I never have to do it again!