Someone may have Whooping Cough at work....

Hi Ladies,

I am freaking out a little, this morning a lady at work came in and told me she just found out that her son has a whooping cough. She said hopefully she doesn't have it and it hopefully would be okay if I got it because i'm not due anytime soon. I told my boss i wasn't sure how I felt about it and she was not even aware so she would talk to HR, I haven't heard anything back and have since kept away from her. I was sitting with this lady earlier in the week for training so if she does have it i'm guessing i would have caught it.

What concerns me is that she is not doing anything to check if she has it and prevent anyone else from catching it. Should I tell my boss I am not comfortable going in until she has been tested?

I would definitely be mentioning it. You need to put your health first when carrying a bubba. Fingers crossed you or anyone else at work doesn't get it xo

I was 7 months pregnant when DD had suspected pertussis and she was tested purely so that I could get antibiotics if needed (she was negative, it was just her asthma)
Id consult your caregiver and see what they think

WOW!

I would be really angry. This recently happened to me, actually. Some incredibly bright parent at my DS's kindy kept bringing her child in and refusing to have him tested as she couldn't be bothered with the hassle. Turns out he had it. My DS developed a cough, so of to the dr we went. We were both tested and his swab was positive, mine negative. (which is surprising considering I've had a worse cough than he has). I was advised to treat myself as if I had it, having been heavily exposed. The hospital nurse who phoned me actually said she believes the test must have been wrong, judging by the way I was out of breath and coughing on the phone.

Anyway, we took our antibiotics, and I immediately informed my boss I wouldn't be in until our 5 days of treatment were complete. I also did not attend work or send my DS to kindy during the time it took for the lab to process our results either. It's just common courtesy and common sense not to spread a dangerous and infectious disease if you *THINK* you might have it.

You know what really gets me? The fact that I took all these precautionary measures, and still I had a nasty co-worker spraying chemical cleaner in the air anytime I was near him (which made it very difficult to breathe, and worried me, being pregnant...) and my boss interrogated me basically saying that I did the wrong thing in taking so much time off, and yet should have been more careful about spreading 'my disease'. wtf?

I would definitely speak to your boss about it. There are certain precautions which must be taken when dealing with these things. I would smack this woman upside the head for you, if I had the chance. Despite my test coming back negative, I've had 30 days of awful, retching coughing which causes me to vomit and wet my pants at random. It's horrible. And it doesn't seem to be letting up any time soon.

:hug:

WOW!

I would be really angry. This recently happened to me, actually. Some incredibly bright parent at my DS's kindy kept bringing her child in and refusing to have him tested as she couldn't be bothered with the hassle. Turns out he had it. My DS developed a cough, so of to the dr we went. We were both tested and his swab was positive, mine negative. (which is surprising considering I've had a worse cough than he has). I was advised to treat myself as if I had it, having been heavily exposed. The hospital nurse who phoned me actually said she believes the test must have been wrong, judging by the way I was out of breath and coughing on the phone.

Anyway, we took our antibiotics, and I immediately informed my boss I wouldn't be in until our 5 days of treatment were complete. I also did not attend work or send my DS to kindy during the time it took for the lab to process our results either. It's just common courtesy and common sense not to spread a dangerous and infectious disease if you *THINK* you might have it.

You know what really gets me? The fact that I took all these precautionary measures, and still I had a nasty co-worker spraying chemical cleaner in the air anytime I was near him (which made it very difficult to breathe, and worried me, being pregnant...) and my boss interrogated me basically saying that I did the wrong thing in taking so much time off, and yet should have been more careful about spreading 'my disease'. wtf?

I would definitely speak to your boss about it. There are certain precautions which must be taken when dealing with these things. I would smack this woman upside the head for you, if I had the chance. Despite my test coming back negative, I've had 30 days of awful, retching coughing which causes me to vomit and wet my pants at random. It's horrible. And it doesn't seem to be letting up any time soon.

:hug:

The time for you to be swabbed is now before you show signs of a cough. By then it is too late. Also you can ask your doctor for preventative AB's. At this early stage (even if you swabbed negative you could still be positive) the anti-biotics would be a definate help. Don't be afraid to push for these things as some doctors don't seem to take WC seriously. (My son had WC at 5 weeks of age).

Wow! I would be furious! How unbelievably thoughtless of her. Hope you dont catch it :(

Thanks for the replies ladies, I wasn't sure if I was over reacting. I'm pretty PO'd that I've been put in this position!

Forshelby that's terrible that your boss tried to make you feel bad about taking time off, when your trying to look after your family & trying to prevent spreading it.

I just went to the Dr's (my Dr wasn't available) they said if I'm not showing any symptoms the test may come back negative but I could still develop it in the next two weeks. So she said to just avoid contact until it is confirmed that she has been tested or has taken antibiotics for it.

I've decided to call work tue morning tell them that, I don't feel comfortable coming in if she is there & has not confirmed if she has it or not. Really nervous about how that will go down but I really don't want to take any risks.