How do you decide when to call in sick?

when you are coughing out blood

For me it has to be pretty extreme. I’ve only missed 6 days of work due to sickness in the past 10 years. On 3 of those days I had Bronchitis and I was coughing so bad and so miserable that I couldn’t function properly. The other 3 days were when I had a kidney stone. The first day was in the ER for hours and then next two days were rest and recovery from the pain and meds.

The only time I call in sick is when my monthly girl problems prevent me from standing up / sitting up / functioning, and I can’t go a few minutes without writhing in pain. I do mention to my (male) advisor that I am unable to come in as a result of female issues.

I have been at this job 4.5 years, and the only time I cancelled was after I was in a car accident earlier this year. We arranged for another clinician to cover one day, and rescheduled the more important patient to come in on what would have been my day off.

Too many people are inconvenienced if I don’t show up, so I would seriously have to be incapable of performing my duties before I’d call out.

As someone that managed a department – before I started my own business. My advice – if you are vomiting, have the flu, or something contagious – keep your butt home. NO one wants your germs and it annoys people (and the boss) when you spread your germs through the department!

There are times when you just are so run down that you might need a day – but make sure you really need that day – especially in this economy. Unlike other countries, we give the days to take, but look down on people for taking them. Crazy.

I don’t get pay if I don’t go to work. So I usually go in unless I am half dead.

If you have a fever above 100, are vomiting, or would not be able to commit to sitting upright at your desk for a reasonable amount of time (you’d need to be in the bathroom, you’d need to be curled on the floor in the fetal position, whatever) then you should stay home.

Which is basically my list for either you are contagious or cannot perform your duties. It’s a real pain in the ass for my employer if I don’t come in, so I have to be pretty much dead. Having said that, I took a sick day for really horrible cramps once. Of course then they cleared up around noon and I spent the rest of the day feeling horribly guilty about it.

@EP! I love it…“curled on the floor in the fetal position”!

Perfect! Lurve to you. :)

Simple. I call in when I just feel to ill to work. Mine is a physical job and I’m not about to shlep my mail route in the elements if I’m feeling like crap.

When you’re sick

I’m department head, and I give this speech to every new employee:

“If you feel sick, stay home. Just call me and let me know you’re not coming in.”

Simple enough.

Thanks, all. I did a little research on this topic myself. It seems as if a new term has been coined in recent years: “presenteeism.” It applies to situations where people who show up for work who really should have stayed home. These people are not productive and may be contagious to others. While I do not take sick days often (thank goodness I am usually healthy), I do believe in staying home when ill—even if I am not so bad that I am “curled on the floor in the fetal position”! Of course, some jobs/bosses make it more or less difficult to make these decisions.

Don’t worry, Jill, the fetal position is only for cramps. I always feel bad when I take time off for them! But seriously, they hurt less in the fetal position.

Empress, I feel for you! So far, I have had relatively easy periods….

When my kid is vomiting or his throat is hurting like hell, and his stomach hurts too. Last week: strep; today: stomach virus. School called up to say he’d thrown up, and we should come and get him now! He’d complained of a stomach ache before getting on the bus, but you never know what kind of stomach ache that is: “I don’t want to do that” or a virus.

Sigh. I had a presentation this afternoon, and my wife had a couple of meetings to deal with the visit of the Wells-Fargo folks. I quickly trained my assistant in the statistical technique for the training, and headed back home to get the car.

I flip a coin every morning.

When I don’t feel I could keep up with daily tasks/interactions because of being sick (ie. not just your average Monday morning blues)

I work 12.5 hour shifts as a critical care nurse taking care of the sickest of the sick. It is intensely satisfying, and intenesly taxing work.
The patients deserve rested, alert, healthy staff. If I can’t meet the challenge of that 12 hour shift, I call in.

When I know I’m contagious, when I know I’m operating at 50% or less, or when I’m incapacitated. It’s usually gotta be pretty bad, though.

It does not have to be bad. Consider your co-workers. Whatever you might have, you are bringing it right to them if you go to work and they will not appreciate it. I am a business owner and if you showed up at work sick, I would send you home immediately because I would not want you infecting everyone else, me included. Use the time to go to the doc. If your regular doc can’t see you immediately, go to a walk-in clinic. I use the walk-in clinic anytime I need immediate attention. They are set up to provide it and your regular doc is not.