Giving notice related to health issue

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Specializes in med surg ltc psych.

Hello to all. I have been nursing for a little less than a year after finally getting a position I really liked more than anything else. Until the last two weeks. I self evaluated my situation and working conditions and attributed it all to working the 11p-7a shift. It certainly wasn't a problem for me until recent. That shift really can be rough on the body. My symptoms didn't get better and became unmanageable. My attendance record swiftly went into the getting close to being fired catagory. One evening, I was still asleep after midnight and did not even call in. I slept right through the alarm clock and my cell phone ringing next to me when my supervisor called. Not due ot lack of sleep as I had been sleeping 11 hours. Seriously in some trouble, and had called off several nights prior to this. I look completely irresponsible. I went to my doctor and had bloodwork done. I specifically asked if he could order tests for autoimmune disorders. I suspected a possiblity of fibromyalgia or even lupus. So I asked please can you order an ANA. Got that done and just got the results. Severely positive ratio and refered to rheumatologist. Dr. said the titer shows about a 90% positive for systemic lupus. Bad news for me of course, but left with how am I going to clean up this mess of perfect attendance to suddenly trashed down the gutter, and feeling like I HAVE to quit the job. They can't place me on part time or PRN status, or even a different shift for better hours. That would take months. Of course I don't want to be officially fired, and sad that I will loose a good job and my medical insurance if I resign but to preserve and regain any health back and not exacerbate my condition worse than it is. Would giving a notice in writing stating this is the reason for leaving be sufficient and allow me to still get a positive reference letter still be possible? Any practicing nurses out there with lupus and how do you manage? :redbeathe

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Specializes in home health, dialysis, others.

GO DIRECTLY TO HR AND OBTAIN THE FORMS FOR FMLA.

Call your facility's EAP line, and get the first appt available.

Do not give notice - you are sick. Have your doc write a brief letter about your recent issues.

Keep your head up, and Best Wishes. One of my favorite instructors had lupus. Take care of yourself.

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GO DIRECTLY TO HR AND OBTAIN THE FORMS FOR FMLA.

Call your facility's EAP line, and get the first appt available.

Do not give notice - you are sick. Have your doc write a brief letter about your recent issues.

Keep your head up, and Best Wishes. One of my favorite instructors had lupus. Take care of yourself.

I concur with this. Do not jumpt the gun and go for the worst outcome when there is still a possibility that you could deal with this in a way that will allow you to keep your job. Best wishes. (And maybe you could have a heart to heart with your supervisor or at least a minimal talk to explain things. Even if you leave, you will need references in the future.)

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Specializes in Health Information Management.

Hold it. You said you've been working at this site "a little less than a year." How much less? FMLA is a good option to give your body time to recover, as the earlier posters suggested, but you cannot claim it until you have worked for your given employer for at least one year.

If there is any way you can drag yourself through till you hit the one year mark, do it. If you have a supervisor or manager you REALLY trust, you could try talking to him/her about the situation. But going off health insurance now is the worst idea in the history of man, unless you're able to get it through COBRA or a spouse. I wish you the very best, because I know from experience how hard such situations can be. You might try the Nurses with Disabilities forum for additional advice.

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Specializes in med surg ltc psych.

My time at this facility has only been seven months. I spoke to the day house supervisor and rightly so, I don't have any recourse at this time other than to give notice which I did. I'm not in a position to take FMLA, or hold on to any medical insurance which may sound like health insurance suicide but.. it is akin to torture for a person to try to hobble into a 40 hr/wk 11p-7a shift to "hold on to something" when in doing so may put you in the hospital. I will see what the nurses with disabilities forum has going for support aside from medical doctor treatment if any and other support groups. Right now standing at a pyxis for 2.5 hours pulling meds for two floors (I work at a psych hospital adult open unit and chemical depencency) and 4 to six admits nightly, all 38 chart check audits and lab preps with just me and another RN would completely sabotage any hope of preserving my health for any part time work elsewhere. There were no offers of alternatives or accepting a doctors statement regarding my current health condition or for less hours. I will just have to accept paying for the tremendous lab bills and rheumatologist's fees and specialty testing myself somehow as opposed to making med errors at work and passing out on the drive home in the car the next morning (which I practcally did two days ago and almost caused a highway accident) I gave proper notice and reason. I can't see them not giving a satisfactory referal if my performance was fine aside from this recent health problem causing me to suddenly have to be absent?

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You would not be the first person who got poor referrals after leaving a job over health reasons. It does not take much to convey a negative attitude toward a former employee. Hope you are able to resolve this so that you can work.

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Specializes in Nursing Professional Development.

Have you asked them directly what your records will say and/or what type of reference they would give in the future? Be sure the proper information/explanation for your recent attendance problem is documented appropriately in your employee file ... and then ask them how that will be conveyed to any future potential employer who may call for a reference check.

Don't assume they would give you a bad reference ... but also don't assume they will give you a good one. Ask them directly, express your concerns, and ask that it be listed in your file as a resignation due to illness -- not that you were unreliable and irresponsible.

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Specializes in Health Information Management.
My time at this facility has only been seven months. I spoke to the day house supervisor and rightly so, I don't have any recourse at this time other than to give notice which I did. I'm not in a position to take FMLA, or hold on to any medical insurance which may sound like health insurance suicide but.. it is akin to torture for a person to try to hobble into a 40 hr/wk 11p-7a shift to "hold on to something" when in doing so may put you in the hospital. I will see what the nurses with disabilities forum has going for support aside from medical doctor treatment if any and other support groups. Right now standing at a pyxis for 2.5 hours pulling meds for two floors (I work at a psych hospital adult open unit and chemical depencency) and 4 to six admits nightly, all 38 chart check audits and lab preps with just me and another RN would completely sabotage any hope of preserving my health for any part time work elsewhere. There were no offers of alternatives or accepting a doctors statement regarding my current health condition or for less hours. I will just have to accept paying for the tremendous lab bills and rheumatologist's fees and specialty testing myself somehow as opposed to making med errors at work and passing out on the drive home in the car the next morning (which I practcally did two days ago and almost caused a highway accident) I gave proper notice and reason. I can't see them not giving a satisfactory referal if my performance was fine aside from this recent health problem causing me to suddenly have to be absent?

Okay, there's one other option I can offer...you could try getting hooked up with your state's Bureau of Vocational Rehabilitation/Rehabilitation Services Commission. This agency helps those who are in some way disabled (not just people who are on SSDI) maintain work or retrain for other jobs. It is possible that you could work with them and they could help find ways to make your job more physically friendly for you. For instance, they will often send in a rehabilitation engineer to evaluate your work environment to look for ways that duties, routines, workspaces, etc. could be modified (in cost-effective ways) so that you can actually do them without destroying yourself in the process. However, the agency can only suggest and offer funding and tax breaks; it cannot mandate that the employer do what has been suggested.

I sympathize deeply with your situation. Sometimes there are no good answers. If you're at seven months, hanging on till you hit a year's employment is going to be rough. Get out your employee manual and look for possibilities like an unpaid leave of absence; some employers till offer them to any employee past a probationary period, separate from FMLA leave, but they don't exactly advertise the option. If AT ALL POSSIBLE, I urge you to maintain health insurance - use COBRA even if it seems the cost will break you. With that kind of a diagnosis, the cost will be worth it. Otherwise, even when you do get insurance again through another employer, you'll spend the rest of your days fighting (and often losing) to have even the most basic care covered, because everything will be considered and billed as related to your condition.

As for your reference - it's better to get it hashed out now and know what your employer is planning. If you can, try to get them to issue a letter of reference before you leave that you can take with you.

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Specializes in Family Practice, Mental Health.

To the OP;

What does your Doctor say when you've consulted about your medical condition and work related issues?

Can you be placed on light duty? Can you get temporary disability? There are many options. You are close enough to the situation to know what fits best, but you must try and get enough information to make an informed decision.

Exhaust your resources, not yourself.

Make a face to face appointment with your Doctor. Be your own patient advocate and ask for options available to you....what has the Doctor done in the past for situations such as yours.

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Specializes in Family Nurse Practitioner.

I hope you feel better soon and please don't resign yourself to not working full time just because of a Lupus diagnosis at least until you see how your disease progresses. Take care.

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Specializes in med surg ltc psych.

Thank you all for the input and support. To answer the above, my doctor has told me straight out to get off the 11-7 shift. When confirmed today that I could not transfer to another shift or even go to prn status I didn't really have any other recourse or plan of action to salvage anything. I had not oppted for disability benefits at hiring, and did not think I would ever need it. Never say never. The supervisor was quite cut and dry.. bye bye. Interesting thing about this Lupus business is that the go-getter in you gets gone. The wrangling it takes to try to get some things in place for yourself when you can't even bare weight on your ankles and even your hair hurts, is so daunting when the body is in complete revolt and betrayal. I want that multi tasking sharp person back. What I need to be doing is let go for now. You all know the nerve racking anquish of bargaining in your mind about leaving a job or staying. You don't sleep too well. I could hardly accept putting myself out of work and going into that office and tell them I am resigning. But to think of getting restorative sleep, reduced chaos and less adrenaline surging (which triggers autoimmune disorders two fold) and feeling somewhat human again is a welcome releif. Remember the worst flu you ever had and imagine working night after night trying to care for your patients and be safe at the same time. Any time you are even a bit off you run the risk of error. Believe me I am giving myself a gift and a blessing by leaving with nothing, and hopefully gaining my health back one cell at a time.

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Specializes in Health Information Management.

You have my heartfelt best wishes for your future. I hope this break helps you to regain the health-ground you've lost while trying to be a great employee.

When you're feeling a bit better, I still recommend talking to the folks at BVR/RSC. Their help can be a godsend. Good luck!

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