Absolutely an outrage... (RANT)

[LoriAlabamaRN]

I work at a long term care facility, and last week one of our CNAs attempted to call in citing flu-like symptoms and a son with confirmed flu. She was told we were too short staffed and she must come in. She came to work, and now out of 26 residents she took care of, FIFTEEN have the *%*$#*#$* flu!!! These are elderly, fragile people who are now all sick and being treated for flu.

WHY WAS THIS ALLOWED TO HAPPEN?!?! I understand the problem with staffing, and I know that we need people to be here, but it is a gigantic risk to our residents if someone with a contagious disease is allowed to care for them! I'm so cheesed off about this. I feel like we needlessly put our residents in danger. Anyone else face this situation?

[VickyRN, MSN, DNP, RN]

Wow...I understand your rage. Since I'm still a student, this sort of situation hasn't happened to me but it does happen during our clinical rotations at school. We're allowed a certain number of sick days but heaven forbid you are sick and actually use them! We just got a new Director and she specifically stated that she was changing the sick leave policy. You had better show up on clinical no matter what---unless you are on your deathbed. If you have an infectious disease, feeling like crap and worry about spreading it to the patients--that's OK. Just show up.

:angryfire

I understand not abusing the sick leave policy and no one does but when you're sick, you're sick. I don't get it.

That's very wrong and so dangerous for the patients. Had a student call me stating she was on her way to clinicals, but that she was still exhibiting symptoms of a virulent gastrointestinal virus that had been circulating through the community. Told her to please turn around and go home. The fragile patients do not need to be exposed to this.

[LoriAlabamaRN]

I have been off for the last week and a half with the flu. I already know I am in big trouble with calling in and I have heard I am going to be suspended for 3 day w/o pay. I even have a note for work when I go in but do you think that will help me ...no it won't not one tiny bit

That's awful! If you have a note from the doctor, how can they do that??? Talk about making no sense. When I worked at a local hospital, I had what started as a UTI but ended up becoming sepsis. I was actually a patient in the very hospital I worked at for a little over a week, just one floor above where I worked. My supervisor knew that, and yet I was written up for missing work. I made sure that on the writeup it specified that I was an inpatient at the time, and under "extenuating circumstances" I wrote that I thought my IV pole would get in my way and make it too difficult for me to take care of patients so I decided not to wheel myself down to work. Can ya sense the sarcasm?

[imenid37]

Why does this happen? Because there are a handful of people who abuse call in. Then instead of having the gonads to deal w/ them directly admin. treats all staff as if they were schoolchildren.Often times this results in a fairly decent employee w/ a good record being "made an example of :angryfire

[Jo Dirt]

This goes to show how how nursing homes get the reputation as "old people mills." Ship them in and ship them out and fill in another bed.

The ADON at the facility where I do PRN work was telling me how awful this one nursing home was. The medical director was a joke, he saw her bandaging a patient's leg and said, "What are you worried about saving these people for? There's a whole line of them waiting to come in."

What a horrid wretched excuse for a human, let alone a doctor.

[SmilingBluEyes]

That's very wrong and so dangerous for the patients. Had a student call me stating she was on her way to clinicals, but that she was still exhibiting symptoms of a virulent gastrointestinal virus that had been circulating through the community. Told her to please turn around and go home. The fragile patients do not need to be exposed to this.

amen!

[froghair]

someone in admin needs there bum kicked if they made the person come in and this was a result of it

[CseMgr1, ASN, RN]

This goes to show how how nursing homes get the reputation as "old people mills." Ship them in and ship them out and fill in another bed.

The ADON at the facility where I do PRN work was telling me how awful this one nursing home was. The medical director was a joke, he saw her bandaging a patient's leg and said, "What are you worried about saving these people for? There's a whole line of them waiting to come in."

What a horrid wretched excuse for a human, let alone a doctor.

He had better hope that his rather unfortunate comments were not overheard

by this patient's family members and reported to his State Board of Medical Examiners. If one of us had been overheard saying the same thing, we would have been served on toast. :angryfire

[MultipurposeRN]

It's ironic that the very field we work in..Healthcare...is so unforgiving toward caregivers who find themselves ill. After all, we have a right to BE patients when necessary as well as care for patients.

[TazziRN, RN]

I used to work at a facility where a day shift nurse tried to call in sick because she had AGE. She was told she HAD to come to work. I came in on PM's and she looked like death warmed over. Sure 'nuff, within a week quite a few nurses came down with it.

[Plagueis]

The fact that an employee was called in, even though she was sick, isn't surprising to me. I have seen other posters have mention that even though they have a sick note, they can still get into trouble. And a couple of my friends (CNAs) have told me the same thing. I don't get it, either. Employers and DONs should be first to understand that nursing homes and hospitals are not where sick employees should be for 8-12 hour shifts, where they can expose patients/residents to their illnesses. Don't they realize that EVERYONE gets sick? That's why many have sick days for their employees. I know that staffing is a problem in many places, but that shouldn't justify employers trying to coerce employees into coming into work when they are sick.