I hate fake call outs.

[KonichiwaRN]

I am a nurse.

On my off days, I make sure that I am getting plenty of rest, because I am a nurse and my duties at the floor requires my full attention.

So when I have to come in during my "off days" so that one of you who mysteriously calls out sick for the entire weekend, placing a call on Friday afternoon saying that you will be sick on Saturday and Sunday..

have no doubt that you have caused ill feelings and I hope that your words will come true for you. ?

I'm just not mean enough to place a "sick call" on the day that you're scheduled to be "on call." Maybe I would, but no..I'm not that mean. Although, it would be sweet. To see a cluster of your "off days," and placing a sick call just to get even with you.

But I live with a honor system. So what do I do? I join Allnurses to rant my feelings here.

I'm just ranting as you guys can see.

[klone, MSN, RN]

14 hours ago, michksmith14 said:

Our hospital also does the multiple days out in a row only = 1 absence. It's crap. We have one nurse who now has been approved for FMLA for migraines and so every time she calls out sick, she claims to have a migraine. This doesn't count against her absence total and so she can never be fired.

Never mind the fact that these nurses who consistently call out are the first ones to be upset and complain when someone calls out during their on shift! Ridiculous. ?

Most places do "multiple shifts in a row = 1 callout". It's only fair. Otherwise, an otherwise reliable worker could get fired for getting influenza.

Intermittent FMLA is not infinite. It also has to be renewed annually. In my experience, nurses who abuse their intermittent FMLA find that when they go to renew it the following year, they no longer have enough worked hours to qualify for a FMLA renewal. It's generally a self-correcting problem.

[Born to be A]

Don't assume that people are faking sick calls unless you have all the facts 100%. They are so many valued reasons why people call in sick such as chronic illness, sick child/parent to name few.

And of course, they are fewer people who call in to have a good time, it is not your job to keep a journal karma will catch up with them.

[xanderx]

I think someone needs a day off/call out

[SmilingBluEyes]

I have had migraines for years. I have worked so many shifts, I cannot count, while having migraines that made me light-sensitive, fragrance hyper-sensitive--- and throw up. I have never called out for a migraine. Just one whiff of heavy perfume can, and often does, trigger a migraine for me. I have to switch medications cause the migraines get "smart" and don't respond. I have been on them all, shots, nose sprays, pills, so many pills. Life with migraine is like a whole different color for us than those who don't have them.

But those of us used to dealing with these just power through it. I hate when people use migraine as a reason to call out. But I also know how bad they get. If one is not used to them, they can cripple. They are recalcitrant. They torture. I just have had to learn not to let mine cripple me. The worst ones are those that last multiple days. Go to bed with it; wake up next day, still there. It's all I can do not to call out when this happens. Migraines are no joke.

But damn, if you're gonna call out sick, you may want to lay low and not be out and about having fun or posting on social media like nothing's wrong. That bugs me too.

[kakamegamama]

On 4/27/2019 at 12:50 PM, KonichiwaRN said:

I hope all nurses who "fake call out" sick, will be greeted with a real sickness that befalls upon their own selves.

Well, hmmm....that isn't kind. I do indeed understand your frustration and have been there myself, but really, wishing an illness on someone just because they upset you is just plain wrong.

[KonichiwaRN]

On 5/1/2019 at 5:20 PM, kakamegamama said:

Well, hmmm....that isn't kind. I do indeed understand your frustration and have been there myself, but really, wishing an illness on someone just because they upset you is just plain wrong.

I agree. I took it back and as I stated, I was ranting my anger.

[xanderx]

18 hours ago, tonyl1234 said:

Seriously, are we in high school? How is it any of your business why someone calls out? Yeah, maybe they really are sick, but maybe they're overly stressed by management and need the time to cool off because going in is going to affect their care. Maybe there's a serious issue in their family. Or maybe they just feel like using their sick time and going to the beach.

It's absolutely none of your business.

Hear hear!!!

[Orion81RN]

22 hours ago, michksmith14 said:

She has made multiple comments when she comes back in that lead us all to believe she did not really have a migraine. Things like enjoying watching victorian era shows all day.... that doesn't sit well with everyone. Of course I don't have hard evidence but when she is open about what she has done with her time off, we can assume some. I understand many people have migraines and it is a serious issue, some of my close friends have them. They sure as heck can't watch TV with a real migraine. If you're calling out every single week, it's a problem. This is an integrity issue.

I also agree with many others who have pointed out that it is also management's problem to ensure staffing is adequate and accounts for potential call outs. With a small clinic like ours, the budget does not include more than one PRN nurse.

Edit: It should be noted that I do believe that she does get migraines. But when she is calling out every. single. week. it is frustrating for everyone.

I remember in nursing school learning it's called secondary gain. Using an illness to get out of things is an example.

[Orion81RN]

On 4/27/2019 at 1:25 PM, KonichiwaRN said:

I'm the type that will come for the duties, should I be the person "on call." I am "on call" that day, so since that "suspect nurse" called out sick..I will cover for that "suspected human scum of the earth that is faking a illness to get a entire weekend off."

You know what? I'm just going to say it. After reading through several of your posts, I am starting to believe those "human scum of the earth" who should, I'm paraphrasing here, get an illness out of revenge, are probably kinder human beings than you. I think you need to check your attitude.

[turtlesRcool]

On 4/30/2019 at 5:51 PM, Orion81RN said:

1) You are assuming that's why grown adults are calling off. Get off your high horse. They are honoring their contract as well if they have the amount of days allowed.

2) Staffing is administrations/managements problem. You aren't working short staffed bc of your coworkers. You are doing so bc of an administration that isn't prepared for anticipated call offs. (Anticipated meaning management KNOWS call offs WILL happen.)

1) No, I'm not. In my facility people aren't calling off for nice weekends. Or if they are, they're smart enough not to post about it on social media, and they're making up the weekend another time. My comment about honoring contracts was in regards to the comment that we shouldn't have to make up weekends. I don't LIKE doing it, but I'm an adult who chooses to work there, and I find the pros outweigh the cons for me. So, I make up weekends, and so do others.

Human nature being what it is, I admit I would be tempted to use some of my PTO for a beautiful "sick" day, but the reality of make-up keeps me honest. Maybe my moral compass isn't as strong a some people's, but I assume if I'd be tempted to call out to go to the beach with my family, there are others with the same temptation. As things stand now, I assume anyone who calls out really needs the time off.

Regarding make-ups for scheduled weekend PTO, if I'm on the schedule for a make up weekend after my vacation, that means someone else's PTO request can be granted for those days. Especially in high-demand vacation times like the summer, staffing can get stretched thinner than usual because so many people want PTO. If people weren't making up weekends, fewer week-long PTO requests would be granted.

2) Staffing is admin's responsibility, but it's not their problem. They aren't even there on weekends. When we're short, it's the staff's problem, even if it's not our responsibility.

Admin knows people will call out, and we have a float pool and per diems. But, those aren't always enough, especially during times of high hospital utilization.

In a perfect world, we'd all have an abundance of staff for every occasion. In the real world, any hospital that staffs for 100% capacity at all times is either a very busy facility that runs at 100% capacity most of the time, or it's a hospital that's hemorrhaging money.

I'm not sure what the percentage we staff for, but it's usually good. Sometimes the census dips, and people get down staffed or put on call. Sometimes the census rises, and people get floated to fill in gaps. The problem is when the census gets high hospital wide, and stays that way for a while past our usual reserves. Being short staffed is usually the result of high census levels rather than call outs, but most of us try to avoid unnecessary call outs during a census surge as those exacerbate the situation.

[ComeTogether, LPN]

I'm super lucky that most of my colleagues are amazing and we can all trust each other, if someone say they are sick - they are; BUT there are a few who have a statistical impossibility of only getting sick on the weekends following their friday/monday off. It really makes me mad and I often find myself hoping they get exactly what they are pretending to have.

[missmollie, ADN, BSN, RN]

You never "have" to go in. If it is your day off, then it's on you if you choose to pick up a shift because a co-worker called off. Put your phone on silent.

My best advice: Your phone is there for your convenience. You pay the bill, you own the phone, and you do not have to answer every call or text. You are putting yourself in this situation.