Pregnant, when do you start light duty?

Jedrnurse, BSN, RN · Sep 13, 2021

Well...

1. People aren't privy to other people's medical histories/conditions, so they should probably be quiet.

on the other hand...

2. There are certainly people in life who will unfairly milk a situation for all that it's worth. Speaking up won't accomplish anything, so they should probably be quiet.

What's the common theme?

JKL33 · Sep 13, 2021

If numerous staff are being given light duty and it is causing a problem on the unit then some of the employer's policies aren't well thought out.

I've never worked where everyone was allowed to clamor for desk duty/light duty. Whatever policies were in place made that a very short-term and relatively rare scenario.

I don't worry about the advice, instructions and prescriptions coworkers receive from their HCPs; it's none of my business and has nothing to do with me.

DesiDani · Sep 13, 2021

10 minutes ago, Jedrnurse said:

What's the common theme?

I don't know. I don't want to sit for 12hrs. Some do. I guess they don't want to lose their PTO and still earn it. It is not like we live abroad with good maternity leave.

JadedCPN, BSN, RN · Sep 13, 2021

Of course there are people who take advantage of the Light Duty situation, just like there are people who take advantage of FMLA. Not my business to determine what’s legit and what’s not though.

Jedrnurse, BSN, RN · Sep 13, 2021

17 minutes ago, DesiDani said:

I don't know. I don't want to sit for 12hrs. Some do. I guess they don't want to lose their PTO and still earn it. It is not like we live abroad with good maternity leave.

I was being self-referential. The common theme was "they should probably be quiet". ?

You do what you need to do for both your health and your professional ethics.

NightNerd, MSN, RN · Sep 13, 2021

Everybody's pregnancy, and in fact everybody's medical situation, is different, and we can't always see the details from the outside. Although I've absolutely had my thoughts about whose issues are legit and who's taking advantage, I keep my mouth shut and do my job; I have no need to speculate about anyone else's situation and try not to dwell on it. If I speak up, it is with general concerns about number of staff and number and acuity of patients - never specifically why one particular person can't be doing more.

RNperdiem, RN · Sep 13, 2021

I stay out of other people's private health issues. I assume some conversation and agreement was worked out with the manager. I also assume that I don't know all the details of another person's situation, so it is difficult to make any kind of judgement.

Sour Lemon · Sep 13, 2021

5 hours ago, DesiDani said:

First, I am not pregnant nor have I ever been. Some coworkers who do have kids are balking at some coworkers who immediately go on light duty upon knowing that they are pregnant. They say they ran to their doctor so they didn't have to work. I've seen some stay on the floor far into their pregnancies.

I don't know what to think. Others who have worked while pregnant call BS. What say you?

I've never worked at a hospital that allowed light duty. They've just written people unable to do their jobs right off the schedule.

Hannahbanana, BSN, MSN · Sep 13, 2021

I was doing CPR next to a patient in an ICU bed at 8 1/2 months with #1, so there's that. For #2 I was in grad school and not working ICU anymore, but you don't get light duty caring for a 2 year old, LOL.

Some people need to be light duty for pg-related reasons, and some just like to get the time off. They don't have to tell anybody why. MYOB, I guess is all we can say.

Editorial Team / Admin · Sep 13, 2021

My employer only does light duty for on the job injuries. If you need a desk job, you need to apply, interview, and get it. If someone has pregnancy restrictions that are not able to be reasonably accommodated (of course we won't assign you the measles patient or expect you to be the chemo mixer), they are expected to start FMLA. What's amazing is that when many of them realize they have shorter time after baby comes because they're using it sooner, those restrictions miraculously disappear.

T-Bird78 · Sep 14, 2021

As someone who had rough pregnancies, I can understand the need to at least ask for a lighter load. I had hyperemesis gravidarum, or “severe morning sickness” with both mine (calling HG ‘severe morning sickness’ is like calling a hurricane a ‘gentle tropical breeze’). I was hospitalized twice and on home health services for 3 weeks, including IV hydration at home, and wore a subcutaneous pump for a month. I missed a full 3 weeks, then a few days intermittently, in my first trimester. I didn’t have a light duty option, I was just out when I was sick. I worked until the day I hit 36 weeks, when my OB put me on bed rest due to premature contractions due to dehydration for the 3rd time (couldn’t have a water bottle at the nurse’s station).