Should she go to work?

[covidconundrum]

My mother is in her sixties and a nurse. She works in a very specialised area at a big city hospital. She and another member of staff run a clinic on their own. My mother has received a letter saying that she's in the shielded group because of her health and should not go to work. While she does have a couple of quite serious physical problems that make working hard she does not have any of the issues to put her in the shielded and vulnerable category. She rang the gp and he couldn't see why the letter had been sent either. She rang occupational health and they said if the letters wrong she can come in but she's worried that if she gets covid 19 and dies and she's gone against this official letter, any compensatory pay may be affected. Occupational health couldn't offer any advice. Her manager said she should just stay home. If she goes in, they'll send the other lady that she runs the clinic with to the covid wards whereas if mum stays home she'll be able to continue to run the clinic. The other woman has an elderly father. Mum feels very guilty about not doing her 'bit'. I don't want to lose my mum obviously and would rather she stayed home. Just interested in others' opinions

[LilyPond2]

To be honest, if it were me I would be more than happy to have a reason not to go in, but your Mum is obviously much more selfless. How old is your Mum's colleague, and does she live with her elderly father? If she is younger without medical conditions and can avoid coming into contact with her elderly father, I can see the logic in her being the one to go into the covid ward.

[covidconundrum]

I think she does live with the father and I believe she's a similar age to my mum. I can't help but feel that she should stay home. She's not had a great life and as I say she's got a few physical problems that mean her life has not been without pain. I've been looking forward to her finally retiring. The whole thing is really scary

[LilyPond2]

If it were my Mum I would be desperately trying to persuade her to stay home. Healthcare staff should not be expected to put their lives on the line.