Light Duty in Cath Lab?

[pcapups]

I work as a nurse in the Cath Lab and I am 30 weeks pregnant. My Doctor recently told me she wants me on light duty because of gestational diabetes and high blood pressure. My manager still wants me to take call and work as the monitor person but we run only a 3 man team and the monitor person offten has to come out and assist with the cases. My doctor doesn't want me in lead at all and compressions are out of the question as well it was a struggle to get her to agree to light duty rather than putting me out all together so my question is should I take this to Human Resources to see if they would be more helpful to enforce the light duty? Or just give in and go out on early leave which I really can't afford to do?

[dianah, ASN]

A thought: If you go to HR, they may find you a position outside the Cath Lab. Are you prepared for that?

Is there any way you can get a prescription from your doctor that specifically names limitations (rather than just "light duty" = too general a term): no compressions, no wearing lead, etc.

It would be nice (and decent) if your department as a whole stepped up to the plate and supported you through this (only 10 more weeks, plus postpartum period, right?). But they are not required to; ultimately, management's responsibility is to get the work done.

Perhaps they feel like they won't have enough staff to do what needs to be done for the cases, if you are light duty only.

Hope you can arrive at a mutually-beneficial agreement with your department, if you wish to remain in the Cath Lab.

Again, this IS only temporary. And your health and baby's health are paramount.

[Rose_Queen, BSN, MSN, RN]

What you will find is that most facilities only offer light duty for on the job injuries resulting in restrictions. One of the departments I work with recently had to terminate an employee who was not cleared to maintain the requirements of the job and had exhausted FMLA. He'll be hired back in a heartbeat if there's an open position and he's cleared. But the needs of the department have to be weighed against the needs of the individual. In a setting like the cath lab, I can see that being an issue.

[rkitty198, BSN, RN]

What you will find is that most facilities only offer light duty for on the job injuries resulting in restrictions. One of the departments I work with recently had to terminate an employee who was not cleared to maintain the requirements of the job and had exhausted FMLA. He'll be hired back in a heartbeat if there's an open position and he's cleared. But the needs of the department have to be weighed against the needs of the individual. In a setting like the cath lab, I can see that being an issue.

This. I had to go out at 36 weeks for pregnancy induced hypertension. My boss said there was no light duty for me. I had to take fmla. Luckily I get 18 weeks. So I used 6 pre baby, and 12 post baby in Washington state.

If you can't due to financial reasons make it work somehow. You almost have no choice. When having kids this unknown is the territory that becomes the ground you walk. Kids get sick, you get sick. I worked 50 hour shifts when my daughter was 4 months old to recoup some of my financial losses to help.

Good luck and when it is all said and done it is so worth it. Enjoy the time for yourself because you never get it back.

Congratulations.

[adventure_rn, MSN, NP]

I'd be worried about what a mess you may have on your hands if a patient safety issue occurs as a result. For instance, what would happen if a patient were coding and you had to do compressions? What would happen if a patient had a bad outcome because you refused to do them? It seems like that could result in a malpractice lawsuit and/or termination. Even if the situation weren't quite so dramatic or severe, it seems like you could be terminated if your manager feels that you're consistently unable to do your job (although I know literally nothing about your legal protections, specifically being pregnant). Being fired would be the absolute worst case employment scenario, since you'd lose your FMLA entirely.

It actually might not terrible if HR could find you a temporary position outside of your unit, although I don't know how likely that is to happen. Congratulations, and best of luck!

[MilliePieRN]

I don't see the problem with just monitoring and throwing on a lead apron in emergencies (they don't weigh that much). Monitors shouldn't have to do compressions anyway (in our lab, scrubs and md's would be the compressors), monitors handle airway. It's not that frequently that our monitors have to come in, just when we go pci to help throw out things. Our staff monitors while pregnant. The stress and rush of a stemi would be the biggest concern, I believe. Easy to strain in an emergency. I'm sure all labs do it differently, though.

[Vana21, ADN, BSN, RN]

you can see if they will allow you to go to the holding pre/post area for the pregnancy term