how to deal with sickness during med school...

[PunjabiCurry]

like if you get a rheumatoid fever during your rotations or a few weeks before your USMLE...

How do people take their time off? Thanks

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[smq123]

like if you get a rheumatoid fever during your rotations or a few weeks before your USMLE...

How do people take their time off? Thanks

If you have to, you talk to your student dean and explain what's going on. They'll usually recommend that you take an "Incomplete" for that rotation/class, and figure out when and how you can make it up. As for the USMLE, you'll have to push back your exam date. Since it's computerized, and administered practically every day, it's not that hard to do.

What, exactly, is a "rheumatoid fever"? I've never heard this term before.

 

[deleted77919]

I believe the OP means rheumatic fever.

Basically you have two choices, 1) man up and deal with it. 2) Take a leave of abscence and repeat the year or take an incomplete and make up the class over the summer, delay your USMLE, etc.

 

[njbmd]

Allopathic students can answer this pre-med question in the Pre-Allopathic Forum. Moving thread.

 

[Doctor~Detroit]

hi! i'm a pre-allo student who has absolutely no idea what the answer to your question is!

 

[baylormed]

This is a good question, as I've been wondering that myself....are we not allowed to get sick during medical school?

 

[Depakote]

hi! i'm a pre-allo student who has absolutely no idea what the answer to your question is!

ditto. What's up with the TURFing of some legit med school related threads to pre-allo as of late?

 

[chable]

ditto. What's up with the TURFing of some legit med school related threads to pre-allo as of late?

We just have to buff it and bounce it. Wheres the pre-allo mod?!?!

 

[Robizzle]

This does not belong here.

 

[JosephFaecesMD]

like if you get a rheumatoid fever during your rotations or a few weeks before your USMLE...

How do people take their time off? Thanks

Suck it up!

 

[Haemulon]

This is a good question, as I've been wondering that myself....are we not allowed to get sick during medical school?

I have been wondering what happens when we get sick enough that we are both miserable and contageous (say a flu, or bad upper resp infection, or perhaps a virus leading to explosive lower GI problems), but technically still able to semi-function. Is it fair to the patients to be rounding on them and performing exams? What if it is just the peak of a really bad cold? My guess is that unless we are actively vomitting every 10 minutes or something like that, we would be expected to "man up" and go through our routine. It's funny though that most all hospitals have a policy that says employees should not be allowed to work if they have a fever. Does this apply to med student's as well? Even if it does, I'm guessing it reflects poorly on you for calling in sick. So much for controlling nosocomial infections.

 

[Haemulon]

This does not belong here.

Agreed, this is an Allo thread.

 

[baylormed]

I have been wondering what happens when we get sick enough that we are both miserable and contageous (say a flu, or bad upper resp infection, or perhaps a virus leading to explosive lower GI problems), but technically still able to semi-function. Is it fair to the patients to be rounding on them and performing exams? What if it is just the peak of a really bad cold? My guess is that unless we are actively vomitting every 10 minutes or something like that, we would be expected to "man up" and go through our routine. It's funny though that most all hospitals have a policy that says employees should not be allowed to work if they have a fever. Does this apply to med student's as well? Even if it does, I'm guessing it reflects poorly on you for calling in sick.

Unfortunately most jobs expect their employees to put work before their health, and I'm almost certain hospitals are not the exception.

It's not like I get sick that often, but what if I am well enough to stand but not well enough to do my job right? Do you know what I mean? In extreme cases I guess it's obvious that we can't work, but are we expected to go to work and get to the point where the mild case we had turns into something more extreme, and then they'll let us off?

Like my dad says, "Sure, I like my job, but I don't like it more than myself!"

 

[DblHelix]

Yeah, I'm curious about this, too. Put the thread back in Allo so med students can answer the question, pre-meds won't have a clue...

 

[Haemulon]

Unfortunately most jobs expect their employees to put work before their health, and I'm almost certain hospitals are not the exception.

It's not like I get sick that often, but what if I am well enough to stand but not well enough to do my job right? Do you know what I mean? In extreme cases I guess it's obvious that we can't work, but are we expected to go to work and get to the point where the mild case we had turns into something more extreme, and then they'll let us off?

Like my dad says, "Sure, I like my job, but I don't like it more than myself!"

We're on the same page baylormed. I think we just have to see what happens when it happens. I currently work in a hospital, and have a couple times come down with a bad bronchitis that cause me to cough like crazy all the time (lasted a couple weeks). I felt kinda crummy, but could still technically do my job ... so I showed up and worked. I definitely got some evil stares from other employees though, and a couple of annoyed nurses came up to me and made some sarcastic remarks intended to shame me into going home. Truth is, I agreed with them. I had a mild fever and should not have been there. But my supervisor was already starting to get annoyed with me for having called in a couple days before for a different illness. So I felt that I was really caught in the middle. Sucked big time. Thank goodness I got better before too long, but it was really awkward while it lasted, especially since I really just wanted to be in bed anyway.

 

[PunjabiCurry]

I believe the OP means rheumatic fever.

Oops, you're right!

In case you wonder why I asked this question; I have been SEVERELY ill last past week that I had to miss 3 days of lab work and school. I stayed on bed the whole time and I didn't even go outside this weekend. I watched TV and used internet for other 6 hours or so. I was hurting so bad that when I was walking I felt like my joints were being crushed into pieces, not to mention that I have been coughing and throwing up at nights with cold sweats. I have not been this sick for the past five years. I know med school wants one to be tough but i don't think I could have sucked this one up. I needed that one week+ of rest and recreation.

 

[baylormed]

Oops, you're right!

In case you wonder why I asked this question; I have been SEVERELY ill last past week that I had to miss 3 days of lab work and school. I stayed on bed the whole time and I didn't even go outside this weekend. I watched TV and used internet for other 6 hours or so. I was hurting so bad that when I was walking I felt like my joints were being crushed into pieces, not to mention that I have been coughing and throwing up nights with cold sweats. I have not been this sick for the past five years. I know med school wants one to be tough but i don't think I could have sucked this one up. I needed that one week+ of rest and recreation.

Awww...that sounds awful. I hate being sick...I can't help it, I'm a wuss when it comes to that.

I'm glad you're better though.

 

[Funky]

If michael jordan can drop 38 points on the jazz to win a playoff game, you can go take the USMLE

 

[deleted77919]

Agree with the other posters, this was a legitimate allo question. If as an allo student I asked other allo students how they have dealt with being sick, would it still have been moved?

 

[deleted77919]

What if it is just the peak of a really bad cold? My guess is that unless we are actively vomitting every 10 minutes or something like that, we would be expected to "man up" and go through our routine.

Panda had a blog entry about this. He described a time he was administering an IV to himself and spending lots of time in the bathroom in between seeing patients for the whole shift because heaven forbid a resident get sick and not go to work.

 

[MonkeyNuts!]

This does not belong here.

Good luck in getting a mod to move it back. They never come on regularly and when they do they flip through a thread and make incorrect judgements about them or posters and end up handing out random infractions or throwing around threads across forums like monkeys flinging dump.

The only advisor/mod I like is Anastasis. Keep up the good work Ana.

 

[Doctor~Detroit]

we should just start a new thread back in allo, and the op can copy and paste all the responses on this page in their first post.

 

[DblHelix]

Let's start a Grass Roots campaign to get this thread moved back. We will force the mods to bend to the will of the people.

Now if only we can get someone to start a website called movethread.org

 

[Tired Pigeon]

This is a good question, as I've been wondering that myself....are we not allowed to get sick during medical school?

At my school, basically, the answer is no. Exceptions may be made for something imminently life-threatening, but just feeling like absolute **** doesn't cut it. This is, of course, unfair to our patients and our co-workers, but that's how it is. The "official policy" is that we are not supposed to be around patients if we have a fever and/or are potentially contagious, but it is made completely clear to us (by attendings, residents, interns, and more senior med students) that it's not the real policy. We've been told, "If you aren't coming into the hospital in your capacity as a student, you better damn well be coming in as a patient."

 

[Haemulon]

At my school, basically, the answer is no. Exceptions may be made for something imminently life-threatening, but just feeling like absolute **** doesn't cut it. This is, of course, unfair to our patients and our co-workers, but that's how it is. The "official policy" is that we are not supposed to be around patients if we have a fever and/or are potentially contagious, but it is made completely clear to us (by attendings, residents, interns, and more senior med students) that it's not the real policy. We've been told, "If you aren't coming into the hospital in your capacity as a student, you better damn well be coming in as a patient."

Well, I guess I expectd as much. However, do you at least get access to some scripts to help you get through? Like your resident scripting you some phenergan to stop vomitting so you can work or something? Maybe a z-pack for that bacterial sinus infection that is friggin kickin your butt? You'd think that there should at least be some kind of perk to offset the unrealistic expectations right?

 

[baylormed]

Well, I guess I expectd as much. However, do you at least get access to some scripts to help you get through? Like your resident scripting you some phenergan to stop vomitting so you can work or something? Maybe a z-pack for that bacterial sinus infection that is friggin kickin your butt? You'd think that there should at least be some kind of perk to offset the unrealistic expectations right?

Well, my only consolation is that I'll be in a hospital. Immediate medical attention available....

 

[Psycho Doctor]

Use the "report a thread" botton next to a post (shape of the yield sign) and let a mod know you want it moved back to allo. I agree it belongs in allo.

And as an allo student but only in my second year; it's pretty impossible to miss clinical rotations, but likewise I think it's nuts to see immune suppressed patients when you're contagious.

 

[lord_jeebus]

Stay home.

My school has been humane. Although one dude developed appendicitis on Labor and Delivery and tried to tough it out.

 

[Darth Asclepius]

I had a sinus infection on a month long surgical specialty rotation. I had read up on a long case for that day, but I felt really crappy and didn't want to scrub in on an 8 hour surgery. I asked my resident if it would be okay for me to observe some shorter surgeries I hadn't read up on. It was a Friday. She sent me home and told me to get some rest and she would see me on Monday. I still honored the course. It probably depends on the residents/attendings and also partly on your usual attitude.

In your first 2 years, if you are seriously sick, your advisor can help you out. Most course directors will allow you to make up an exam if you're legitimately sick on exam day or seriously ill just before an exam and therefore couldn't study enough. You do need a doctor's note and it has to be something more than a cold, but most people are at least somewhat reasonable. At my school, the faculty seem to care about the students. Even the ones who seem not so nice, if someone is really sick or something really bad happens to someone in their family, the faculty help the students out.

 

[Tired Pigeon]

Well, I guess I expectd as much. However, do you at least get access to some scripts to help you get through? Like your resident scripting you some phenergan to stop vomitting so you can work or something? Maybe a z-pack for that bacterial sinus infection that is friggin kickin your butt? You'd think that there should at least be some kind of perk to offset the unrealistic expectations right?

Yeah, you can get the hookup on that stuff. After all, it's not like you've got time to go to a doctor's appointment.

 

[PunjabiCurry]

I'm glad you're better though.

Thanks!

 

[WhoisJohnGalt]

It's really no big deal in the first 2 years, since those can mostly be home-schooled anyway. 3rd and 4th year on the other hand will totally depend on your attendings (and you can't judge based on specialty either-- I've heard of totally benevolent surgical attendings and incredibly strict pediatric attendings). Most schools/hospitals have an official policy that you shouldn't be there if you're sick, but some of your attendings will beg to differ, and they are the ones grading you. There are definitely some that feel that you'd better be at the hospital one way or another (rounding or as a patient), and some that are much more humane. Technically, you could probably go to the dean if it was really legit and your attending was giving you a hard time, but grading is so subjective in the clinical years that you can't really prove that you got a C because you called in when you were sick rather than for some other made-up reason.

 

[lilnoelle]

My school requires a sick student to be seen in the student health office if they need to miss a required event due to sickness. I think this would be more of an issue in residency than in medical school.

 

[soeagerun2or]

Getting sick is the patient's job.

 

[old_boy]

We've been told, "If you aren't coming into the hospital in your capacity as a student, you better damn well be coming in as a patient."

Old school

 

[Tired]

Especially on rotations where I wanted to do well, I always came in sick and waited to be sent home. That way it never looked like I was trying to duck out.