My Job Requires Lifting

[vickie6866 4]

I work as a nurse and my typical patient is usually elderly, a new post op patient, a recent moderate to severe stroke victim, a bariatric patient who had a bad outcome, an accident victim, and/or a person who has been debilitated for a long period of time. The typical patient is a one person hard tranfer or a two person mild transfer. They weight anywhere from 100lbs to 500lbs, with the average being around 200lbs. They need to be tranferred into and out of the bed/wheelchair/bathroom and lifted and repositioned often while in bed, I work three-12 hour night shifts in a row so lots of this. I am hoping to have my sleeve done during a two week planned vacation, and return back to work about 10 days post op. I will be able to avoid a lot of the lifting by saying that I have had stomach surgery, but there is always times when it is hard to do. For anyone out there that is in a job like mine with this type of lifting, what is the amount of time you took off. I want to let my body heal properly, but at the same time I hate to make my co-workers work a lot of extra days to cover my days if I am off, so I would like to be back as soon as possible. Worse case I can tell my boss that I had the surgery and will only work if there are always two other people there with me, sometime there is only me and another worker. I hate to take this road because there are to many things that can go wrong and it is a major hassle to always make sure everyone hasn't forgotten that I need these needs met. Plus I hate feeling like I am whining or not pulling my weigh, I went through a year and a half of many complications with my lap band so everyone knows I have had these type needs in the past, so I really hate to go down that road once again. Any advice would be welcomed.

[Tiffykins 673]

I couldn't lift anything over 10lbs for 6 weeks because of the concern with incisional hernias. I would just ask that you get additional assistance so you do not hurt yourself internally.

[feedyoureye 3,087]

Perhaps for those 6 weeks you can trade off for something no one wants to do... bed pan duty! Promise you will pay them back after 6 weeks, and bring in treats for them or something special, magazines or something for the ones who help you out the most....You don't want to be the one in the bed that needs help!

Hey, I noticed how you threw in the "bariatric surgery with a bad outcome"! Do tell!?

[Bryn 3]

i work in a nursing home and had abdominal surgery twice before where i've required 3-5 weeks off due to the fact that like you, i lift, push, pull, etc all day at work. just ask your doc to write you a letter saying you need to have "light duty" and let him put the max you're allowed to lift. most facilities have lifts or ask a nursing assistant to help or perform the tasks

[vickie6866 4]

Perhaps for those 6 weeks you can trade off for something no one wants to do... bed pan duty! Promise you will pay them back after 6 weeks, and bring in treats for them or something special, magazines or something for the ones who help you out the most....You don't want to be the one in the bed that needs help!

Hey, I noticed how you threw in the "bariatric surgery with a bad outcome"! Do tell!?

The bad outcomes from bariatric surgery were mostly from one doctor in the area, who has now moved to another state, and a few from the local doctors who are through the hospital I work at. A few were lap bands that had problems that turned into other problems, but most were from gastric bypass or DS surgeries. The bypass/DS patients were ones that were usually over 400pounds, got put on a vent after surgery and then took a while to come off. Once they did get discharged from ICU they have to come to rehab because now they are weak from post op diet intake, being bedridden, and as a result stay where I am at for weeks. They usually go home with family and home health care, some even go to a nursing home. Being fat and the road to being skinny is a scary thing, but I can't not walk it because I see what happens when you don't. I had an obese 35 year old co-worker who had one large and two smaller strokes last week that were a direct result of bad lifestyle and being obese.

[Billy363627 15]

I was told by my doc At least 5 weeks but am taking off 6 weeks for my sugery. I pull over 2000 cases per day up to 50lbs per box. so doc don't want me to injury myself.