Pregnant and feel I'm being treated unfairly

[ham22]

What do you think? I just turned 12 weeks pregnant and I feel like I am being given a really hard time at work. I work in LTC and my ADON and Don have had a negative attitude toward me ever since I tod them I was pregnant. For example. Back when I was only 6 weeks along we had a res break out with Shingles. I called her Doc and got an order for her but told him I had not seen her since I was PG and that I was reporting what the NOC nurse and other staff had told me. The Doc stated that was fine and for me not to go in there. My ADON attempted to force me to go into this res room and kept telling me that it was absolutely safe for me to go in there basically telling me I was overreacting. I refused and still have not went into her room. (BTW- This is an independent res who only needs minimal assist of a CNA). Also, last week when I arrived at work, they were laying new ceramic tile. The glue was very stong so I called my Doc and asked her if it was safe. To make a long story short, the maintenence men were supposed to show me an MSDS stating that there were no known birth defects from this glue. Well, nobody could show me that so I went home, as instucted by my Doc. The next day I get a nasty phone call from my ADON insisting that this glue is perfectly safe. She flat out said "Your Doctor is wrong." I told her I had read the MSDS on the web-site for this glue and it does not state anywhere that it will not cause birth defects so that is not good enogh for me. She still continues to insist that it is perfectly safe. My DON shares her view. I explained to him that I could not be at work around this glue and he was very short with me and swears that they won't be using it when I come to work Friday. I do have a Doctor's note stating that she does not want me around this glue but my Don also acted like I was overreacting. He stated to me in a very sarcastic tone "Oh, aren't we getting all motherly" which I did not appreciate at all. I really never thought that they would give me such a hard time over this. What should I do if I go to work Fri and they are using it? What would anyone else do in my position? Thanks!

[ham22]

hey all! well it has been a while since i have been back on the site and just wanted to fill everyone in on things. i had been sticking to my guns and just going to work and keeping to myself and trying not to give my "wonderful" employers any reason to you know "get rid of me". they stayed on my case and gave my hours away and turned my schedule upside down and put me down to work hours that they knew i could not possibly work etc., etc. anyway, around 3 weeks ago, i start having signs of preterm labor. the first thing i noticed was severe low back pain while sitting through a 6 hour mandatory meeting , (after working alone -in charge of 75 residents earlier that morning)then i went home and kept getting these tearing sensations across my upper abdomen but i kept telling myself it was nothing. i dismissed it away as exhaustion and went through the weekend and finally went to my doc that monday. (this had all started on fri btw) sure enough, the monitor showed i was having contractions. i also had gas and diarrhea, and what felt like menstrual cramps as well as a very heavy sensation in my lower abdomen. they admitted me right then and there, put me on indocin for the contractions and macrobid just in case of infection even though they couldn't find any and gave me so much ringer's that i felt like i could have exploded at any given time. even though they told me i was not dehydrated either. well i am home now but the funny thing is that the high-risk dr. confimed what i had known all along- it was probably due to my overdoing it at my job and all the stress i was under. they really can't find a physical reason for this happening. he says my cervix is at the small end of the spectrum but not abnormally small. (mine is a 3.2 with the cutoff point being a 3 -he says if it is under that it is considered too small)so i guess i should have thrown in the towel and gave up on my job a long time ago. now that i know the real damage those people could have done and i am away from there for a while things seem alot more clear. i just didn't want them to win. the baby and i are doing fine at this point and the docs say that i may be able to return to work part-time next week. but right now i am thinking-at what cost? i think i will probably just turn in my two weeks because i know there are better places to work and better people to work with! hope my vent was not too long!

[smk1, LPN]

good for you! i once worked at a AL and one of the rooms was being re-carpeted and the smell from the glue caused my pulse, and bp to rise from significantly from their norms. I know this because i got so sick that i almost fainted and the DON saw me with my head between my knees and took my vitals. I ended up going home and getting a full blown migraine and was in bed for 2 days. I was severley affected and i wasn't even pregnant so imagine what those chemicals could possibly do to a developing fetus! You take care of yourself and your precious bundle and to HECK with those people at the LTC!

[chris_at_lucas_RN, RN]

Sounds like a classic case of "hostile working environment." Make sure you use that phrase when documenting.....

Also sounds like classic discrimination on basis of sex. Forcing you to work in an environment which is unhealthy, even if you weren't pregnant, is bad form.

What about the fumes and the poor patients?

Good luck, hon--and keep advocating for that baby! (In Texas, you would be eligible for unemployment if you chose not to work under those circumstances.... or so I am led to believe.)