The first thing everyone is told to do when they get sick is to stay home from work or school. But a study of health care professionals at one hospital found that 83% said they had come to work while they were sick at least once in the past year. They did this even though almost all of them said they believed it was the wrong thing to do and could endanger patients.
The study gave an anonymous survey to several hundred doctors and to nurses, physician assistants, and midwives at a children's hospital asking them how often they came to work sick. They were also asked with what kinds of illnesses they would work through.
Almost 80% of the 280 doctors said they would work with a cough or runny nose, and 60% with congestion and a sore throat. More than 21% said they would come to work with a fever, and almost 8% said they would work even if they were vomiting.
The 256 nurses, midwives, and physician assistants seemed to do a bit better at staying home. Only 70% said they would work while coughing, and half said they would work with a runny nose, cough, congestion, or sore throat.
The most common reason healthcare workers gave for coming to work when they knew they shouldn't was because they did not want to let patients and colleagues down. Another reason given was that they were concerned that there would not be enough staff to pick up the work if they didn't come in. Other reasons given included fear of being ostracized by colleagues, concern over the continuity of care for patients, and a strong cultural expectation to come to work unless they were extremely sick.
The study was published in the journal JAMA Pediatrics.
