What am i going to do??

Nurses General Nursing

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I just had my pre-employment physical for my nursing job i start as a graduate nurse (rn) in july. literally my dream job, peds med/surg and oncology. anyway, the MD told me he is going to place a restriction on me until i can get documentation that I am not allergic to latex. I'm not sure why he thinks I have a latex allergy....i mean, i mentioned that sometimes the powder from the gloves made my hands itch (he asked i didn't just offer that), but other than that, nada! I have never had a problem with it at all through school...wouldn't i notice an allergic rxn?? anyway, i tried to get an appt. with an allergist, i called every single one i could get a number for, i even went outside my insurance coverage, i'm totally willing to pay for it out of pocket, the closest any of them can get me in is the day after my hire date!! I guess my question is, can they really not hire me because i MAY or MAY NOT be allergic to latex? wouldn't they normally have latex free equipment anyway? this isn't a small rural hospital either, this is a huge teaching hospital affiliated with a major university. i'm totally freaking out..as if it wasn't hard enough for a 19 year old to find a job as an RN, i get one hurdle after another thrown in front of me...:o :o :o :(

Specializes in Community Health Nurse.

First, congratulations on successfully passing state boards and landing your first nursing job! :balloons: :nurse:

Do you have an allergy to bananas? Usually, people who are allergic to bananas are allergic to latex. Go to an allergy specialists who will test you to see if you are allergic to it, then you'll have your proof.

Many people have a sensitivity to latex...itching, redness on the hands, tiny bumps may appear...the hospital should have nonlatex gloves for their staff...most hospitals do. :confused:

Latex bothers me (sensitivity), but I am not allergic to it. I've never worked anywhere where the facility didn't provide nonlatex gloves, so it really wasn't a problem for me. :)

MD told me he is going to place a restriction on me

First of all, what is the restriction? If you do not know, you need to find out. It may be as simple as you not using latex products until you show you are not allergic.

You need to talk with the unit manager and find out his take on this. I would think that not hiring you due to an allergy to latex would open them up to some sort of scrutiny under the ADA. Besides, there are lots of healthcare professionals who ARE alergic to latex, and they do just fine in the working envitonment.

bob

restriction means (verbatim) "it ahh creates ahhhh a sort of ahh....DILEMNA in letting you ahhhh start...as you should be ahh..capable of being AROUND latex ahhhh...products..." (as he looks over his half-glasses at me...)

no allergy to banana's, avacados, melons, sometimes my hands would itch, never red or with bumps..WHERE IS HE GETTING THIS?!?!? :o :O :o:O

This sounds alittle 'fishy' to me.....I have a red flag on my physical too....the only thing is I am to use non-powder gloves! This would be a classic discrimination case if they don't hire you and I would follow up on it.

Is there another MD who can give you a physical? I didn't even see the MD, I saw the employee health nurse.

For me, it's not the latex, it's the powder, as with most people (nurses) I know. Go ahead and try to get that appt with a dermMD and prove this old fart wrong!

Good luck and keep your chin up.......shoot, this old coot is probably a member of the 'he-man-woman-haters-club'!!

as if it wasn't hard enough for a 19 year old to find a job as an RN, i get one hurdle after another thrown in front of me...

Uh how are you an RN at 19?

Specializes in Education, FP, LNC, Forensics, ED, OB.

Latex allergies still exist and is a great topic for discussion, but bear in mind this thread is going on 5 years old. Sure the OP has already resolved this issue.

Specializes in Junior Year of BSN.
as if it wasn't hard enough for a 19 year old to find a job as an RN, i get one hurdle after another thrown in front of me...

Uh how are you an RN at 19?

There probably 23 24 now that post WAS in 2002....I graduated at 17 and took college courses during highschool too. They do have an ADN...so..is there a problem with young nurses?

as if it wasn't hard enough for a 19 year old to find a job as an RN, i get one hurdle after another thrown in front of me...

Uh how are you an RN at 19?

I could have been an RN at the age of 19 if I'd taken some pre-req college courses during high school (which is more prevalent these days) and graduated at a young age (I was 17 when I graduated high school). There are plenty of 2 yr RN programs out there.

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