I am posting this because she is too nice to complain. I am not! This company is disgraceful. She is a CRNP and literally built her Home and Community market and team in her state from scratch. She was constantly lauded by the company and sent to multiple leadership conferences across the nation and given award after award. Her market continually led the country in all metrics, and today Optum kicked her to the curb like a sick dog. I am a true believer that seniority should always get priority in staff reductions, but a company that treats its best performers like it did my wife today is destined to fail, and is just plain morally, not to mention, intellectually bankrupt!
35 replies (most recent on top)
@bq preach. layoffs aren't fun, but I'll never understand how someone who's both 57 and a professor can't figure out the basics of finances. clearly they didn't live beneath their means nor create an emergency fund.
@bm <--- what an appropriate moniker for you!
What you ill-wish on others bounces off them, and comes back onto you.
Sometimes 3-fold.
Now with everything else that's going wrong in your life, should you really be wishing d3ath on anyone?
At your age, you should've garnered some wisdom by now, but alas, you seem to be stuck in a mental quagmire of anger, resentment, pettiness, immaturity, unrealistic expectations, and general all around confusion about how life works.
I am praying for your soul.
You really should ask God for help.
You need it.
@at drop d3ad.
When you choose to post on what is essentially an unmoderated board, where users are not required to register to post, you are leaving yourself open to the possibility that you'll be trolled, or at the very least, receive responses which you might not prefer to receive or agreement with, or which support you. That's just the nature of posting in public forums, you should know this by now! You can't control what others think, say, or do. You just can't, and honestly, you don't even have the right to do that, so don't even try. Free speech!
There are actually quite a few very nice, supportive, uplifting, and encouraging responses which strangers have kindly posted to your lament in this thread...why don't you focus on those, instead of the ones which irritate you? One person even offered to start a business with your wife...what more could you ask for??!!
You're stressed, it's understandable. No one likes being in the situation you're in, and it's a lot to process and deal with. But to expect anonymous strangers to deliver a carefully curated series of posts which are only to your liking here, where everything is peaches and roses, and fluffy cotton clouds of comfort and gentle support, is just unrealistic.
Take a break - spend some time with your wife this evening. Unload your angst onto trusted friends or family in your real life who already know and care about you. This isn't the place for that level of support you want and seem to need to receive.
@b6 They attacked me first by degrading and making fun of me. Re-read both of their posts. Well, you do the same, so you probably won't eve care. So whatever! I am through with this thread. I came because my wife is a great person who only cared about her patients and was not treated right by a company that she loved. Why people always feel the need to be trolls on these sorts of discussions is beyond me. I think they are the ones who need psychiatric help. And if I am wrong, check out the downvotes they got!
@am you’re 57 and can’t figure out that these companies aren’t loyal. Oh boy, you’re just learning lessons most 25 year olds learn
@b1 a blanket statement/assumption about Senior’s tech capabilities and the whether they are current, is simply not true and ageism.
Referring to a someone as being an "inhuman nothing" just proves what sort of low-stooping character you have, by attempting to dehumanize another human being.
It doesn't matter if you don't agree with what they're saying, or in their delivery of how they say it, if you really were of truly upstanding morality, you'd never label another person as being an "inhuman nothing." You also labeled another person's opinions as being "stupid," yet chastise for "attacking" with words. Make it make sense, hypocrite.
My bet is that you are an atheiest/agnostic liberal, clot-shotted up the wazoo, and have either never really had to struggle much before in life or are posing as a snob to feel "better than" others. I could be wrong, but that's the impression you give. It also seems as though you're feeling bu++hurt that you haven't received the measure of unanimous sympathy you were hoping for, when posting. Ditto for how no one really cares or is impressed that you are a "tenured college faculty member." LOL.
Sorry you're experiencing troubling emotional turmoil. I really hope you can find ways to alleviate your woes, including financial. Life can be challenging...maybe consider mental health counseling.
Feel better!
@OP Disagree about Seniority especially in IT. Technology changes fast and many of the Seniors with years of tenure are out of touch with the latest greatest. So as Steven Jobs said "out with the Old and in with the New". That being said a good blend of new and old is needed! but there should be no priority just because your a Senior with many years of experience (which could be outdated and not needed any more in many cases such as in IT)
@at And I just have to say, that you know nothing at all about us. We will be just fine, and we do not need any advice from the likes of you!
@at If you are such an inhuman nothing that you get off on attacking people when they are down, then I will waste no more time with you. As for my typo, I make them because I can't see as good as I used to because I am human, something you obviously don't understand!
Why don't you, as a "tenured college Faculty member" know that you should have used, "its" rather than "it's"? ("...a company that doesn't care about it's employees.") Maybe you're not as smart as you think you are.
Maybe instead of dipping into your wife's retirement $ to pay your bills now, you as the man of the house (or are you a female too?) should have figured out a long time ago, a way to make more money than what you're bringing in now. Her losing her job shouldn't be such a big hit to your finances or lifestyle. You have had a lot of time to plan for the "what if" of the possibility of one of you losing your job. Why can't you get a 2nd job while she's looking for a new one? 57 years old is no excuse...if you're working now, you can work a little bit more, or get smarter about how to bring in more money for the time being. Doesn't sound like you're really motivated to do that though, you'd rather complain and blame.
Consider downsizing. Maybe your "standard of living" could use something of a haircut. As in, get rid of subscriptions, club memberships, don't order in or go out to eat at restaurants/cook all meals at home, keep all amusement activities to free ones (parks and outdoor areas nearby, municipal pool/pickleball/tennis courts, free local events, beach, mountains, lakes, rivers, etc.) You could move to a less expensive place to live, and/or sell things that are not essential (jewelry, art, vehicles, silverware, antiques, clothes, collections, tools, furniture, etc.)
Your wife with her now available extra free time can turn one of her hobbies or interests into a home business, even as she's applying to get hired again. Is she good with numbers? Get listed online as an independent contractor for bookkeeping or accounting services. Or drive for Uber/Doordash. Can she bake? Sell home made cookies, cakes, or do catering. Dogwalking, house/pet-sitting, childcare, plant care, etc. Some might say that AI su-ks, but she could temporarily work from home training AI models: https://workathomelady.com/work-from-home-ai-training-jobs-2025/
There are a million different things both you and she can do to lessen your overhead (even if it's just temporary) so your bills aren't so high, and also for both of you to make more money to cover basic expenses without dipping into her retirement $. Who knows, it could lead to you both having even more stashed away by the time you retire (when you want to) than what you would have had if she'd kept at the job from which she just got laid off.
But again, you don't seem to really be interested in doing that. You want to whine about being 57 instead. Quite frankly, you seem like a bitter, sour-assed frump who lacks creativity and inspiration. This is me being helpful, whether you realize it or not. Do with it as you will.
Good luck with things!
@am CRNA can work as a CRNA ?
I’m hearing other DCO’s were let go also
@am because younger people are pi---d off you planned life. They will get a rude awakening when the rug is pulled beneath them as well.
@ak Well, that is the stupidest thing I will read today. We are 57 years old. I still work as a tenured college Faculty member. It was my wife that was terminated after working her a-s off for a company that doesn't care about it's employees. We are going to have to now take a huge part of her retirement, that she did plan for and hoped to do in a few years, and spend it to pay off bills that we were easily managing on both our salaries and will now probably have to work longer before we can retire. Why would you even post something so condescending and unhelpful!
Nothing worth having in life is ever always "easy."
You're succumbing to a defeatist attitude, which won't serve you well.
This is a choice you're making, it's not a mindset you're stuck with or have no control over changing for the better, by looking at things in a positive light, instead.
Attitude is more than half the battle won.
You have to believe in yourself, and have confidence that you have what it takes to handle hurdles and roadblocks, and everything else that isn't easy in life, which is bound to come your way.
Easy is (God willing) for when you're retired, after you've planned well and made smart moves along the way.
For now, you have to accept and learn how to deal with adversity, and find new ways to successfully maneuver yourself through it. Keep moving forward, trying new angles, being open to new opportunities.
Otherwise, you're stuck cosplaying Eeyore for the rest of your life.
"Woe is me...easier said than done...this isn't fair...I can never win...why even try?"
Snap out of it!
She should work for a competitor. She knows the system, the issues. Many firms hire former employees here exactly for that reason.
I am sorry to hear this. My heart goes out to you.
Sounds like she has an amazing skill set to bring forward to her next employment endeavors
@ac I think they just tell everyone what they think they need to hear. Her market was merged with another where the DCO had much more service.
@ae Easier said than done with bills to pay and a loss of a huge part of our family income.
THAT's the spirit!
Take this as an opportunity to create your own business, where you're the boss.
Too many people on these boards complain and act as if they have no agency in their own lives, feeling as if they have no choice other than being oppressed by some evil corporate overlord. That is a crock, and no one should be conned into believing that about themselves. The USA is still full of opportunity and success for those BOLD enough to step away from victim mindsets, and into INDEPENDENT plans of INTEGRITY and ACTION!
I wish both of you and your families (and those of whom you hire once your company is off the ground), all the best!
@OP Consulting. Especially if in a quality role. Consulting pays 5x more and on her terms. Good luck to her!
@a2 They are lying about seniority. Couple of teammates were moved to other areas as retaliation, the first thing she said’ “ they did not consider seniority.” We had been on the team for ever the a-s kissers had just arrived. She must have not toed the line. Tell her to whistleblower. She probably knows something and she is a threat.
I think Wellmed will cease to exist by the end of this year at the rate this is going.
@OP Your wife is a rockstar and Bad B. She will continue to be so and do good things. UHG and Optum don't value anyone but the dollars. They are the true examples of how healthcare has gone wrong and unethical business. I am a dual certified NP working for Optum, licensed in multiple states and if wife is interested in starting up a company, please reach out. I applaud you for being a supportive spouse!
@OP This is healthcare and the corporate su-k. Seniority doesn't mean a thing.
This place is a paycheck. Treat it accordingly.
@a6 "No one I know working here cares or has any pride in what they do."
She did, and that is what hurts so terribly!
This is the single most hated company in America for good reason. Sorry to hear about the layoff but I am not surprised. No one I know working here cares or has any pride in what they do. Having UHG/Optum on a resume is practically self-defamation.
@a4 It's definitely not looking good for the future of WellMed.
This company is in serious trouble. I will be surprised if my part of it (Wellmed) will even exist by the end of the year
Hugs to your wife from a fellow senior outcast.
@a1 They let someone with more seniority take over her market (combining). They said that seniority is all they considered, actually. It makes no sense.
I’m very sorry. UHC/Optum see seniority as a liability. The more you know, the more they have to pay. Easier to get someone younger and cheaper even if they su-k.