such a confusing situation- long-ish

Published

Specializes in cardiology-now CTICU.

let me start at the beginning. i work fri/sat/sun nights. my unit is not staffed well and the summer vacation time was alloted by seniority at the beginning of may. this amounted to 4 shifts off for the period of may-sept. for me. took 3 as a long weekend and one as a sat night 8/11 (tonight).

the thing is that in mid may, my mother booked a trip for me to bring my son out to meet the extended family in ohio at the end of august. the trip would involve me missing one friday night shift 8/31. at that time i requested the shift off and was told that there is no more vacation time to go around and i will have to find someone to cover it.

fast forward. i have asked everyone, tried to work out trades, asked my nurse manager for help. all to no avail.

fast forward again. i injured my back last weekend and am out on comp until at least 8/24 (the date of my next follow up appointment). if i am back to work by 8/31, what do i do?

do i:

1. call and have a frank discussion with my nurse manager about not coming in friday 8/31 even if i am back to regular duty.

2. just call in sick.

3. attempt to change the flight plan and make my family cancel the party she planned for that friday night (they are already very irritated with me about this situation)

i think my NM is fed up with me in specific and staffing issues in general so i am feeling very conflicted about this.

thank all of you who made it this far. i do not usually get many responses when i post questions here but hopefully someone can help.

Specializes in med/surg, telemetry, IV therapy, mgmt.

I would reschedule the follow up appointment that is set up for the 24th. If they won't reschedule, tell them you're puking your guts out or constantly on the pot with diarrhea the morning of the appointment and can't get in there. Tell them you have no transportation to get there. Don't show up. Go to the office on 9/3 and say "I'm here for my appointment!" and act surprised to find that they, or you, got the appointment date and time wrong. Whatever it takes. You can't go back to work without the signed release from this worker's comp doctor. You've got 13 days to come up with a reason to give the worker's comp doctor for not being able to make the appointment on the 24th, if that's even going to be an issue. I'd already be packing my bags for the trip.

Don't even think twice about what your NM thinks. I was a nurse manager and these are the kind of problems that come with that job. If she can't stand it, then she needs to go back to being a staff nurse. So, there you have it. Have a nice family reunion. Hope your back is better. I've been side lined with a bad back since 2000. It's no picnic.

If it was me I wouldn't call in sick, if I already asked for the day off ... NM is going to be p'd off if you do this. I guess it depends on how much you like your job ... if you love it; skip the family function & work your shift. If not, you have a ready made excuse w/ your current back injury sooooo you could just keep that going a little long (wink, wink) & make sure you have the 31st off OR if you are feeling really brave just tell your NM you can't come in & will have to call in if no vacation time is available. It really depends on your opinion of you job ... if you want to stay there for 10 years, I'd just work the shift, but if you are looking for something else anyway then you could call in or extend your back injury ; ) Hope this helps ... Good LUCK!

Your best bargaining chip is your night off-it's late but can you call some coworkers and attempt a trade? Otherwise my advice would be to change your flight; I wouldn't fib about being ill-your boss and especially your colleagues will see right through it.

Specializes in LTC , SDC and MDS certified (3.0).

Tell the dr you back still hurts!!

Specializes in peds and med/surg.

I'd postpone the dr's appt. If not, just ask the doctor for another week. Tell him you are not ready, just give you another week.

Specializes in home health, peds, case management.

get a ride to your appointment on the 24th.

have your ride drop you off at the front door.

take 15 minutes to get out of the car, then hunch over, hobble and limp straight into a wheelchair.

tell the doctor your back is worse.

enjoy your vacation.

we will then send you your oscar!

:wink2:

Specializes in ICU, Surgery.

Telling lies and faking back pain to get out of work... NICE!

And we wonder why we are not believed and treated so badly when we truly are sick or in pain.

Specializes in Geriatrics/Family Practice.

Never ever let a job trump your family. I realize that there are facility's that cannot get coverage, but if you have vacation time coming, then I don't see how they can tell you "No!". Your job can replace you in a heartbeat, your family can't and won't. I'm not trying to sound mean, but we all are replaceable. I would lie my butt off to make sure that I could be with my family. It's not my common practice, but my family comes first. Good luck in whatever you do.

Specializes in Med Surg, Peds, OB, L/D, Ortho.

Resched. your follow up appt for the next week. Family first.......always!:balloons: Enjoy your time up north.

Specializes in telemetry, med-surg and hospice.

So obviously most of the posts are for going to the family function. Theres always going to be a do gooder in every crowd. One who would always follow the rules and put work above family. I applaud you for following all the right channels to get coverage. Now that those channels have not worked and in the process of caring for your patients, you have received a back injury, use that to your advantage. Take the time go see your family. Going back to early may reinjure your back. I also agree, these are the types of issues that managers have to deal with. Call and reschedule your appointment for the following week. Call your manager a couple of days before your shift and let her know, she will have plenty of time to figure something out. Have fun!!

Specializes in Travel Nursing, ICU, tele, etc.

I agree. You have gone well above the call of duty to get yourself replaced or to find a trade. How many times does your family get together for a reunion? I will bet, not that often. Is it lying to extend your time off because of your back pain? You really don't know that for sure. There is a very good chance that you won't be ready to go back to work anyway. Then what will they do? They will have to cover your shift anyway.

Ultimately, of course, the decision is yours. But it looks like circumstances may be siding with your desire to see your family.

None of us are that indispensable that you can't take some time off that frankly I think they should have given you way back when you asked for it, the big bullies!!

;););)

+ Join the Discussion