Basically I suffered a second degree scald burn on my hand at work this was over two weeks ago. Now I was sent straight down to A&E and had my hand dressed and it developed blisters.

Now I had the dressing off three days later, and my finger although very tender felt ok and the epidermis layer was starting to flake off. Now a week later this layer has peeled off and the skin underneath has started to blister and its like I’ve reburnt one of my fingers.

Now I called in sick last week and had it redressed by the nurse at our local urgent care. And district nurses every other day. Now I rung work to say I’d be back Friday possibly, but I have had it dressed again yesterday afternoon. And its due to be changed Sunday. Now do I ring them this morning and say I may possibly be in Monday or wait till Sunday evening.

I think you can self certify sickness for up to 7 days and then after Sunday I need to provide a sick note. Now I can’t get a doctor’s appointment till next Thursday at the earliest.

I can’t tolerate any gloves or the handwashing during patient intervention and due to having a dressing on for infection control purposes.

Just worried about the blemish on my record as I have only been in this job for twomonths. Hoping not to be sacked after a work sustained accident. But my fingers just aren’t healing quickly enough. ____________________

I can’t tolerate any gloves or the handwashing during patient intervention and due to having a dressing on for infection control purposes.

Unfit to carry out your duties. Keep your employer regularly updated with your progress and any problems. Go see your GP. Enjoy the time off.

As per qwerty really. You can’t do your job, you’re covered by a sick-line (or will be) and if your dept is so upset by you being off they could always give you a non-frontline job for a bit.
Get well soon and enjoy your time off!
Ps- not surprised you’re only in the job 2 months- most folk in the Nhs would be making the most of it! (I mean, er, ensuring that they’re fully fit and able to return to duties!)

Do you work for the NHS?

1. Ring your employer and keep them informed ie tell them you can’t get an appointment until Thursday.

2. If you work in a hospital environment it would be difficult to many jobs without having to wash your hands/keep your hands clean.

3. If you do work for the NHS you could always go to occupational health.

4. Use your common sense about this and take of as ling as you need, you only have 2 hands!

Basically I suffered a second degree scald burn on my hand at work this was over two weeks ago.

if you’ve had more than 7 days of work and/or can’t carry out normal duties, you need to make sure your employer reports it a RIDDOR event as a lost time accident.

How did the accident happen? The employer has a duty of care to ensure you are safe at work.

If something broke/got spilled or was a genuine accident in the normal line of work, then you have nothing to worry about and could probably use your employer if you are an ambulance chaser.

If you were showing off juggling full kettles in the canteen (i.e. breaching procedures) , then your employer has every right to take you to task.

Keep them informed and go see you line manager & see if you can return on reduced duties if you are bothered about it. Showing willing goes a long way.

See your in house occ health and get on some low risk office work ie filing, typing, shredding etc. Keeps your sickness rate low, saves the NHS some dosh (they need it) and its fascinating what people shred….

^ beat me too it!

Keep them informed and go see you line manager & see if you can return on reduced duties if you are bothered about it. Showing willing goes a long way.

This.

Where there is blame there is a claim

Accident happened as the water geyser in my opinions is poorly designed although health and safety didn’t agree. You hold a teapot in my case up and obviously you flick the switch down to fill up and up to turn off. And the steam was burning my hand not holding the pot and boiling water flicked on other hand and hence I flinched and the pot overflowed all over my hand.

Now if you place pot on the surface below the geyser it splashes all over etc.

You need a new H&S advisor as the current one is not fit for purpose.

*puts old/former NHS manager’s cap on* Make sure your manager is recording your sickness as “work-related/caused” (there should be a code for this in their weekly/monthly sickness returns, iirc it differs from trust to trust)

Sickness is recorded and paid differently in the NHS if it an injury you sustained in the line of duty. (Many years ago as a HCA, filling a large kettle from a hot water geyser was very much in my line of duty and the old ladies would have revolted if this was not accomplished at least the regulation six times a day!)

You need to be clear that your sickness is being recorded as this otherwise (as a new starter with reduced sick pay allowances) your next wage packet may be rather a lot smaller than you are expecting!

Also/however if you work on a ward it will not be unreasonable that they ask you to come into work “in civvies” and help out with filing, admin, stock control/ordering etc until your hand is well enough to cope with gloves and being washed 20-30 times a shift. Plenty of my colleagues have come in with injuries that prevented them from normal nursing duties but allowed them to help out in other ways.

I’m hoping to be back Monday dependant on the state of it underneath. At this moment in time it’s not hurting. But as soon as the heating is switched on and I get warm its throbs badly and the pain killers come out. Was planning on ringing them this evening and saying I might possibly be ok for Monday. But everytime I do this it’s not ok. So feel like I’m messing them about.