Nurses and colds

[HelloHelloHelloHelloHelloHello]

So my elderly mum is really poorly with a bad heart and lungs. The nurse who came to take her blood tonight had a bad cold - she was trying to hide it, but it was quite obvious.

Part of me wanted to shout - "do you realise if my mum catches that, it could kill her?" And part of me felt really angry

But another part of me knows that taking time off for every cold is not realistic. I have two kids and therefore catch a cold every few weeks - I know people can't take a week off every few weeks, the management would go crazy.

So what's the answer? Acknowledge that medical staff come to work ill sometimes, and try and give them protective clothing - make them wear masks for example? But that would surely make the patients really anxious?

What do you think is the solution?

Also the nurse isn’t the only person in touch with your mother who has germs or bugs, she could pick up anything from anyone. You could be carrying viruses and not have symptoms and give her something without you actually been ill yourself.

Why does everyone always blame us medical staff? Do you think we want to come in with stinking colds when we feel lousy for 12 hour shifts?
The sickness policy has been stepped up all over the country and we are only allowed to take three episodes of sickness a year, any more and they start disciplinary action. against us.
i have a chronic medical condition and so I can't afford to take any time off for coughs, colds, rinary infections, dental abcesses or anything beause my chronic condition takes up all my sickness.
I haven't been to the dentist to get my filling down for 6 months because I can't get the time off work.
Try and have a bit of a think before you start criticising us in future. we don't do things like this for fun. I can't afford to be sacked, I have a mortgage to pay.

@Retroflex there were other occasions where I fainted due to endometriosis and I they expected me to keep on going after a 5 minute sit down... even though the patients said I should be sent home! I got sacked in the end for being ill too much. The job made me ill!!!

YABU don’t forget visitors bring in all kinds of pathogens and shit

Its awful to know that managers can be putting .their staff and patients at serious risk with their sickness policies. Do the Unions and Governing bodies know whats going on. Any chance nurse managers can come down and work on the wards instead.😒 I had a rip roaring uti and saw my gp in the afternoon for antibiotics and analgesia but even she thought it was fine for me to do the night shift. That was a terrible night. Are staff still expected to go in with an HAI or something like being creamed up scabies lotion.

My OH is in NH with end-stage PD. Lots of the carers snot all over him! - luckily the one bit of him that actually seems to work is his immune system. It is a bit of a conundrum.

I am a registered nurse I work for the NHS in a outsourced capacity, I don't even get sick pay, I can't afford to be off and that's even before you look at short staffing and cancelling clinics. I did have a day off last week for d and v went in the next day and worked in an office on my own phoning patients rather than face to faces.
I have had 5 occasions off sick in the past 6 years and 4 are all single days when I just couldn't keep going with a really nasty illness and 2 are work related stress.
My Mum a midwife went off sick a week before she died of cancer and a friend also a registered nurse was until 3 days before she died doing paperwork whilst in the hospice.

Who cares for the carers?

I feel for your mum, but she could catch a cold from answering the door to the postman. What will be will be here, I'm afraid - and I say that as another person with an elderly, poorly parent.

I’m ex nhs. I know a ward sister who told one of my colleagues who’d already had 3 episodes of sickness in a 12 month period (genuine reasons inc a broken bone and a hospital admission) that she was to come in regardless. Colleague said what if d&v and was very clearly told she was still to come in or face disciplinary proceedings which may include losing her job.

So nurses are coming to work with d&v.

And the hospital wonders why it’s currently battling a norovirus outbreak. Part of the problem for staff is it’s the job/patients which make them sick! But no discretion by management for that.

And I turned up for work once after been knocked off my bike and knocked out. Covered in blood and said I thought I ought to go to a&e as I didn’t know what day of the week it was and couldn’t remember leaving the house.

Was told they were too busy and was shoved in a room with a high risk labourer to care for! Thank God I didn’t miss anything! Looking back it was totally unsafe.

If people are being severely disciplined from the offset your managers are applying the sickness policy incorrectly.
There are 3 stages to go through before anything even remotely serious is considered. It’s designed to help flag any issues that might need further help or support, not to punish people. I referred someone for private counselling after they hit stage 1 for multiple low level sicknesses but it was because they had a mental health issue they hadn’t told anyone about. I only found that out after talking to them and getting them to talk to me.
Equally, if there’s a problem that affects your ability to do your job the Trust has to consider that too. Very rarely does it end in dismissal. Trusts would look at redeployment options first.
There are some awful managers out there and the policies could always be better but there has to be a policy because like it or not some members of staff absolutely take the piss. If you are genuinely ill you have little to worry about.

Well obviously everyone has to go to work with a cold if they get one.

"I have two kids and therefore catch a cold every few weeks" Really? Why? I've had 2 colds that I can think of in the last 9 years of parenting. Surely people don't catch colds every few weeks?

NHS sick policy is awful. In our trust you can take 2 days off before the policy kicks in, and if you take 3 days off in two years running you are placed on a final written warning, and can be sacked for any further sickness.

The result is that staff have no choice but to come in to work unless they physically can't. It isn't in the best interest of patients or staff.

The answer is simple, increase pay and improve conditions so more people become nurses and more nurses stay in the profession. That will enable managers to have a more compassionate attitude to sickness.

A while ago I had my annual pay rise blocked because I was off 3 times in 6 months because of sickness which was bad luck and totally unavoidable.

Madcat - I wasnt blaming staff, that's the point of the post! I was wondering what the answer is? I know people can't take time off, especially in the NHS (I work in NHS myself!) - but some patients are really vulnerable. I'm not joking or making light when I say that in her current condition, if my mum catches a cold it may very likely kill her. I love my mum. I don't want that to happen. (That's why part of me felt really angry with the nurse with the cold! (most people would feel angry if they thought someone might kill their parent) - though as my post suggests, the other more rational part of me knows it's not her fault and she had to come in to work,and I don't blame her.).

Should we recognise that staff come in sick, and therefore encourage the wearing of face masks? And other more obvious precautions? (rather than nurses feel they have to hide their colds from patients?)

Crusty - yes, I have very frequent colds! My children are always ill! Ones is a swimmer so I think he catches stuff at the pool the whole time! Plus everything at school gets passed around! My husband is always ill, and I work v long hours which makes me run down and able to pick things up easier!!

It’s been proved by infection control ( or at least my hospital) that majority of masks don’t protect patient or staff from transmission of viruses, germs ect. Only certain specialised vented masks work, which are so expensive the hospital won’t provide them as bog standard PPE and need to be provided from the infection control supply - this was around the swine flu outbreak and patients with active TB. I don’t think they will actually even care about masks with common colds. It will be a case of good hand washing, wear gloves wear aprons use hand gel.

I work in healthcare and I go in if I'm ill because I won't get paid otherwise.

I don’t know the answer

However I’m in hospital right now. Have been for a week. I’m immunocompromised. The woman opposite me has been vomiting. Which if it’s a bug. Will kill me. I was on a ward where there was 7 people with norovirus.....they are meant to be isolated. However they don’t always let the staff know. Which is just shocking.

Since I’ve been here. The nurses and doctors are lovely. Many bank staff though. Costs the nhs tons of money.

They are trying their hardest. I don’t envy them.

Damned if you do. Damned if you don’t.

NHS sickness policy is punitive. Staffing levels are obscenely low in most clinical areas now and so you feel a loyalty and obligation to support colleagues and see patients even though you know it isn’t necessarily in anyone’s best interests. Management are often applying considerable pressure to keep attendance at 100%.