I work in a psych/chemical dependency unit. We have two sides, one for crisis with 30 beds and another with 16 beds which is more of a stabilization/transitional type service (that's my side). We have two RNs on at any given time, one on each side. Anyway, there is a virus running rampant on my unit. The patients are sick as dogs and so are many of the staff. I had it two weeks ago, and when I went to call in I was told that I needed to come in because they needed an 8 hour notice. Um, sure, 8 hours would be courteous but who really knows if they're going to be sick in 8 hours? That's a little unrealistic, especially with only 12 hours between shifts. I was actually trying to wait and see if the vomiting/diarrhea would go away, but it didn't. Well, they ended up calling in another nurse to work overtime and cover my shifts, thank God. There was absolutely no way that I could have worked that day. I was in the bathroom literally every five minutes. I'm the only nurse to those extremely needy med seekers, so I'm constantly being bombarded with "psychosis" episodes, PRN requests, etc. So, yeah, not much room for bathroom breaks. OK, fast forward to today, the day nurse that relieved me was literally puking out of her car window on the way to work because she attempted to call in and the supervisor said that she had to come in because there was no one to cover. In my opinion, forcing the staff to come in while extremely ill is probably what caused the outbreak among the patients. Staff was the first group to come down with it, then the patients.
So, my question is, are you forced to go to work when you have vomiting/diarrhea going on? Aren't we supposed to be advocates for our patients? Shouldn't their well being be our top priority? How is going to work with a wicked virus that can easily be passed on to our patients supposed to help them? For the record, I am NOT one to call in. I know how badly it affects everyone. However, I feel that some things warrant staying home, and this issue is definitely one of them. This is just another reason to hate my job even more, and I have plenty of reasons as it is.
Specializes in Psych, Corrections, Med-Surg, Ambulatory.
Sounds like a noro outbreak waiting to happen. Next time I'd ask your supervisor if the health department knows that it's their policy for Healthcare workers to come in puking/with the runs? I'm sure they'd be dying to know!
I think it sounds like a noro outbreak in progress. And it will never resolve if staff are coming to work with GI symptoms. Everyone is continuously reinfecting each other. Stay home until 48 hours after your last symptom. Meanwhile, those at work should be bleach-wiping everything.
No one can force you to do anything. You need to consider your license, the safety of the patients, and your health into consideration. If a patient fell while you were in the bathroom, you can be sure the facility would not accept fault.
GOOD GRIEF!!! They can't refuse youe call out. How are they going to force you to come in? Hold a gun to your head when they come and get you out of your house? Just tell them no I can't make it I am sick. Half the time I dont even tell them the reason I am calling out sick. I just tell them I am sick. GROW A BACK BONE PEOPLE!!
Unfortunately,we are too short-staffed for anyone to cover my shift. I had an instace a couple of months ago wherecI had a stomach virus and had vomited all night long.The next day,I was still unable to keep anything down. I yried to call work and tell the scheduler I was unable to come in because I was vomiting about every w0 minutes.I was informed that there was no coverage and they had toilets there. So I went to work and had to stop twice to throw up and had to leave shift to shift reprt. The rest room is at the nurses station and they heard the sounds..,but I still couldn't leave. My stomach emptied several more times at work and at one point during the med pass,,I brought up a hugge amount of bile ins patient's toilet
Never again will I go to work when I'm throwing up. I've also become sick at work,and vomited profusely but was umable to ho home because of staffing.
I absolutely do not. Thankfully have only had to call in for GI symptoms twice. First time was working my old job with a crummy manager (but awesome staff and shift supervisors who were very understanding of the fact that I was legitimately miserable) and she flipped out until I told her they were going to send me to the ED if the 6th IV poke wasn't successful and I wasn't about to risk giving our chemo patients with no immune system whatever I had (onc floor who got med/surg overflow & borderline ICU medical). Second time was at my current job, no issue. Probably because we knew the kid had noro, and despite being in contact isolation, every nurse who had taken care of him that week got sick with GI symptoms.
I don't know about where you guys work but I'd LOVE it if infection control at my hospital would change their policy for noro and make it contact/droplet. I mean most of the times when kids have it they're so miserable that their coughy, sneezey, and snotty too.
I can function through work with a migraine, a cold, bronchitis, severe pregnancy nausea/vomiting, but full blown GI bug symptoms out of both ends...not going to happen.
I rarely get sick, but yes, if I am able to drag myself to work, I go.
Why? Because our sick time is only usable after being out for TWO DAYS and using 24hrs of your PTO.
I'm the primary breadwinner at my house right now, I can't just take a short check. I also can't do without my PTO, after taking some out while on call, I barely have enough to keep from getting burnt out and killing other nurses.
I plan to bring it up with my superiors, probably on my way out the door. Our policy heavily encourages people to work sick. It's supposed to discourage abuse of sick days, but if that were honestly the case, we would have at least one or two per year that could be used no questions asked.
We are so short-staffed that they don't have anyone to cover if we call out. Last winter,I caught a stomach virus and had been vomiting all night long. When I tried to call out,I was told there was no one to cover the shift,and when I explained I was vomiting,was told there were toilets there. Needless to say,I threw up twice on the way to work,and again during report.Halfway through the shift,I vomited bile in a patient's bathroom. Didn't get anything done but the med pass,as I had my head in the toilet most of the day.
Well,there's not enough staff to cover,and even less likely to find someone else once the shift started. In a separate episode from the one this week,I once went to work feeling fine,then as the shift went on,developed a stomach ache and vomited. I stayed though.
TriciaJ, RN
4,328 Posts
I think it sounds like a noro outbreak in progress. And it will never resolve if staff are coming to work with GI symptoms. Everyone is continuously reinfecting each other. Stay home until 48 hours after your last symptom. Meanwhile, those at work should be bleach-wiping everything.