going to work sick?

[inthesky]

I had a family emergency on tuesday..so i had to abruptly abandon my shift. I did not feel well going to work on wednesday as charge nurse, but went anyway as I had left my med nurse shift the day before and being charge nurse is much less replacable than med nurse. I got progressively sicker during the day..i started to live near the box of tissues and even had to put phone calls on hold to blow my nose or sneeze. (I did santize each time of course!). I woke up this morning with a burning angry swollen throat and the post-nasal drip from hell so I did call in (luckily another med nurse shift). I want to go to work tomorrow. I feel like it won't look good to call in again and that the unit needs me. After popping some sudafed, tylenol, and eating smoothies all day, i'm feeling a bit better. It's a behavioral health hospital, so my patients are usually not immunocompromised (although our old detoxers can be somewhat ill).... So this is probably nothing more than the common cold..nothing white and splochy..no coughing..no fever )

What is your opinion of going to work sick? Does it matter that I work behavioral health?

I'm probably going to call the unit and ask if they want me to come if I wavering too much.

[TopazLover, BSN, RN]

If I worked with you and you were spreading all those pesky little germs around, I would rather you stay home than chance infecting more staff. I learned someplace along the way that no good deed goes unpunished and going to work sick is one of those. We tend to ignore our own bodies and their language that says take better care of yourself.

My opinion. Stay home and get fully functioning so you will not be half sick for a longer period of time and possibly be working short handed because somebody else caught it (and blames you, of course).

[FERN-tastic]

I'd stay home. Don't risk spreading the germs. And if your workplace is like mine, 2 days in a row is one incidence. If you call in sick one day, come back a day, and then decide you're too sick again and call in, it's 2 incidences. I've always thought it's best to stay home a few days and get over it, then go back to work and have it linger and not get better.

[inthesky]

I'm going to call in sick I feel more energetic and less mucusy than yesterday, but I developed some laryngitis and I've been coughing. :innerconfI called occupational health and each day is its own instance. I would have totally gone to school like this..but i don't have to talk at school and could walk around with throat spray, lozenges, and tissues.

grrr..there goes my PTO =(.

[Iam46yearsold]

I never go to work sick. The admin always puts so much emphasis on customer satisfaction. The old days I would work ill, now, though, if Im sick, I call in ill.

[inthesky]

good thing I called in.. i lost my voice!! nearly completely! No questions answered by a mute nurse