AIBU to not want to self-isolate before minor operation

[Astressie]

I was telephoned to day with a date for my minor op. Then told I had to self-isolate with DP for 2 weeks prior to procedure. This starts tomorrow!!! One day's notice. I do not have to go into work nor does DP but had no idea I had to do this when agreed to Op. Annoying thing is MIL has a more serious procedure at the same hospital and does not have to self-isolate. We both have to have a swab test 2 days before. We can't even go out to exercise!! Major upheaval with 1 day's notice. How do I give the dog his exercise? shopping thing etc etc I don't know if I can do this!!

No you read the full thread to see why in REALITY its impossible

I'd look down upon anyone thinking about lying about this. You're putting the medical staff and other patients in the hospital at risk, you could literally kill someone. Hospitals aren't full of people who can fight this infection off. They're full of extremely vulnerable people who we are trying to protect with stringent rules and infection control.
Also the risk of you testing positive and wasting so many resources because you can't be bothered to isolate properly

It is possible to isolate fully.

The majority of the shielding population have been doing it for weeks, and also those who are required to isolate for 14 days because of exposure who get even less notice than OP.

If the isolation cannot be managed right now (and OP has worked things so she can do it properly) then the (elective, medically safe to wait) operation needs to be postponed to a time when it will be possible.

Or referral changed to a different hospital with different pathway (there is a lot of this going on at the moment, to keep the 'clean' sufficiently safe).

The one thing that wrecks this for the whole community is lying about isolation status. It's not tick box. It is about maximising safe clinical pathways in hospitals.

@Greysparkles

I'd look down upon anyone thinking about lying about this. You're putting the medical staff and other patients in the hospital at risk, you could literally kill someone. Hospitals aren't full of people who can fight this infection off. They're full of extremely vulnerable people who we are trying to protect with stringent rules and infection control. Also the risk of you testing positive and wasting so many resources because you can't be bothered to isolate properly

How would you know? If someone has done it but hasn't? Total utter bollocks

Ok, ok we get it EOwl.

Don't agree with a word you've said, but it's a broken record now.

And you're wrong.

Just be careful OP. In terms of covid-free hospitals the staff don’t have to self isolate, so I am baffled by the hysteria over walking the dog.

we had to isolate for keyhole surgery, it made sense and we would have done it even if we hadn't been told.
they swab you for covid 2 days before and do a lung scan on the day to confirm lungs are clear.

We it would be bloody obvious people were lying when an outbreak occurs on a green pathway through the hospital. Putting in jeopardy not only peoples lives but threatening the ongoing treatment and surgery's booked in.
Its incredibly selfish and if I found our someone had done that I'd be telling them what a selfish shit they are

Youd get it if you had to take two weeks unpaid from work to comply. That's real world btw

I do live in the real world thanks, fuck me, I earn £9 a bloody hour. So I'm well acquainted with the "real world"
so if personally I couldn't isolate for that reason then I wouldn't be having the op.

Those expressing horror at the not going out for 14 days: this is exactly what shielding households have been doing for the last 12 weeks. And they didn't get much notice either, and were doing it at a time when supermarket deliveries were in disarray and a lot of basic items were unobtainable.

Exactly. Been there, including begging a supermarket to send me a delivery.

Do you really want to be responsible for putting someone else's life in danger, however small the risk? If you want the op, you follow the rules. Simples.

No just tell them you followed the rules and they can tick their boxes. Simple

@EnlightenedOwl

No just tell them you followed the rules and they can tick their boxes. Simple

This. You're not going out to an all-night rave and inhaling hippy crack. Going out to walk a dog at odd times, you won't be catching bloody Covid.

As for comparisons to shielding, well, you're not shielding. I have two legs, I'll just compare myself to someone with none for no reason at all.

It does seem a bit illogical when staff are free to be out. The staff are just as likely to introduce covid into hospitals as the patients.

How would it be bloody obvious people were lying ? How would you know it wasnt a member of staff?

It does seem a bit illogical when staff are free to be out. The staff are just as likely to introduce covid into hospitals as the patients

Not when it's the patient who is having the general anaesthetic, which produces aerosolised versions of the patient's exhalations. The risk from an aerosol from an infected patient - which will contaminate all surfaces for a considerable distance - is substantially higher than from someone (such as a staff member) who is giving, not receiving, the aerosol-generating procedure

I may be having a minor op (injection under sedation). The consultant advised social distancing would be fine beforehand but said there would be a ‘box to tick’ to say I had self isolated. Not sure what to make of that, I was concentrating more on the potential procedure than the cv side of things, I need to ask him more about this if it does go ahead. I was a bit surprised at how flippant he seemed.

Really not sure how isolating whole household is going to be, supposedly got kids returning to school but guess that will have to wait.

Aside from the moral issues of lying and pretending you’ve self isolated when you haven’t I’m a bit baffled that anyone doesn’t have a self isolation plan by now. We’ve been told since March that if we have certain specific covid symptoms (cough temp etc) we have to self isolate as a household for 2 weeks. You could wake up tomorrow with a temperature and have to self isolate anyway. At least this is planned so you can prepare for it a little bit.

It worries me how many people have such disregard for others. I'm due to have a planned c section in a few weeks, it's not an operation I can just opt out of. The kind of procedures you are being expected to isolate for are not urgent, they're routine hence the expectation that if you can't isolate you can wait longer without it being too much of an issue. This guidance came out weeks ago in the health service, to my knowledge my Trust is still only doing half its usual capacity of ops due to the cleaning requirements.

@SupposeItCouldBeMe

I may be having a minor op (injection under sedation). The consultant advised social distancing would be fine beforehand but said there would be a ‘box to tick’ to say I had self isolated. Not sure what to make of that, I was concentrating more on the potential procedure than the cv side of things, I need to ask him more about this if it does go ahead. I was a bit surprised at how flippant he seemed.

Really not sure how isolating whole household is going to be, supposedly got kids returning to school but guess that will have to wait.

Rest my case. Just tick the box.

If that’s what your case rests on; obliterating the difference between sedation and other anaesthesia and the aerosol risks, and not factoring in whether the consultant who said what you take as clinching evidence was actually working in a fully ‘clean’ environment; then it’s really not a strong case

It would be a bit worrying if people really think get that because 14 day isolation is not required for some procedures in some places, it can safely be ignored for all procedures anywhere, even those places which do require for important infection control reasons.

@milkshake20

It worries me how many people have such disregard for others. I'm due to have a planned c section in a few weeks, it's not an operation I can just opt out of. The kind of procedures you are being expected to isolate for are not urgent, they're routine hence the expectation that if you can't isolate you can wait longer without it being too much of an issue. This guidance came out weeks ago in the health service, to my knowledge my Trust is still only doing half its usual capacity of ops due to the cleaning requirements.

I’m having to isolate for cancer surgery. I’d hardly call that routine.

Those of us with Covid have had to self-isolate at no notice. I just made sure I was prepared with food etc if it happened. It really isn't that bad to isolate for 2 weeks. I had to isolate for almost 2 months.

Some people have waited many months to go into hospital and will most likely die if they get covid. I'm thinking of stage 4 cancer patients and similar. Hospitals must be kept covid free.