What Are The Most Creative Call-off Excuses You Have Heard?

kismetRN · Sep 23, 2013

in the past I used CONJUNCTIVITIS as part of my excuse though it's not foolproof thing to do nowadays.. :no: :lol2:

Do-over, ASN, RN · Sep 23, 2013

Funny, I never give an excuse. I just call and say I won't be in.

elkpark · Sep 23, 2013

Last year, my department had someone call in two days in a row because her car wouldn't start -- not call to say she would be late because her car wouldn't start, but call to say that she couldn't come to work that day, period. She might have tried it a third day, but we told her the second day that she needed to do whatever she needed to do, call a taxi, rent a car, whatever, to get in the next day or she would be looking at being out of a job.

Not all that creative, I guess, but ...

Pepper The Cat, BSN, RN · Sep 23, 2013

I know someone who forgot they were working a shift and went away for the weekend. She remembered and called in "sick" from the hotel she was staying at. Too bad call display showed she was in a hotel in Niagara Falls! Busted!

MessyMomma · Sep 23, 2013

What about "Gramma" or "Uncle George" in the hospital/dying/died--once a month???

Not_A_Hat_Person, RN · Sep 23, 2013

A colleague's coworker called in sick, then went skiing. She went off trail, got hurt, and had to be rescued by ski patrol. The rescue made the news.

**LibraSunCNM, BSN, MSN, CNM** · Sep 23, 2013

I once heard "my glasses broke" as a request for an emergency vacation day. As a 20 year glasses wearer, I found this excuse pretty thin! I have at least 4 old pairs that, while not perfect, could get me through a shift. Made me stop to think what other lame excuses might work for me if needed!

Editorial Team / Admin · Sep 23, 2013

I once heard "my glasses broke" as a request for an emergency vacation day. As a 20 year glasses wearer, I found this excuse pretty thin! I have at least 4 old pairs that, while not perfect, could get me through a shift. Made me stop to think what other lame excuses might work for me if needed!

I don't find this excuse thin at all. As someone who has worn glasses for 23 years, the only time I got new frames was when they no longer fit (started wearing glasses in elementary school). I currently only own one pair of glasses. Every time the prescription gets changed, the old lenses get popped out of the frames and new ones put in. Saves quite a bit of money when you consider how much empty frames can cost! Also, as someone who is legally blind without glasses, I would not be able to work without them- couldn't read the computer screen, couldn't read the medication label, unable to drive, etc.

**LibraSunCNM, BSN, MSN, CNM** · Sep 23, 2013

I absolutely understand there are people who wouldn't be able to work without their glasses--I'm one of them. I didn't really think about someone saving the same pair of frames forever to save money, and who would therefore have no other spares. It just surprised me that someone who depends on their glasses would have NO backup plan if their lone pair was lost or damaged!

Orca, ADN, ASN, RN · Sep 23, 2013

My charge nurse called an employee who was a no-call, no-show, which was uncharacteristic for this employee. She swore that it was a different day of the week than it was. The CN assured her that it was in fact a day that she was scheduled to work, and he told her to just get dressed and come in. She said that she couldn't because she was traveling in another state.

I have also had issues with a couple of employees who seem to have some peripheral relative die about every other month, and they are constantly traveling to an adjacent state to attend the services.

RNperdiem, RN · Sep 23, 2013

I floated to this unit once. In report the charge nurse mentioned that the nurse I was filling in for had both pink-eye and gastroenteritis. Poor nurse must have felt miserable!