Pregnant paramedic

[sleepyshiftworker]

When do I tell work? I'm 8+5 and my trousers are tight with bloat 😂

If I tell them they'll want me to move to light duties - I was all bravado about staying on the road but frankly, I think I'm being a prick about it!

No one?

I'm a little behind you and personally, I am not telling my work until I've had the 12 week scan. Luckily I lone work, so I can hide the bloat and nausea when I need to! Congrats on your pregnancy 🥳

How ill are you feeling? Are you feeling up to being on the road? When you get a bit bigger, I guess the lifting etc might be tough on your back. I'm third trimester now and have really slowed down, lost my balance a bit. But I felt good up until about 30 weeks.

Still I'd probably want a risk assessment if I were you by about 13-14 weeks so allowances can be made etc

They don’t move you to light duties straight away I’m sure my sister had to after 20 weeks for safety but wasn’t an option so early on.

I'm a paramedic and in my Trust you get moved to light duties as soon as you tell them. Why not tell them? I don't understand why you'd want to carry on working on the road when pregnant. It's not worth the worry and risk

@thingymaboob yes they move us straight away too. Why I don't want to? Because the stigma of being a work shy lazy arse is strong at my station and everyone's out to get one another but mainly skill fade. I'm worried that nearly 2 years off the road will kill my brain. I struggle enough!

@A1b2c3d4e5f6g7 I stayed on the road tol 18 weeks last time. I'd like to tell them so they know, but I'd like to stay on t he road too! Scared if I tell them they'll tell me I have to step to light duties. Then everyone will know and I don't want to tell my family yet.

@sleepyshiftworker if you're worried about skill fade, have you considered shared parental leave? Partner and I are both taking six months each, his is fully paid. Under a separate part of the contract to paternity leave. The paternity leave section stated two weeks fully paid, the shared parental leave section with full pay was a few pages on.

Only mentioning because it wasn't clear to us til someone told us about it. Have since found out that in the last two years my company has equalised leave for men and women. So men at my company now get six months full pay, to be taken in the first year. Means we are getting full pay for the full year off between us, and with accrued leave, can work part time for the remainder roughly

[quote sleepyshiftworker]@thingymaboob yes they move us straight away too. Why I don't want to? Because the stigma of being a work shy lazy arse is strong at my station and everyone's out to get one another but mainly skill fade. I'm worried that nearly 2 years off the road will kill my brain. I struggle enough! [/quote]
So you'll be classed as a work shy lazy arse if you're pregnant and want to protect the health and safety of you and your unborn baby and you're following Trust policy? So because of this awful culture you'd be willing to take unnecessary risks? Sounds like the culture at your station needs a good shake up. No wonder so many people are leaving the ambulance service (myself included - I work in a hospital now and it's MUCH better).
Having been a paramedic for almost 15 years, and has various jobs / maternity leaves etc skill fade does happen but it's easy to bounce back.

@thingymaboob it is terrible at work atm. That problematic ethos starts from the management team and there isnt a single LOM who i could confide or trust in.

I'm a paramedic and told them after my 12 week scan. I got taken of my nightshift that night (and nights altogether!) and put on light duties. I was the most overpaid photocopier/filer/scanner ever. I also did some driving for the fleet department - collecting parts for vehicles, moving vehicles round etc. And I was one of the flu jabbers.

My uniform still fitted but after two miscarriages so didn't want to take any risks out on the road. In hindsight I wish I'd not left it till 12 weeks but couldn't face 6 months of trying to find things to do. I was left to my own devices really, just went round admin and workshops if they had any work for me each day.

@Akire

They don’t move you to light duties straight away I’m sure my sister had to after 20 weeks for safety but wasn’t an option so early on.

My Trust put you on light duties as soon as you tell them. I told them in the afternoon after my 12 week scan and was due on a nightshift that night but wasn't allowed to do it.

[quote sleepyshiftworker]@A1b2c3d4e5f6g7 I stayed on the road tol 18 weeks last time. I'd like to tell them so they know, but I'd like to stay on t he road too! Scared if I tell them they'll tell me I have to step to light duties. Then everyone will know and I don't want to tell my family yet. [/quote]
Tell them you've hurt your shoulder or something. One girl at my station got away with it before it was obvious she was pregnant. In our job we're always picking up injuries so nobody would be suspicious if you said you did it moving a patient.

[quote sleepyshiftworker]@thingymaboob it is terrible at work atm. That problematic ethos starts from the management team and there isnt a single LOM who i could confide or trust in. [/quote]
It's like that everywhere. I've worked for two ambulance Trusts and both horrendous. Don't let that dictate what you do with your pregnancy. It's easier said than done when they put the fear of god into you. I left my local ambulance Trust 5 years ago and I still have recurring stress dreams about a) being stuck in the FRU unable to get out to respond to a job b) driving to job and sat nav stopping working and getting lost c) arriving on scene and realising I hadn't signed out drugs / got the defib / forgotten response bag. I woke up the other day convinced I'd never signed the morphine back into the CD cupboard at end of my last shift (5 years ago). Terrible for stress. F*#k the lot of them! Go on light duties and look after yourself and your baby because you're just a bum on a seat to them.