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Original poster

WFH + Emergencies, what would you do?

40 replies

Justanotherusernameagain · 28/04/2024 17:32

I work from home in a role where I spend 30 minutes on video calls to 50-100 people at random times of the day, whenever they’ve booked in. It’s usually a task to get all the people on the call at the same time so lots of organisation on the businesses part.

My husband also works from home but different industry with very few meetings so this issue hasn’t been considered before but it’s now on my brain wondering what to do as he is away in a couple of weeks for a conference

What if during one of my meetings there was mad hammering at the door with somewhere there for an emergency, think old lady has fallen over etc type emergency. There’s an elderly population around me and it has happened before! Would you apologise to the meeting and answer the door or would you ignore it?

My thought is apologise, quickly answer it and hope it’s nothing so I can run back to my meeting but then my anxiety brain says what if I answer it and it’s something super urgent and I can’t run back to my meeting to tell them. OR I don’t answer it and something horrific has happened and my neighbours all hate me 🥵

What would you do?

OP posts:
Hoppinggreen · 28/04/2024 17:34

I would probably try not to make up unlikley situations to stress myself out with.
I am sympathetic as its what DD would do but its not healthy

Cadela · 28/04/2024 17:35

This is a v weird thing to worry about, sorry op.

Just wear noise cancelling headphones during meetings and you’ll have no idea who bangs on the door.

OhHelloMiss · 28/04/2024 17:38

If someone's life is in danger then your 'work meeting' takes second place! A very quick explanation afterwards should suffice

Or

You could go back to the office?

1990s · 28/04/2024 17:39

You’re at work. If you were at work at your office you wouldn’t be able to help. It’s the same. Don’t answer if you’re in a meeting.

TeaKitten · 28/04/2024 17:41

Such a strange worry. If you are on a call, ignore it, if you are not then answer it. If you have plenty of elderly neighbours they can knock on someone else’s door as theyl be home too. Do you avoid leaving the house incase an emergency crops up with a neighbour?

TheFlis · 28/04/2024 17:44

Are you the one presenting in these meetings? If I was just listening/ one of many participants I would just answer the door and none of my colleagues would have an issue with that. My colleagues occasionally have to pop off a call for a minute to let the dog walker in or sign for a delivery, nobody is bothered.

ladybirdsanchez · 28/04/2024 17:46

Ignore it - you're working.

StealthMama · 28/04/2024 17:55

Someone knocking on your front door is hardly an emergency, is it?

Are you usually this irrational?

WhereIsMyLight · 28/04/2024 17:55

It’s no different to if you were in the office. If you are in an important meeting and a colleague is taken ill outside the meeting room, you probably wouldn’t notice. If you were in a meeting and it was fairly low level importance but you were a first aider, someone might interrupt the meeting and ask you to help. If you were out of a meeting, you would offer help but be mindful of crowding the situation, if you weren’t of any use you’d probably go back to work.

If you are presenting or managing the recording of the meeting, you don’t answer the door. You wouldn’t answer the door if you were out of the house anyway. If you’ve coordinated the meeting but don’t need to do anything other than show your face, you can answer the door. If something has happened, you apologise after and your previous good work ethic will mean people trust you. If you aren’t in a meeting, answer the door. If you have answered the meeting when you aren’t in a meeting but you have a meeting later, a medical emergency happens and you aren’t back in time for the meeting you message a colleague at the first opportunity and explain the situation. If your colleagues think worse of you for helping an elderly neighbour during a medical emergency, then they’re pretty shit colleagues.

Ponderingwindow · 28/04/2024 18:02

If you were in the office and there were an actual emergency, you would stop the meeting and deal with it. The same is true for home.

Ive been in on-site meetings where we had earthquakes, where the building fire alarms went off, and where people have had medical emergencies and we had to call an ambulance. Life happens and sometimes even big important multi-site conference calls get interrupted.

if they can carry on in partial, they do.

if it is a package being delivered, your contractor showing up early, or just a neighbor coming by to talk about something serious, you might have to ignore them depending on how important the call was.

BananaLlama123 · 28/04/2024 18:15

I have Bluetooth headphones that I can mute and walk to the door to see what is going on. As long as I'm not presenting, I can usually work out if it's life threatening or not...

TTPD · 28/04/2024 18:21

I had a call last week with about 6 people, only one of whom was in the office. She had to leave halfway because the fire alarm went off. Unforeseen issues can crop up wherever you are and you just have to make a judgement at the time.

I'd answer the door if someone was really hammering on it for a prolonged period so it seemed urgent. But that seems unlikely because in an emergency they'd move quickly to another door I assume.
If I heard someone in the street screaming for help, I'd go.

FlabMonsterIsDietingAgain · 28/04/2024 18:24

An emergency is an emergency, it is both urgent and high priority so you stop what you are doing and deal with it.

If it's not an actual emergency then ignore it or find a way to delay dealing with it till a more convenient part of the meeting.

Lleys · 28/04/2024 18:24

Put a note on your front door during meeting times saying "only know in the event of an emergency"?

Lleys · 28/04/2024 18:24

knock

Chillilounger · 28/04/2024 18:26

Go off camera and type brb then return to meeting

museumum · 28/04/2024 18:27

I have a ring doorbell and discreetly look at it on my phone before deciding whether to excuse myself for a moment or ignore the door.

itakemywhiskeyneaaaaaat · 28/04/2024 18:30

I'm struggling to understand how you not answering the door is going to cause someone's death. Or why someone would expect YOU, and not anybody else to answer the door. And blame you. How would they even know you were a) home and b) heard the door? When I'm working I can't even hear my husband in the next room sometimes

If you were in the office you'd not be able to answer so just ignore it.

FlakyAquaQuoter · 28/04/2024 18:37

A knock on the door I'd ignore.
A frantic banging with an accompanied "Please help!!!" I'd give a very quick "I'm so sorry, please excuse me, I believe there's an emergency" and go. Then follow up with an email later if needed.

In the same way that when on the way to work in the car, if I saw two cars have a little bump I'd keep driving. If I saw a wreck I'd stop to give assistance. (Though maybe this is because I'm a HCP)

Treelichen · 28/04/2024 18:39

I’d ignore it as I’m at work.

Onabench · 28/04/2024 18:49

Are you hosting the meeting? If so, I would ignore the door unless it was repetitive and frantic.

If i was just viewing, I would pop the camera off and answer the door.

OhHelloMiss · 28/04/2024 18:53

God help you all if you ever need your neighbours help!

Kid goes missing? Lock yourself out/flat car battery/parcel taking in /lost cat/whatever the level of need

I'd be reluctant to help the lot of you if you ever knowingly ignored an emergency on the street/block

BirthdayRainbow · 28/04/2024 18:53

1990s · 28/04/2024 17:39

You’re at work. If you were at work at your office you wouldn’t be able to help. It’s the same. Don’t answer if you’re in a meeting.

Really?

That's like saying someone randomly decided to work from home that day so they ignored someone asking for emergency help as 300 previous days they were in the office.

I would stop the meeting and go and see what was needed.

I have been very lucky that when I had two emergencies with my children neighbours stopped what they were doing and immediately helped.

pelotonaddiction · 28/04/2024 18:58

I can't answer the door if I'm working so that's that really

If someone was screaming/shouting fire then I would have to wait until I was finished on the phone to a customer and then go and help

itakemywhiskeyneaaaaaat · 28/04/2024 18:58

OhHelloMiss · 28/04/2024 18:53

God help you all if you ever need your neighbours help!

Kid goes missing? Lock yourself out/flat car battery/parcel taking in /lost cat/whatever the level of need

I'd be reluctant to help the lot of you if you ever knowingly ignored an emergency on the street/block

Well I've helped and been helped plenty of times. Just not when I'm not in a big meeting.
If there are several hundred people and it's 30 mins long it's very difficult to 'just stop the meeting'. Surely someone else will be available to help!

Also, the probability of the need for help being URGENT DO IT NOW OR DIE is very low. OP can always go and check It out when it's over. Chances are if her door was knocked on whatever happend was nearby and will be surrounded by a kerfuffle anyway. Although she might be yelled at for not answering so probably not a brilliant idea.

And another question... How's she supposed to know whether it's an emergency or not?