A while back, I posted a thread about outrageous things hospitals expect you to do. I just remembered this, and I'm curious...what is the sickest yo have ever been, and the sup STILL insisted you show up?
I was fresh back from my honeymoon, and had worked about a week, and started to feel icky. I woke up one afternoon with a fever of 102. I worked nocs, so I called in and told the sup I was ill(I could barely talk). She said she did not care, I was the only ICU nurse scheduled, and I had to come in.
So I drive 45 miles, get to the unit, and we have NO patients. When that is the case, the ICU nurse is supposed to go to the floor and help (teeny hospital). I decided to take 5 minutes and put my head down before I headed out to the floor.
I remember waking up because I was cold, and I realized I was outside, being carried. The janitor, who I was friends with, had come through to mop, and had found me passed out behind the desk. The ER secretary had seen him come in the waiting room with me, and has sent him out the side door to carry me in the back, away from all the looky-loos. I was out again before we got into the ER. My fever was now 104.
The kicker? As the janitor carried me in, he heard the doc telling the sup that he needed an ICU bed. The janitor piped up and said that it would be a while for that bed. Doc, sup,AND patient all rounded on him with "Well, how do YOU know?" Janitor stepped in further, lifted me up a little higher, and said, "Because, HERE is your ICU nurse, THAT"S how I know!"
That got a reaction, he said.
Had I been conscious, I would have been hard pressed not to belt somebody, if I had heard that. And the sup had the gall to ask the doc if there was anything he could give me to fix it so I could stay and work! He took one look at my beet-red face and told her if I stayed, it would be in a bed, and that she had better call the relief nurse. She started wailing about there being no relief nurse, (because she had not scheduled one), and he told her she had better either get on the phone or suit up, her choice. I don't know what happened after that. I was only awake for that part of it, and I was so mad, I'm glad I passed back out. Probably saved me from getting fired.
Anything like this ever happen to you? I'd dearly love to hear it. 5 years ago, and that still makes me mad to think about.
Well there was the time I had started having diarrhea before I went home and had that and vomiting for the next 8 hrs so I called in for the next morning. The supervisor said Well do you think you could at least work part of the shift? This was 3am my shift starts at 5:30am, when I said no she got all huffy, thank heavens that I took that opportunity to vomit right next to the phone.:chuckle
Then there was the time that I fell AT WORK and thought I broke my wrist. They didn't get me a replacement until 3 hrs after it happened and then yelled at me for not passing my medications. Do you know how hard it is to open those little pill packages with one hand?
I enoyed your story too. Just sorry you were so sick.
Once I called in because I had severe cramps and heavy bleeding and knew I couldn't be running up and down the floor for 12 hours. My NM called me when she got to work and said "I can't believe you would let something like that keep you from coming into work". Sorry I can't work. She called me again a couple of hours later and asked if I was better. Sorry I can't work, and yet again she called me about half way through the shift only this time I wasn't home and she was ****** off. She calmed down when I came up to the floor on a stretcher from PACU. I had to go to the ER and had an emergency D&C. Still makes me mad too :angryfire
it was my day off already had one call about coming in for another sick call from staffing didn't call back and say no this person always called in and she picked up the shift. I had been sick and at work all week well later my manager calls me and leaves a message. so i call her back and she asks how are you i tell her i'm ill she says your sick to i say yes. Now you would think she would say oh never mind than i'll figure it out. No she doesn't say anything i'm like what do you want she like well so and so called in for nights. Now stupidly i said fine i'll come in what time do you want me there. There is no way i should have been there but hey she just wanted a warm body. Glad i don't work there any more.
nckdl
94 Posts
Well there was the time I had started having diarrhea before I went home and had that and vomiting for the next 8 hrs so I called in for the next morning. The supervisor said Well do you think you could at least work part of the shift? This was 3am my shift starts at 5:30am, when I said no she got all huffy, thank heavens that I took that opportunity to vomit right next to the phone.:chuckle
Then there was the time that I fell AT WORK and thought I broke my wrist. They didn't get me a replacement until 3 hrs after it happened and then yelled at me for not passing my medications. Do you know how hard it is to open those little pill packages with one hand?