Does anyone else feel guilty when your sick?

Sabby_NC · Nov 16, 2007

guilty!!!!of course, i do. do i ever call in. no!! we are short staffed enough and if i called in the only people suffering would be my shift members and my patients. no administration would suffer.

ummmm even if you pass on ya lurgies to other people?:uhoh21:

DDRN4me · Nov 16, 2007

Guilty?? not so much because of Administration ; but rather that I am leaving my staff (I am mgt) short handed. fortunately we have a strict Employee health nurse who will send us home (willingly or not) when we are too ill to be at work.

dbihl... that does really happen in education; or a teaching assistant is left with the responsibility of the classroom:uhoh3:

dbihl, BSN, RN · Nov 16, 2007

dbihl... that does really happen in education; or a teaching assistant is left with the responsibility of the classroom:uhoh3:

It does not happen in education as a routine like it does in health care. It might happen once in a while, but I used to work as a special education paraprofessional for 5 years and I never saw it happen once. I hear of floors working short daily, so I fail to see your point. Do teachers work short staffed often in your part of the country?

twinmommy+2, ADN, BSN, MSN · Nov 16, 2007

I know I feel guilty. I hate leaving the floor short if I'm sick

today I called in sick. 1. I really am sick, got a head cold this morning 2. I have been working an insane amount of hours since my hubby lost his job and I also woke up exhausted 3. Its my daughters birthday, I toyed with the idea of calling in sick today just for that but I don't think I would have done it.

But yeah, I feel guilty. If I didn't give myself this day I would have been worthless to my patients all weekend long. So I'm hoping by giving myself this day to recover I'll be feeling better by tomorrow.

Kanani_Ikike · Nov 16, 2007

I got up this morning, went into work. Got there and started throwing :oup right after I clocked in. Talked to my manager,( I work on a med-surg unit in hospital) and she wasn't upset told me to go home.
Why do I feel guilty for being sick? I even feel guilty for sleeping most of the day! I feel like I should have pushed myself and stayed.
Does anyone else feel like this???

Nope. I sure don't. I used to. But I stopped feeling guilty. Especially after I saw how much they truly don't give a darn about you. All they want is for you to come to work.

It doesn't matter if you're half dead, just get there. They don't ever ask you how you feel, all they want is for you to be there. Forget your family and your health, we want you at work no matter work. Even if you're circling the drain, come to work. And when you die, we'll give you a nice little placard that says "Dedicated Employee". Then we'll replace you the next day.

All sarcasm aside, most employers don't really care about you. They just want you to be at work because they don't want to have to fill in. Lord forbid if any nurse manager has to ever work the floor. Oh, the world will surely end then. Instead, they'll make you feel guilty for something you cannot help.

DDRN4me · Nov 17, 2007

dbihl... that does really happen in education; or a teaching assistant is left with the responsibility of the classroom:uhoh3:

It does not happen in education as a routine like it does in health care. It might happen once in a while, but I used to work as a special education paraprofessional for 5 years and I never saw it happen once. I hear of floors working short daily, so I fail to see your point. Do teachers work short staffed often in your part of the country?

After more than 10 years in sped; as a nurse in a classroom and as a school nurse in public schools I saw it many many times due to budgets etc. There were times that I ended up as the "teacher of the day!!"

EmmaG, RN · Nov 17, 2007

I'd feel guilty if others became ill because I suffered the delusion I was too indispensable to call out sick.

blueheaven · Nov 17, 2007

I got up this morning, went into work. Got there and started throwing :oup right after I clocked in. Talked to my manager,( I work on a med-surg unit in hospital) and she wasn't upset told me to go home.
Why do I feel guilty for being sick? I even feel guilty for sleeping most of the day! I feel like I should have pushed myself and stayed.
Does anyone else feel like this???

Put yourself in your coworkers shoes, or your patients shoes...would you want to have someone barfing, or sneezing, coughing etc around you???

I used to think that the unit would fall apart on the shift I was scheduled to work if I didn't show up. It's the codependant...I gotta take care of everyone else but myself thingy, I can't let my coworkers down thingy....never mind that I was being a mine field for virus or germ thingy...I'm SUPER NURSE!!!!! Took a long while and a few medical problems to learn my lesson but I do not feel guilty now if I need to call in when I am sick.

blueheaven · Nov 17, 2007

Sick? Sick?! You're a nurse you're not supposed to get sick,have a home life or a social life!You belong body and soul to the management to use and abuse until you are a burned out shell.Then and only then can you leave and feel free to be sick by which time you probably are really sick!!(Hope you feel better now:lol2:)
Don't feel guilty about being sick or give in to emotional blackmail,it's their job to fill in the gaps,you being there makes it easier for them but does you no good at all(or your patients)

Boy you sure cut through the crap there to the truth!!!!!!!! The first hospital I worked for did that very thing. I was a new nurse too. I worked OT out the ears (because they NEEDED me) busted my butt doing inservices, orienting new nurses etc...finally my body said "NO MORE" you are taking a break and I was off work for 3 months with a diagnosis of possible cancer looming over my head. Ended up being a chronic illness that I put up with. Went back to work...worked 3 weeks and they asked me to resign. They really cared about me as long as I was pushing myself to the limit, but when I needed them....so much as garbage.:trout: :nono:

nightmare, RN · Nov 17, 2007

It seems to be a world wide thing,nurses just aren't supposed to be sick! Thank God for Allnurses! At least we on the ground floor can support each other and understand. I know Managers have people higher biting at them to keep budgets/cut budgets and run the place no matter what but the way they treat nurses nowadays stinks. Nurses of the past may have been dedicated Nuns etc willing to push themselves over the limit for their vocation but modern nurses,while still dedicated,can't and shouldn't put up with this sort of treatment.When are Managers going to realise that a happy staff is a much more fruitful staff and that you catch much more flies with honey than with vinegar.:deadhorse

rn undisclosed name · Nov 17, 2007

Nope. In fact I called in sick today because my daughter is not feeling well and has a terrible strep infection. It was so bad I had to take her to an ENT yesterday after seeing the pediatrician and he told me she is at high risk for developing an abscess in her lymph node or in her throat. If she wasn't better today after taking steroids and clindamycin (how often do people with strep have to take that evil antibiotic?) she would be going into the hospital today for IV hydration and antibiotics. There is no way in he!! I am feeling guilty about that because I could guarantee you that if I was at work and I got a call from my husband that she had to be hospitalized they would have given me a hard time about leaving work to be with her. I am probably going to get a verbal warning for this too but I don't care because quite frankly the health of me and my family come first. I am not giving up everything just to make the hospital happy. I gave them plenty of notice to find someone.