Sick notes

[Hjb2410]

Hello

I'm after some advice, I'm not sure this is the right forum and if it isn't I'm sorry and will repost in the correct one.

I had a tonsillectomy on Friday 2nd June and received a sick note from the hospital dated the 2nd June for two weeks.

On my sick note they haven't stated a return date, it just states two weeks.

I presumed I would return to work on Monday 19th June however I have just had a phone call from work and they expect me back Friday 16th June.

I'm slightly confused; any help would be appreciated

Thanks

Your note expires on Friday 16 June so you are eligible for work from Saturday 17 June even if you don't normally work weekends. Your work are wrong!

Pressed send too soon! So if you don't usually work weekends your first day back would be Monday 19th June

It'll be 14 days after you operation that your note runs out I.e 17/6/17 but that's the weekend so if you don't work weekends it will be 19/6/17. If you feel well enough and are happy to go back on 16/6/17 then that's ok and it's your choice but work can't make you. A sick note is legal documentation. If you don't feel well enough to go back to work at that stage then speak to your gp and ask for it to be extended.

I agree with the others . Your due back date is the Monday if no further sick note is issued. And if you still don't feel well enough get the sick note extended and contact your GP. You should have no problem at all with this.

What do I say to work as they are convinced I am back on Friday 16th June and how do I explain it if that makes sense?

I'm really confused because apparently the 2nd June was meant to be covered as medical leave but by the sounds of it my sick note now covers that.

Definitely don't need this to stress me out, argh.

I think I'd contact my GP or even phone the hospital and speak to the ward sister or whoever writes the sick notes. Work is being horrible. there is no guarantee you'll even be well enough to go back on the Monday and that's probably why they gave you two weeks rather than specified a return date. Hope you get it sorted. Tell work you're getting clarification on this.

The sick note says you are not fit for work for 2 weeks from 2nd June so 1 week would expire on 9th June and 2 weeks would expire on 16th - i know where they are coming from but they are wrong!!!

if you don't feel up for it you can get the note extended but my understanding is you can not go back to work whilst signed off incase anything happens. If you want to return early then your doc needs to sign you back on.

As for work not understanding - is it a small company? Can they refer to HR?

Lay person here.
Isn't the note covering Fri/Sat/Sun/Mon/Tues/Wed/Thurs week one. And then the same again for the second week? Meaning back to work on Friday.
Otherwise the note covers 3 Fridays?

I can see both points of view I'm just not sure which one is right, I wish the hospital had just put an end date rather than stating two weeks, would have saved this.

I spoke to the lady sorting it out and she put the 2nd June as a medical appointment and she covered me for two weeks after the 2nd with sick uncertified and with me returning to work on Monday 19th June. We both agreed once she received my sick note she would alter it from uncertified to certified.

I'm just not sure what to do.

Go to your GP and ask for a new note with a specified date on but even if you aren't well enough on that date go back before it expires and ask for a further note. My GP practice often issues a second note following a telephone request rather than needing to go back

Thank you. I will definitely be phoning either my GP or the hospital regarding this :)

I wasn't sure which area to post this in so I did it here and in employment issues; felt like I got my head bitten off, so thank you all for being understanding with your advice and comments.

my understanding is you can not go back to work whilst signed off incase anything happens. If you want to return early then your doc needs to sign you back on

Not true, I went back early following major bowel surgery. Just agreed it with work.

I would agree with your work and say your note expires on Thursday 15th June.
2/6 = day 1
3/6 = day 2
4/6 = day 3
5/6 = day 4
6/6 = day 5
7/6 = day 6
8/6 = day 7 (Thursday).
There is no day zero, because you were sick on the first day. The hospital should have put dates on rather than number of weeks. They obviously cannot work it out - hopefully they don't have to work out drug dosages.

felt like I got my head bitten off

That could have got you another two weeks off.

I've read the thread on the employment board. Your head wasn't bitten off. What seems to have happened was you've and/or your employer made an assumption that you'd be signed off until Sunday 18th June. That may well have been the intention of the doctor who wrote the sick note, but that is not what they've written on the sick note, and the sick note has been written 'two weeks from 2nd June' , which means it expires on Thursday 15th June.
And people wonder why hospitals make mistakes and people die in them. In being lazy and not writing exact dates, you are going back to work three days earlier than intended.

These new fit notes are a pain but your work is right. Day 14 is the Thursday. I would just ask the GP for one until the Monday. I'm a GP and do this day in day out. Also you can't forward date them on the computer so you have to add any extra days to the new one.
The fit note will also say refrain from work "until" and the date that goes in There is the date you return to work.
In our practice we would issue that without seeing you as long as we had a letter from the hospital. Or you could go back for one day and have a short week.

These new fit notes are a pain
They're not a pain. There is a space on there to write an expiry date in (hospital ones arw hand-written, unlike GP ones which are computer printed).

Dingaling. I know. I issue computer ones all the time. They are a pain in that you can't forward date them to continue them. You can only issue them from the current day or a previous day. Otherwise the computer shouts at you. I was being a bit light-hearted. I think the person issuing probably didn't think it through properly. It's no big deal though as I have already said.

Hiya, your sick note states you would be due back to work on the Friday. If on the Friday you don't feel well enough to go back call in sick. Then call hour doctor and ask for a further sick note. As you've had surgery they won't decline you. They will cover the Friday for you and assess your needs for the following week. Please don't stress about it - concentrate on getting better and know that if you do need extra time your doctor and work will understand. Xx

I’ve got a sick note dated the 19/9/23 for 4 weeks due to a fractured metatarsal what date does it run out so I can get another one,very confusing

Last day would be Monday 16 so you’d need another one from Tues 17