Can't get covid at work

Nurses COVID

Updated:   Published

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My hospital is saying that if nurses get COVID, it is not from the hospital. 

The hospital isn't responsible.  It's our co-workers, our family, ourselves, but not the hospital. 

It is safer to be at the hospital than anywhere else. 

Cannon Fodder.  That's exactly what we are.

Specializes in Med-Surg, Trauma, Ortho, Neuro, Cardiac.
On 12/3/2020 at 1:36 PM, RNNPICU said:

I think it would be very hard to prove it was from work because we are all wearing masks/goggles, etc whether COVI+ or COVID -.

It is so wide spread in the community it would be difficult to say if a coworker gave it to youor was it in the grocery store

I think this is what they are saying rather than you can't get it from work, especially if you're following proper procedures.  You just can't prove it.  But of course it is possible.

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Specializes in Long term care.

In April, when I had covid, my employer contacted me to tell me they were filing workers comp on my behalf to ensure the claim would be approved. 

Fast forward to today: we are on our own if we test positive. So far, the 4 staff who tested positive without ANY symptoms and kept off work x2 weeks. They have either had to use PTO time or went unpaid...unable to get workers comp or unemployment ( can't get thru the system that is overwhelmed).

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Specializes in Med Surg, Hospice, Wound Care.

I'm thinking about my colleague who ran into help a patient in respiratory distress, called a rapid response, and got COVID as a result a week later.  We were working on a COVID unit, and she didn't have time to grab PPE.  I've personally run in to grab a confused patient before they fell, but have been lucky to not have gotten sick.  I can guarantee nurses are getting it at work, and would quit if my employer said otherwise.

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One way or another I would be out of a job if they told me this with a straight face.

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On 12/3/2020 at 1:36 PM, RNNPICU said:

It is so wide spread in the community it would be difficult to say if a coworker gave it to you or was it in the grocery store

Except that I don't actually have to stand near anyone at the grocery store or provide personal care to anyone at the grocery store--let alone people already known to be sick with Covid-19. I also tend to not stay at the grocery store for 12 hours straight several days a week.

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You can't get it from the hospital eventhough there's not enough PPEs to protect you which the hospitals won't give it to the nurses especially in the early days of pandemic? What about the nurse patient ratio which is terribly being practice? 

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Specializes in Psychiatry.

I got covid-19 at the same time as 7 of my coworkers and we had a covid-19 patient on the floor.  Any suggestion that this wasn't work related would be ludicrous.  I don't think my employer would ever try to make such a claim, not to mention that 2 weeks of paid covid sick time is a guaranteed right in the state of New York.  

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Yep exactly what my hospital network is saying. If you test positive, unless you can prove you got it from the hospital, you are out of luck. And if you are positive, you have to take a phone call from employee health every 48hrs or your absence will be unexcused. And all they are doing is making sure you can return to work, but they go beyond their scope at times.

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Specializes in ACNP-BC, Adult Critical Care, Cardiology.

How was this stated at the workplace? via an email, an official memo, just a manager talking out of their @#$!...

I certainly would not risk my health working for such an employer unless they provide me with a head to toe body suit and PAPR for the duration of my shift that I can replace when it is damaged.

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Specializes in ACNP-BC, Adult Critical Care, Cardiology.
21 minutes ago, esrun2015 said:

Yep exactly what my hospital network is saying. If you test positive, unless you can prove you got it from the hospital, you are out of luck. And if you are positive, you have to take a phone call from employee health every 48hrs or your absence will be unexcused. And all they are doing is making sure you can return to work, but they go beyond their scope at times.

Does your hospital reach out to employees when a patient who was admitted with a negative PCR end up being positive during a retest? Because that happens and in those cases, nurses who cared for such patient likely weren't wearing N95 masks.

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A month ago we had a patient who was on the med/surg floor, was swabbed for placement (after he had been there a week). They tested everyone who had been assigned to him and no one came back positive. After that, we patients have the rapid test prior to being admitted.

The hospital network sent out the information on their "Covid Cares" newsletter, hahaha. At first they were even gonna count the absence against you, but did change their minds about that.

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What about the patients who are tested in the ER then transferred, because they think they are negative to a room with another patient .  Only to find out 2 days later that the patient is in fact positive. The other patient has to be isolated as a rule-out. Does that mean the HCW didn't get covid from that patient from ER after being in close physical contact with them?

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