Co-Worker not smelling so good

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What do you do if one of your co-workers have this "not-so-good-smell" going on with them? I mean those with strong body odors, that you'll get dizzy once you're beside them especially if they are hanging the IV (arms raised). Do you confront them or just pretend that your not smelling anything?

LOL... I couldn't stop laughing at this thread! I never thought stank would be an issue in a workplace!

I was working back east a few years ago, and I was near the break room when I suddenly dropped a bunch of papers on the floor. So, naturally, I picked them up and halfway getting up, I got a wiff of the grossest smell I've ever encountered. Man, I thought, " Did something die while I was picking up paperwork?? " It was soooo nasty, it was like dead rat, cat poop, arm pit odor, etc. and all the smell was coming from a guy less than 10 feet away from me! THE SMELL ISN'T EXACTLY HUMAN.

I had sudden breathing problems and my eyes got watery. So, I got all my papers off the floor and ran to the ladies' room! A girl from finance dept. noticed I had a flushed face, and I had difficulty breathing and she asked me what's wrong. I told her about the guy and she said: "Oh, that's stinky Mike. He's that weird guy who lives in a trailer with NINE CATS!! He always smells like dead rat! If you see him coming, just dock for cover, he makes people puke!"

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I remember hearing something once about a website that offers services for these sorts of problems anonymously (for a cost, of course). E.g. you know someone whose breath is always stinky, so you go to this website, pick whatever is the problem, put down the person's address, and they receive an anonymous gift basket full of things like a new toothbrush and toothpaste, a booklet on good dental hygiene, mouth wash, mint gum, etc.

I wonder if this site still exists... I will look into it...

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Specializes in ED. ICU, PICU, infection prevention, aeromedical e.

If we are disgusted, imagine how the patients who they touch feel. It needs to be addressed. We have a respiratory therapist who smokes every hour and reeks. She covers it up with perfume. It is so bad you can smell her from across the room. And she is taking care of respiratory patients. We have a "no perfume" rule at our hospital, but it is really only used for situations like this. Other nurses and I have made comments to her about how strong she smells, it is no secret. We have been polite and professional and upfront. No change. It has gone to her manager as a complaint and we have cited how patients ask that she not come into her room. I am hopeful for a change.

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Specializes in LTC.

Could be cultural.Some cultures dont believe in wearing deordorant or bathing.

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Specializes in med surg,.

I am very careful about hygiene and rarely sweat except when I work. I have to wear the very strong deoderant like clinical secret. You could put a note like i got a extra sample of this and thought you might like to try it and dont sign the note. I cant stand people who over perfume. I get very sick from some scents and that is why nurses shouldnt wear perfume period. We are too close to our pts body to subject our pts to strong smells.

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Specializes in Peds/outpatient FP,derm,allergy/private duty.

Whoa- caught my own bias there!! I assumed it was a guy, too. The issue really does have to be addressed when you work with sick people who are easily nauseated. We had an x-ray tech who had an overpowering smell of rancid cigarette smoke that was 10 times worse when she talked. My co-workers all said, yeah, we've brought it up, nothing ever changed. Smokers become immune to the smell, I guess.

Another lady just had terrible hygeine habits. No one had the courage to confront her so eventually a nurse manager had "the talk". She came to work clean and spiffy as could be for a few weeks, but eventually resigned for a major depressive episode. I'm thinking her apathy toward her hygeine may have been a symptom of a deeper issue. She was a nice lady, too.

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leave good smelling powder,body mist,deodorant in bathrooms.

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Specializes in Operating Room Nursing.
I have to say there is a coworker that I work with also that is always smelling disgusting. We both work double weekends together and he is funky from the AM shift till PM shift. I don't know what to tell him. I am so scared to offend him but the smell is not musty, it's the smell you get when you don't shower. An "ass" smell and it is so horrible. I talk to all the other coworkers I work with and they all agree that he smells really bad. I get mad because I question myself on whether it's me or him that smells because the odor is some strong and overpowering. I feel like it's coming off my body. I always test myself to see if it's me. It's funny but I do it because I just can't believe a person can smell that bad at the beginning of a shift.

I agree that poor body odours need to be dealt with, patients and other staff should not have to put up with people who stink.

However I think discussing it behind his back with other coworkers isn't really professional and it's unfair to him, in fact it could be humiliating if it gets back to him. If it bothers you so much then it needs to be discussed with your manager so he/she can deal with the problem more constructively.

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Specializes in EMT-P.

Again, many people are not cognizant that they percolate or exude of odor, and I am more than sure that most that discover that they do would wish to rectify this foul predicament that they find themselves in. With that said, and again I am assuming a normal behaving person, this diaphoretic person would most likely appreciate someone taking them aside and revealing their less than pleasant fragrance as opposed to hearing about it from a manager or boss.

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Oh, man. I have been there, too -- working with someone who was extremely smelly. The thing is, there are some people who can't wear deoderant due to health reasons (lymph node issues, etc.) so maybe that's the case? Sometimes it's religious ... that's why I have never said anything when in a similar position in the past ...

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Being a guy and a fireifighter, I run into this type of stuff all the time. I have found that it is best to approach the person respectfully and tell them what you are noticing and see what they have to say about it. THey might be a little embarrassed, but at least this brings it to their attention and will hopefully keep the talking behind their back to a minimum. I think they would actually appreciate that you brought it to their attention.

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I vote for Management to handle this. That's why they are managers and get paid more - to deal with this type of thing.

If you know the person well, you could gently and privately just broach the subject. Could be clean body but dirty clothes. I have to wash my collars carefully, like by hand with extra soap, as I perspire heavily and I notice that the clothes themselves smell, not me. Or if I don't treat fungal rashes, which are sort of permanent due to elevated blood sugar, I can smell me. So I think others probably can, too, and so I take extra care. I wash at work and apply meds and put on a clean undershirt and shirt if I'm working more than my regular shift.

The best approach is the anonymous letter to the Manager - totally anonymous - no fingerprints, no handwriting, nothing to ID you, if an anonymous note to the person herself doesn't work. Be nice, it could be you.

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