Puke, cough, hack, wheeze, i gotta work (rant, graphic)

meownsmile, BSN, RN · Dec 20, 2005

I know its difficulty to justify coming to work sick, however employers dont afford people the luxury of being sick so people come to work sick. I know I dont have "sick" days, funny for a hospital not to recognize their employees actually do get sick too.

We have actually had employees call in and be told they had to come in or they would lose their jobs. Its tough, but we all do it, we go in deal with it as we can whether we are the ones sick or working for a sick co-worker.

Whos to say they didnt pick it up at work anyway, we take care of people with those symptoms every day. The other co-workers may have picked it up from the same patient not the first person that came to work with it.

It's flu season.

Marie_LPN, RN, LPN, RN · Dec 20, 2005

Thing that gets me is that we are afforded sick time where i work, i myself get 120 hours worth, and i've only been there for a little over 2 years. I can only imagine what amount someone gets who's been there for 15 years. (we not permitted to cash in any of this time at all)

We're encouraged to call off if we are sick, to avoid spreading this to others.

Drysolong · Dec 20, 2005

As an LPN nursing student, we are not allowed by our instructor to go on the floor if we are "contagious". When it has happened, we come to Clinicals (because we can't afford to lose clinical hours in the nursing program) but we stay in a conference room, doing clinical research type things or looking up clinical-related info for our fellow students.

It is really unfair and inconsiderate, to say the least, for a team member to put the health of others (employees and PATIENTS) at risk. Moreso, short-sighted for management not have something in place for obviously ill workers. As a patient, I wouldn't want someone sicker than me taking care of me.

I understand meownsmile's dilemna. What's needed? Stronger unions, nurse-patient-public alliances??????

SmilingBluEyes · Dec 20, 2005

If I am sick, (unless minor cold sx) I call OFF. It's for everyone's wellbeing I do, from my patients (vulnerable newborns and new mommies, and post-op GYNs) to my coworkers. I don't feel I have the right to get everyone else sick and have no problem calling out sick when I am. However, I do not call out sick just because I want off, either. If I say I am sick, I am. Some others, I know call out even when not sick. I can't do that, myself. It just feels wrong.

**RosesrReder, BSN, MSN, RN** · Dec 20, 2005

Makes no sense to continue to work under that condition. One stay at home day to get some rest and get well should be easily afforded for everyone.

scrmblr · Dec 20, 2005

We have been short staffed because of the gunk going around.

we were "laughing" or at least using our "nursing humor" yesterday. We had one nurse working with a 100.1 temp and another working with anemia from some dub. We were joking that it is kind of sad when the nurse is sicker then the pt.

(I work in the ER and we have had a run on not so sick er pt's that want a "work excuse")

Marie_LPN, RN, LPN, RN · Dec 20, 2005

As an LPN nursing student, we are not allowed by our instructor to go on the floor if we are "contagious". When it has happened, we come to Clinicals (because we can't afford to lose clinical hours in the nursing program) but we stay in a conference room, doing clinical research type things or looking up clinical-related info for our fellow students.

This is what we did too.

mstigerlily · Dec 20, 2005

I understand that when someone has the common cold, they're typically not going to call off from work.
However, it really annoyed me that our supervisor had to "recommend" to someone to go home, someone who has been hacking, sneezing, sore throat, snotting, coughing, puking, and plenty of diarrhea (found this out after i had to relieve this person 4 times in 2 hours).
GRRRRRR

At our work, if we call in sick more than 3 times in 6 months I guess get written up or disciplined. This seems like a lot, but if you have three kids and they all get sick too, it's really not. To top off the weirdness, if you call in sick three days in a row (say Tues, Wed and Sat that you are scheduled), that's only ONE sick call - but if you call in Tues then come back Wed then your kid gets what you had and you call off Sat then that is TWO sick calls.

I was really sick with a cold on Friday, sounded and felt terrible, no fever but really, really congested. I only came in because I had no sick days left and was taking a long awaited vacation for a week before Christmas. When I saw the charge nurse I asked to be given all the gyn patients instead of the mom/baby couplets so I wouldn't be around the babies and all she said was, "Good idea because you sound and look terrible. But I'm so glad you are here because we are SO short staffed! Thank God you didn't call off!"

Luckily I was given three gyn patients that I didn't have to touch other than hand them oral meds and feel pulses, etc.

Katnip, RN · Dec 20, 2005

Every place I've worked requires employees to sign an agreement to call in sick if they have something infectious other than a minor cold. It's for patient safety as well as courtesy to your fellow workers.

Bipley · Dec 20, 2005

Every place I've worked requires employees to sign an agreement to call in sick if they have something infectious other than a minor cold. It's for patient safety as well as courtesy to your fellow workers.

Wow... I've never been asked to sign anything like that.

chris_at_lucas_RN, RN · Dec 20, 2005

Every place I've worked requires employees to sign an agreement to call in sick if they have something infectious other than a minor cold. It's for patient safety as well as courtesy to your fellow workers.

Sounds like a great idea--unless it is just for show. I've found that a good bit of what admin likes to trot out to interviewees and orientees is just that. Then I learned that the best thing about them was they stayed the heck out of the way (never come on units or eat when the front line workers do), and maybe that's the best way to do it.

I call in sick when I am sick, because of patients and coworkers, and then find that I go in to work and get a good exposure anyway, and spend my off days sick from time to time.

But I also understand feeling guilty about being off sick when the workload is already pretty heavy.

On the other hand, I thought that's what PRN's and agency were for...?