Working while sick!

barefootlady, ADN, RN · Mar 11, 2005

Wow, why do supervisors always do this? You already know if you don't take care of yourself, no one else will. That said, if you get sick at work, call supervisor, tell her you are sick and need to go to ER or fast track or whatever, but you need a doctor and right now. If the doctor puts you off for a few days, there is nothing they can do about it.

About the annual budget and layoffs. You are an experienced nurse, and therefore, valuable, do not allow yourself to become doubtful of this fact. Like so many nurses who live and work in rural areas, I have battled those feelings, but I have come to realize, I may have to make a change, but if I am pushed too far, I can do it.

I hope you have an easy shift, right now there is a virus going around that takes it times and about 3 courses with the human body before it is shaken. I wish you well. Remember, when they need you to work overtime, you have the right to say no. :angryfire

danu3 · Mar 11, 2005

You should not call your supervisor. You should meet your supervisor face to face and tell her. No need to wash your hands since you are so busy and you can save your supervisor some time. Then whatever the outcome, thank your supervisor and shake her hand. :devil:

Now if s/he gets sick and takes off later since there is this flu or whatever that is going around, you should have the right too.

-Dan

barefootlady, ADN, RN · Mar 11, 2005

Forgive the oversight, yes, talk to this supervisor in person. LOL.

ScarlettRN · Mar 11, 2005

I'm so sorry you are sick and are having to work. Almost every nurse I know has been put in this position at one time or another and in my personal experience, it creates resentment.

Too bad you can't just call in, say you are sick, thank you very much, and hang up.

nurselily3 · Mar 11, 2005

Just curious, don't you have sick time at your hospital??

p.s. I agree with who ever said to shake her hand. I would give her whatever it was I had and see if she called in sick!!! Geez, don't they know that its better for you to stay home and get well before you SPREAD it to all your staff, not to mention your patients and their families??

I am so aggravated.
I have been ill since last weekend (on and off, I have times that I feel okay), but earlier in the week, I was having diarrhea x 3 days (TMI, I know) and actually had a syncopal episode while at home alone (not really sure why - I considered dehydration, but I've been keeping fluids down and really trying to push fluids). I worked the two days following this episode (nearly passed out again in a patient's room last night) and today I am feeling bad again. So I called my supervisor to let her know I am ill and she pretty much went off on me, said we were busy and I needed to come in or work this weekend (my weekend off, after the busy week we've had -- I desperately need the days off).
So I'm working today (I have to leave in a few minutes, in fact), and I'm really frustrated over it. I have a splitting headache and I ache all over and I'm horribly nauseous, despite the 12.5 of Phenergan I took (maximum dose I can take w/o getting drowsy).
So what do you do? I work in a small hospital in a rural area, and most days I like my job and the people I work with (except my supervisor, but nobody likes her). Plus, the hospital is having its annual budget crisis and they're threatening layoffs -- when we're understaffed to begin with (I can totally see how it's better to lay off full time nurses and bring in agency when they're swamped...)
I'm off to work -- thanks to anyone reading this for letting me vent.

Mandylpn · Mar 12, 2005

Hi, I can relate to what you are saying. I am a new LPN, been on the job for only 3 weeks, have been out sick for five days of my orientation. I have a bug I cannot shake. I have been to the doctor twice. When I called in they tried to make me come in, did I have a fever, etc. So do they want me coughing on all my patient's? Get well soon! :sniff:

rjflyn, ASN, RN · Mar 12, 2005

To the original poster if you were one of your own patients im sure you would have told them by now --- seek medical advice. Any patient of mine that told me the had been syncopal or near syncopal in this case and still had symptoms needs to be evaluated. The other thing as sick as you sound it should be physically obviuos that you are ill. Maybe even better as the other posters have noted you need to speak to your supervisor face to face maybe no better place than your own ER. I know my hospital I currently work at wants no one working that has diarrhea and is potentally contagious.

rj:rolleyes:

LPNer · Mar 12, 2005

And I'd almost bet there is a policy written someplace that tells nurses and all other staff with direct pt contact not to come to work sick!

gladtobeOB · Mar 12, 2005

At my former place of employment we had a "points" system in which you were given 2pt for every call off, 1 pt for tardiness and 3 pts for a no show no call.

Once you hit 6 pts you were verbally counseled. 14 pts termination. Nice! What's the use of accruing sick time if you can't use it for fear of the "points"

Most nurses somehow got FMLA for such things as frequent migraines and arthritis. :uhoh3:

Kaylesh · Mar 12, 2005

Hiya

Just my thoughts.. We had a really nasty Diarrhea and vomiting bug going around in my area..

Yep i caught it.. who knows how.. But the upshot of it is.. The policy around here states that if we have Diarrhea or Vomiting we canna work for 48hrs after the last episode..It was so rampant that wards were being closed to admissions etc...

So that puts the decision out of the nurses hands here..

Kaylesh

ADN 2002 · Mar 12, 2005

Thanks for all the nice replies -- I really needed them this morning.

You guys won't even believe this -- I just got home (8am CST) from my 3-11pm shift YESTERDAY. So here's what happened: I went to work, feeling crummy, but I managed to psych myself up a bit - I was like, it's only eight hours, I can get through anything for eight hours. I was going along and running my butt off and trying to get stuff done so I'd get out on time b/c I have a lot of things I need to get done today (my day off), when a little more than halfway through my shift the house supervisor calls me and says well, you're on call for 11-7 (I am an OB/GYN nurse, and we have to take turns taking call - there is always one of us on call in case the "bus" shows up...) - and so the supervisor couldn't find anyone to come in to work (or so she said) b/c we were really busy and so she was like well, you'll have to stay and work a double. I didn't say a word and she's like "okay?" and I told her - what do you want me to say? It's not like I can say "no" -- despite the fact that I am ILL, I am here and I am on call for the following shift! I had my fit, cried for a few minutes, and got on with it. Long story short, I got through my unplanned double, and my plans for today are shot to pieces b/c I am beyond tired and am about to crash. (However, after reading all of your replies, I probably should have thrown myself on the floor, "unconscious" and let them deal with the aftermath.)

As for my mystery illness this week - I think the majority of my problem is exhaustion. I worked all last weekend, and we were busy. I found out Tuesday that my pregnant best friend that lives 1000 miles away tried to kill herself over the weekend - I still don't have all the details on THAT one... Tuesday was the day I actually managed to stay home and that was the day that I passed out at home. I live in an apartment, and it seems that every time I lie down to rest lately (no matter what time of day) there is some kind of noise or whatever that keeps me from falling asleep when I need to.

In response to some of your comments:

I forgot to mention this in my previous post, but I actually have a doctor's appointment this coming Monday - I am going in for another issue, but I will talk with him regarding my syncopal/near-syncopal episodes this week. I have sick time at my hospital, but I can't touch it until I've used two vacation days first (totally ridiculous -- if I could actually take a vacation, maybe I would not be quite so exhausted...it has been a while since I had a "real" break, and even then, it wasn't a vacation...long story). We also have the point system mentioned by another poster - but it's on the discretion of our immediate supervisor as far as having points added for being absent from work -- and I don't really think my supervisor believes a whole lot of what I say when it comes to my being ill. There probably IS a policy someplace (I'll have to look into that), but if I threw that in their faces, who knows what'll happen. One of the house supervisors told me they aren't supposed to ask us what is wrong with us when we call in because it is a HIPAA violation -- I don't think I've ever called in when I wasn't interrogated (What's the problem? Did you take something? What did you take? etc., etc.) I think you have to be one of the "important people" in my facility to be able to take FMLA for idiotic reasons -- honestly, one of the nurses on my unit had designated FMLA days on the schedule -- scheduled FMLA days?? What is THAT about?

Yeesh. I think I'm through ranting and raving for the moment; I've lost my head of steam..

P.S. I'll have to remember the handshake thing...I could just see the look on my supervisor's face... :rolleyes: