[Ugh] I have gastroenteritis

[Microshaft]

Man this sucks. I'm going like 6-7 times a day.

Should I call in sick, guys?

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[WheezyBaby]

Man this sucks. I'm going like 6-7 times a day.

Should I call in sick, guys?

Please and thanks

 

[YayPudding]

I cut my nails a little too short and am considering requesting a deferment for school

 

[YellowTurtle]

Put in a dignicare and get to work

But what if OP was also having intractable vomiting/dry heaving ~15 episodes, while simultaneously having incontinent diarrhea ~7-8 episodes, and febrile for ~10 hours. At what point is is ok to call in without everyone automatically thinking negatively of you.

 

[deleted480308]

But what if OP was also having intractable vomiting/dry heaving ~15 episodes, while simultaneously having incontinent diarrhea ~7-8 episodes, and febrile for ~10 hours. At what point is is ok to call in without everyone automatically thinking negatively of you.

My personal rule was always show up and let my attending kick me out. But I'm stubborn

 

[jm192]

One of our interns went to the clinic right before rounds were set to start and asked for a flu swab that wound up positive--the attending put her off the rest of the week. Her senior didn't get her any going away gifts.

 

[anbuitachi]

Definitely not... 6-7 times is nothing... it's funny when you start seeing people vomiting and still working in the ORs.. hahha

 

[WingedOx]

You're either rounding or being rounded on

Dude in my program had appendicitis his PG2 year. He still showed up in the resident room with his IV pole to follow up on his inpatients.

/it wasn't behavior that the rest of us encouraged, but then again our hospital only had like 12 channels in the patient rooms, so what else was he going to do all day?

 

[OrthoTraumaMD]

If you are contagious, stay out. We had a horrible outbreak of Norovirus in our department because some ***** decided to show up and rub his germs all over the door handles. I was a second year resident, ended up in the ER the following night with a heart rate of 130 and severe dehydration. I was so pissed off.

 

[grapefruit17]

If you are contagious, stay out. We had a horrible outbreak of Norovirus in our department because some ***** decided to show up and rub his germs all over the door handles. I was a second year resident, ended up in the ER the following night with a heart rate of 130 and severe dehydration. I was so pissed off.

I agree with this, if you're sick and probably contagious I don't care how manly and awesome you can prove you are to the other residents, stay home. Not about pride it's common sense. Don't spread stuff to other people and sabotage them

 

[dpmd]

If you are contagious, stay out. We had a horrible outbreak of Norovirus in our department because some ***** decided to show up and rub his germs all over the door handles. I was a second year resident, ended up in the ER the following night with a heart rate of 130 and severe dehydration. I was so pissed off.

Perhaps if you both practiced appropriate hand hygiene your ER visit could have been avoided.

 

[Goro]

Man this sucks. I'm going like 6-7 times a day.

Should I call in sick, guys?

So does my daughter. Has clobbered her for the past week. I feel for ya!

 

[sliceofbread136]

Think of it from a patient safety perspective. If you are essential staff with a mild sickness, it's best to come in but be extremely care with your hand hygiene (gloves when touching anyone, wipe stethoscope, wash hands, wipe down keyboards/cows). If you have a uri wear a mask for whatever good it does.

If you are actually sick and shedding virus like crazy it's best to not come in. It sucks that some one has to cover you but it is what it is.

If you are a Med student then stay the frick home. It's the right thing to do

 

[OrthoTraumaMD]

Perhaps if you both practiced appropriate hand hygiene you ER visit could have been avoided.

You wash your hands after touching every door handle or piece of paper?

 

[dpmd]

You wash your hands after touching every door handle or piece of paper?

No, but I do wash or alcohol rub before putting my hands on food or in my mouth. And I don't lick any paper or door handles. I also wash my hands after using the bathroom or puking.

 

[njtrimed]

How do attending physicians and residents generally react to med students calling out sick? In my previous clinical experience, the unwritten rule was that you were pretty much expected to show up, and you'd be sent home if your supervisor deemed you too sick to be taking care of patients.

 

[AthleteDoc7]

honestly, I feel like medicine is so harsh at times that there are certain scenarios where there is no way to win. this is one of those situations.

call in sick, wow that lazy student called in and now someone needs to cover (plus it goes on your record). don't call in sick, wow you came here to get everyone else sick, how irresponsible. always a tough call

 

[Merely]

Perhaps if you both practiced appropriate hand hygiene your ER visit could have been avoided.

*eye roll emoji*

 

[Keona]

Please stay as far away from me as possible. Yes call in for GE. I don't want it and it's the one illness I cannot do my job while experiencing. You showing up as a nonessential personnel while being sick makes it much more likely that it's going to go through everyone. If it's loose stools and controllable symptoms lots of washing hands with soap and water. If there is any vomiting then stay away until that's gone.

This may be specialty specific but I can't think of any where they want the med student there and vomiting or spreading a ge illness around. Communicate with the rotation and with your residents and attending you may have a limited amount of days you can miss and sick days usually will count against it.

 

[sliceofbread136]

How do attending physicians and residents generally react to med students calling out sick? In my previous clinical experience, the unwritten rule was that you were pretty much expected to show up, and you'd be sent home if your supervisor deemed you too sick to be taking care of patients.

Patient care comes before your grade. If you are a risk of spreading infection and nonessential personnel it is simply the right thing to do to stay home. If your attending counts it against you then that is on him. Contest the bad evaluation if you get one, and at the end of the day take comfort in knowing that you are in the right

 

[VA Hopeful Dr]

Med student: stay home

Resident: stay home if on non-critical elective, show up if on service and afebrile, stay home if febrile

Attending: most likely show up no matter what

 

[Light at end of tunnel]

Can't you suck it up and round with an IV bag like they used to do in the good 'ole days of 2009?

Doctors aren't supposed to get sick! Diarrhea is good for you. Makes you stronger.

Oh, and if you dare get renal cancer, you'll get terminated at a certain psychiatry residency.

 

[VA Hopeful Dr]

Can't you suck it up and round with an IV bag like they used to do in the good 'ole days of 2009?

Doctors aren't supposed to get sick! Diarrhea is good for you. Makes you stronger.

Oh, and if you dare get renal cancer, you'll get terminated at a certain psychiatry residency.

Adults with GI bugs rarely need IV fluids. I worked with one in residency as recently as 2012 - it wasn't particularly pleasant, but neither is you know actually being a doctor on call.

Doesn't it get tiring being so hysterical all the time?

 

[OrthoTraumaMD]

No, but I do wash or alcohol rub before putting my hands on food or in my mouth. And I don't lick any paper or door handles. I also wash my hands after using the bathroom or puking.

As do i. But I have yet to meet a resident who hasn't done paperwork and eaten lunch at the same time. The person in question didn't wash their hands and touched everything, and half the department got sick.

 

[OrthoTraumaMD]

Adults with GI bugs rarely need IV fluids. I worked with one in residency as recently as 2012 - it wasn't particularly pleasant, but neither is you know actually being a doctor on call.

Doesn't it get tiring being so hysterical all the time?

I guess it depends. I haven't yet had a sick day as an attending, but I am very badly affected by dehydration as I have zero reserves. During that noro episode as a resident, I had a lactate of 5 after a single night, and had to be carted to the ER (protesting the entire time) by my fiancé who helpfully pointed out my inability to stand up as a reason why I shouldn't go to work.
So please for gods sake, if you're a med student, stay away if you're ill.

 

[VA Hopeful Dr]

I guess it depends. I haven't yet had a sick day as an attending, but I am very badly affected by dehydration as I have zero reserves. During that noro episode as a resident, I had a lactate of 5 after a single night, and had to be carted to the ER (protesting the entire time) by my fiancé who helpfully pointed out my inability to stand up as a reason why I shouldn't go to work.
So please for gods sake, if you're a med student, stay away if you're ill.

I feel like there's some kind of ortho joke in here somewhere...

 

[dpmd]

As do i. But I have yet to meet a resident who hasn't done paperwork and eaten lunch at the same time. The person in question didn't wash their hands and touched everything, and half the department got sick.

So still not seeing an argument that proper hand hygiene could not have prevented things (sounds like your colleague needs a lesson in washing hands after the bathroom)

 

[OrthoTraumaMD]

So still not seeing an argument that proper hand hygiene could not have prevented things (sounds like your colleague needs a lesson in washing hands after the bathroom)

Oh absolutely. I'm just saying the rest of us got sick because of one idiot who didn't use proper hand hygiene. But if you're shedding virus, I think it's still very possible to spread it all over the place even if you do wash your hands... Just from touching everyday objects that others use, like computer keyboards.
Worst of all, said colleague was an attending so it's not even like anyone could have kicked him out if they wanted to.

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

Oh absolutely. I'm just saying the rest of us got sick because of one idiot who didn't use proper hand hygiene. But if you're shedding virus, I think it's still very possible to spread it all over the place even if you do wash your hands... Just from touching everyday objects that others use, like computer keyboards.
Worst of all, said colleague was an attending so it's not even like anyone could have kicked him out if they wanted to.

Clearly half of your department consists of unhygienic germballs. It's not that noro is ludicrously contagious and can be spread even if you practice proper hand hygiene.

 

[VA Hopeful Dr]

Clearly half of your department consists of unhygienic germballs. It's not that noro is ludicrously contagious and can be spread even if you practice proper hand hygiene.

It can be both

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

It can be both

Tell me about it. No one at my last command washed their hands after using the head. Disgusting.

 

[Microshaft]

Day 7: I can almost see the light at the end of the tunnel. Just don't rebound on me...

Fortunately I'm not vomiting so I don't think it's noro. Neither has anyone I know caught the bug. I should get some kind of reward for good hand hygiene.

 

[YayPudding]

Day 7: I can almost see the light at the end of the tunnel. Just don't rebound on me...

Fortunately I'm not vomiting so I don't think it's noro. Neither has anyone I know caught the bug. I should get some kind of reward for good hand hygiene.

This has been a riveting voyage - wishing you Godspeed and normal BMs, OP

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

This has been a riveting voyage - wishing you Godspeed and normal BMs, OP

Yes, I really ran through this thread. I tried to stop, but it had to run its course.

 

[MediCane2006]

Med student: stay home

Resident: stay home if on non-critical elective, show up if on service and afebrile, stay home if febrile

Attending: most likely show up no matter what

Had the worst case of food poisoning of my life a few months ago....and a combo case with general surgery for possible flap closure of an axillary wound.

I was curled up on a chair in the corner of the OR trying very hard not to puke or pass out, and looked the chief resident in the eye and told him "just get it closed, I don't care what you do, but please just get it closed somehow".

(he did)

 

[dpmd]

Had the worst case of food poisoning of my life a few months ago....and a combo case with general surgery for possible flap closure of an axillary wound.

I was curled up on a chair in the corner of the OR trying very hard not to puke or pass out, and looked the chief resident in the eye and told him "just get it closed, I don't care what you do, but please just get it closed somehow".

(he did)

I mean being able to raise your arm overhead is overrated anyway

 

[MediCane2006]

I mean being able to raise your arm overhead is overrated anyway

I promise her revision contracture release will be complimentary

 

[Merely]

People are going to come into work sick until you guys stop giving us bad evals for staying home...

 

[OrthoTraumaMD]

People are going to come into work sick until you guys stop giving us bad evals for staying home...

Do you have proof that this happens regularly? I keep hearing this from students, but I've never in my life given anyone a bad grade if they were ill with a contagious process. That is asinine. Neither has anyone I know. Is this just something people use as a reason to explain a bad grade, or is there actual proof that the bad eval was due to the absence?

 

[anbuitachi]

Do you have proof that this happens regularly? I keep hearing this from students, but I've never in my life given anyone a bad grade if they were ill with a contagious process. That is asinine. Neither has anyone I know. Is this just something people use as a reason to explain a bad grade, or is there actual proof that the bad eval was due to the absence?

I've heard it. I dont know if it ended up being on her evaluation, but med student got sick a few days and had to call out like maybe 4 days out of the month, and the people evaluating were not happy and did not like her, and did mention how she called out several days from sick.

And often times you dont need to hear it, we are all biased in some way whether we like it or not. It's just the way we are built. No one likes to be given more work because someone called out. I've never used a sick day in my life, despite being at work multiple times while being pretty sick. As a resident, my line is usually if I can move and get to the hospital, then I should go, not so much due to evaluations, but more b/c i hate pushing my work onto someone else. And im sure no intern/resident would like to show up at work, being told their co resident is out, and you are now covering half their patients or so for the day, and now you are scrambling to round on 5 extra patients and learn all about them and present them in the morning. Or they put a random resident to cover for the sick resident, and now this resident has to learn an entire list of new patients

 

[OrthoTraumaMD]

I've heard it. I dont know if it ended up being on her evaluation, but med student got sick a few days and had to call out like maybe 4 days out of the month, and the people evaluating were not happy and did not like her, and did mention how she called out several days from sick.

And often times you dont need to hear it, we are all biased in some way whether we like it or not. It's just the way we are built. No one likes to be given more work because someone called out. I've never used a sick day in my life, despite being at work multiple times while being pretty sick. As a resident, my line is usually if I can move and get to the hospital, then I should go, not so much due to evaluations, but more b/c i hate pushing my work onto someone else. And im sure no intern/resident would like to show up at work, being told their co resident is out, and you are now covering half their patients or so for the day, and now you are scrambling to round on 5 extra patients and learn all about them and present them in the morning. Or they put a random resident to cover for the sick resident, and now this resident has to learn an entire list of new patients

Oh trust me, I know. Multiply that by 10 in Ortho residency because bros are even whinier than you'd think. That day was the only time in 5 years I had ever been out, and my own program director knew I'd been in the ER and said he would personally wring my neck "if I catch your ass anywhere near the hospital." Even then, I felt bad.

When I hear stories like that as an attending though, it pisses me off. Like, how exactly are you so reliant on the med student that you give them a bad grade for being ill? (Not talking about the sniffles but something like viral gastro.) Alternatively, how much of a vindictive bastard are you? Did a nurse or resident pee in your coffee when you were a student, and now you have to wield your power over anyone lower on the totem pole? Sigh.

 

[grapefruit17]

Honestly as a resident, if the med student who is currently working with me came in sick, with n/v/d i would wonder wtf he was thinking.

Just because you're in medicine, doesn't mean you aren't human. People get sick. Our patients get sick. If we don't care about other doctors/future doctors then how can we empathize with our patients?

 

[anbuitachi]

I think unfortunately, some people tend to evaluate med students by comparing them to other med students. If there are 2 med students on your team, and one consistently shows up everyday, gets all work done, stays late to help out (even though their PD tells them not to during orientation), it leaves a good feel in some peoples heads.

And unfortunately in MS3-4, so much weight is put on evaluations, that they'd probably rather show up than risk not getting a Honors and ruining their chances of getting into a competitive program/specialty. Which is why i've always been against subjective evaluations in training/school as the major part of the grade.