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        Cluster Headache Help and Support >> Cluster Headache Specific >> Clusters In Work Place
        
(Message started by: Superirish2005 on Aug 18^th, 2006, 2:10pm)

Title: Clusters In Work Place
Post by Superirish2005 on Aug 18^th, 2006, 2:10pm

I have been getting clusters for years but almost always at night. TODAY, I had one at 10:00am that was so bad it affected my work, I told my supervisor then ran to the wash room and vommited. It only lasted an hour.

I work customer service and cannot afford to be off the phone like this (an hour a day or every other day)

I tried to explain to my supervisor but she does not understand, what else can I do?

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by Sandy_C on Aug 18^th, 2006, 3:30pm

Super, I'm sorry you are having a hard time of it. Go to the "Getting to know ya" board, second item down the list. Here's the link:

http://www.ouch-us.org/chgeneral/colleagueletter.htm

Print this out, take it to your employer and sit down for a nice, long talk with him/her. Be 100% open and honest about your CH, when you get hit, what your doctor's are doing to help you, and ask for his understanding and support. If you are episodic, make sure he know that the cycle WILL end.

You should also share this information with anyone else in your workplace who will be affected whenever you have to disappear for awhile - those that will have to cover for you. They will probably feel resentment at having to do their jobs as well as yours. Again - be 100% open and honest, and then, offer to cover for them any time you can.

Although my boss was pretty sympathetic if I got hit while at work, he still did not "understand" what I was going through, and would interrupt my "solitude" - innocently - but still an interruption. I had always tried my best to answer whatever question he had, then finally, he interrupted during a pretty heavy hit - you know - the one where you just CAN'T answer anything. He saw me in a full blown hit - he now understands. As a last resort, let them all see it. It is such a tremendous relief not to have to hide (although I still do), or to have to apologize for my absence - cause nobody believes it.

Hope this helps you - it did me.

Also hoping you get pain free time

Sandy

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by Superirish2005 on Aug 18^th, 2006, 3:39pm

Thank you sandy that was very very helpful and appreciated.

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by kevinpix on Aug 18^th, 2006, 3:52pm

I think it is common to get hits at night because sometimes REM sleep is a trigger. If I took catnaps throughout the day, I'd get fewer hits at night. Hope this helps a bit!

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by Bond007 on Aug 18^th, 2006, 7:36pm

Sandy's advice at the end was seriously spot on -- the part about letting co-workers see you in a full-blown hit. That same thing happened to me before I was diagnosed with CH. Our GM and an associate of mine both inadvertently saw me in a full blown Kip 10 about mid-morning. Scared the beejesus outta them. So much so in fact, that our GM insisted that we call an ambulance because he seriously thought I had just suffered an aneurysm (sp?). Since I've been diagnosed, I printed off the letter Sandy referenced and gave it to them to explain what they witnessed. Now, when they see my door shut and hear screams of terror eminating from within, they keep their distance and keep others a safe distance away as well. They've become VERY respectful of my space when I'm getting hit these days and only come running if I yell for help. It's very comforting to know they're on MY side.

Best of luck taking your boss into your confidence and I certainly hope your situation turns out as well as mine has. It truly does make my work environment so much nicer.

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by Katherinecm on Aug 18^th, 2006, 10:31pm

CH is covered under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Your job is protected as long as it doesn't create an extreme hardship on the company. If you're in a company with a large customer service department they are going to be VERY hard pressed in court to say that your abscence creates an extreme hardship. It may be annoying for an individual supervisor who is trying to keep their stats up but they cannot penalize you for it any more than they can penalize someone on maternity leave. It's not as if you are doing some vital job where you are the only person qualified to do it- there are likely plenty of people to cover for you.

Technically you have a medical right to privacy (thank you President Clinton!) and you don't have to explain anything that you don't want to as long as you provide proof of disability through a doctor. You can talk to your HR department about this and you don't need to talk to your direct supervisor at all if you don't want to. There are actually advantages for companies to have people hired who are covered by the ADA act- if they don't have enough it establishes grounds for a discrimination lawsuit. As you've already explained your headaches though, it may be very helpful to print out the letter and give it to coworkers. Or you can give some vague yet truthful explanation such as "rare neurological disease."

There's some links on my website to information you can print out and take to your employer regarding your rights and headache disabilities. If your boss is still rude about it and it's a large company DON'T hesitate to go over their head- the ADA protects you from all consequences of your abscence due to CH, including negative performance reviews and harrassment from co-workers.

The ONLY potential problem is that if you've worked there less than one year you must work the full number of hours stipulated in the family leave act to protect your job in the event you need to take a long leave of abscence. It sounds like you're no where near that disabled though, so this probably won't affect you.

If you need any help, message me.

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by TimJohnson on Aug 18^th, 2006, 11:07pm

Be careful with the ADA.

One has to be able to perform the essential functions of the job in order to be covered under the statute.

Additionally, reasonable accommodation only has to be provided if the accommodation is "reasonable". There can be many definitions of reasonable. In the end, a court will define the term if it is not worked out between the parties.

I worked with employers and the ADA for several years.

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by Katherinecm on Aug 18^th, 2006, 11:45pm

I respectfully disagree with TimJohnson. The ADA protects my job as an analyst with a large fiancial/insurance company. While my current position doesn't involve disability benefits, my previous position did. I transferred to my current company and within 3 weeks started getting hit hard at all hours of the day and night. My HR department explained to me that my job was protected and why. It was a simple matter of getting my doctor to fill out a form that stated that when I had an attack I had "severe debilitating pain," and was unable to do my job. After that it was a very simple matter of sending my "leader" an email whenever I was taking a break. I lived walking-distance from my office at the time and fortunately I can usually feel an attack coming on because my eye starts burning about 20 minutes before I get hit. When I could tell a severe hit was coming on (the burning radiates down my neck when it gets bad) I'd go home. I was free to come and go as I pleased, though my "salaried" position did get broken down to pay by the equivalent hourly wage when it was clear I would not be able to make up all of the hours I had missed. I am lucky to work with one of those companies that are pretty consistently rated as a top company to work for, but the law doesn't change no matter how nice your employer is. Eventually I started working so much less than half-time it became quite obvious that I would make more money if I took a leave of abscence and used the private disability insurance we get as a benefit at my company. My boss pointed this out to me, and I still stuck it out and worked as much as possible for another few months. My job is still protected while I am on a leave of abscence.

As an aside, when I was working I was an exceptional employee with great performance reviews, and I did what I could to volunteer for things and help out when neccesary. I was also honest when the reason I stayed home one Friday was that I had strep throat- that abscence could have been used against me as my company works on an "occurance" basis for absences. My supervisor learned the signs of a hit (red right eye, flushed right side of face) and could tell I wasn't making things up when I needed to leave. It's hard to fake those symptoms.

What is considered reasonable accomodation is going to depend on your position. In my job there are more than 70 other analysts at any given time, so my position is protected. There are certain promotions I won't ever take because they are positions that are extremely important to the survival of the company and they are not protected under "reasonable accomodation." As a customer service rep, as long as your company is large enough and there are enough other reps they are not going to be able to argue in court that it is unreasonable for them to accomodate you- it will not present a severe hardship to the company. Especially not as you may want to/ be able to make up those unpaid hours. If you were, say, the manager of the call center or some other sort of position where the company couldn't fuction properly without you being availible at every second of the day would be absolutely neccessary then that might present a hardship or unreasonable accomodation. This is true the same way they cannot discriminate against a pregnant woman for taking an hour off to go to a neccesary medical appointment. They can refuse benefit time, make it unpaid, etc, but they cannot penalize you as long as it's not an undue hardship. If it is a fairly large company they probably already have a list of what jobs have accomodations and which ones don't. If yours doesn't then they will likely move you into an open position that does have accomodation if you are qualified for it. That may mean a pay cut, but it is likely better than getting fired, especially when you accepted your position with good faith that your previously known disability would likely not affect your job performance.

But don't believe either of us, go to the link on my site for About.com regarding your rights regarding headaches and disability. Read the law yourself. Judges generally have common sense, and as long as you make it clear that you are not some scam artist they are going to do what they can to protect you most of the time. Most companies are not going to risk lawsuits over this type of thing either- if you sue them for damages juries generally come down on the side of the "poor suffering victim" not the "greedy corporation." Companies know this, and large companies are not going to want to deal with the negative publicity. Of course there may be exceptions where people are simply jerks and don't obey the law. That is what lawsuits are for. Also, you can't use your headaches to escape stress or an already poor performance. If you're a bad employee they will be able to find a way to fire you, whether you are covered under the ADA or not. There is another link on my site called MIDAS that is for migraine disability rights that you may find helpful as well.

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by Karla on Aug 19^th, 2006, 11:01am

I guess the key thing is to have an abortive such as oxygen or imitrex etc at work stocked up so if and when you have hits at work you can take them at first sign of a hit comming and abort it before it becomes to serious.
Good luck!

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by Bond007 on Aug 19^th, 2006, 2:11pm

Katherine-

Thanks so much for that info regarding the ADA and CH coverage under it. I didn't know that until now. I'm definitely going to have to remember that for future reference. While it's not an issue at this present moment, I know it will come up in another 30-60 days, and that has been weighing heavily on my mind.

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by mynm156 on Aug 19^th, 2006, 2:41pm

If you have been there a year then get your doctor to fill out the FMLA forms as well it will also help protect you!

Good Vibes!

Your Brother in Pain

MYNM156

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by TimJohnson on Aug 22^nd, 2006, 1:00pm

Katharine,

I worked in the field providing expert testimony under the ADA for six years. I was a Rehabilitation Counselor working with Reasonable Accommodation, etc. I provided case management services for Fortune 500 companies, defense attorneys as well as their insurance carriers.

We are both making the same point but using different language. The decision will ultimately be up to a judge. You have to be able to perform the essential functions of the job to be protected - period. If you can't do the job - you can't do the job (i.e. A person with no arms is not protected under the ADA regarding a job on an assembly line). Now if they were injured on that job, and that employer wants to make reasonable accommodation to bring them back, that is up to that employer. A judge will probably not find that type of mechanical accommodation involving robotics, etc. reasonable (for any employer). It is probably cheaper for that employee to remain out on Worker';s Comp for 500 weeks (at least in Virginia). Then you get into morale, the psychology of the whole thing and what thats worth, etc and then you begin talking settlement. Thats when the attornerys get involved. Its quite an involved process from that angle.

Anyway, back to the ADA, its quite an intricate statute and ultimately a judge will make the call. Its best to have open communication and try not to intepret the law.

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by Katherinecm on Aug 22^nd, 2006, 3:28pm

Come now Tim, unless you got CH in the military or doing some sort of job that causes a head injury there is little if any chance that workers compensation has ANYTHING to do with CH benefits, and it definitely doesn't have to do with ADA benefits I have discussed above.

Furthermore, I find it downright discouraging that you state it is best not to "interpret the law." Yes, ultimately the judicial system is where laws are interpreted but the genius thing about representative democracies is that citizens are expected to not only be aware of the laws, but to lobby to change them if they sound unfair. It is quite easy for ANYONE who is a literate adult and of moderate intelligence to understand the spirit of the ADA requirements. With the help of advocacy sites such as MIDAS and legal sites such as findlaw it wouldn't take more than a few hours to discover how the law has been interpreted and why. If people with CH don't like the way laws are applied, their local senators and congresspeople have quite large staffs to help them 1)lobby and 2)get help with other federal agencies. There are attorneys who specialize in employment law, and if the person can't afford them there are legal aid services availible in every state for just this type of situation.

I am not the only person here who has had their job protected by the ADA. MIDAS helps people understand their full rights as an American with a headache disability.

I suspect you worked for a very unethical company who did everything they could to find ways to deny the benefits to people who were rightly entitled to them. As many people with severe disabilities will tell you, they have neither the focus nor energy to pursue such things further. Stop discouraging people to find out what rights they have. This is a support site, not a site for trolls to discourage people to find out their benefits under the law.

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by Jonny on Aug 22^nd, 2006, 4:04pm

http://www.sternfannetwork.com/forum/images/smilies/Props/munch.gif ................... ;;D

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by TimJohnson on Aug 22^nd, 2006, 4:14pm

I didn't mean the ending line of my post to have the ominous undertones that it did. After I logged off, I thought that was how you would probably interpret it. I have seen many cases of individuals attempting to interpret the law for their own case or thinking that the law sways in their favor. The law is meant to be fair. It protects everyone - employers and employees alike.

I agree with you regarding the spirit of the ADA and I worked for the Commonwealth of Virginia as a Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor working primarily with those individuals you are referring to prior to making to the move to private industry. I have worked both sides of the coin. Yes you have to walk a fine ethical line and I managed to walk it on the ethical side.

Their are those individuals with disabilities who deseperately want to work and then their are those who say that they cannot and who are able to work. I worked around Private Investigators, etc. The ADA was not meant to protect those individuals. The judicial system has a responsiblity to mete out rulings that are fair to everyone and that is all that I meant by what I posted. Trust me, there are many, many indivduals out there taking advantage of the ADA and ruining it for those who have a legitimate claim to the benefits to the spirit under which the law was written.

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by Katherinecm on Aug 22^nd, 2006, 4:36pm

I'm sure that's the case. That's why there are legal consequences -including jail- for people who commit fraud. But this thread wasn't about fraud and wasn't for scam artists. My post was to help Superirish2005 and anyone else understand what rights they have. It wasn't in regard to fraudulent disability claims or anything else- simply whether she had a legal right to take a break when needed when she had a CH attack. I suspect, if it is a large enough company, that she does.

If you want to start an extended debate regarding legal rights and whether they are fair to companies, start a new thread.

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by TimJohnson on Aug 22^nd, 2006, 8:58pm

Pardon me for posting something that I thought may help another poster. But since you are the resident expert on disability and the ADA I will make sure not to step on your toes.

Let me make one thing very clear to you. One is NOT protected under the ADA if you cannot perform the esssential functions of the job with or without reasonable accommodation. If you are given 10 breaks a day and you still cannot perform the job, you are NOT covered. Because they have provided reasonable accommodation and you still cannot perform the job. They can give you a new job or you can discuss other alternatives. At this juncture in time, the employer has done everything that the ADA has required of them. That is what I was saying. If you bothered to read my post, you would have gotten that instead of getting so caught up in your own disability.

The other thing that I find quite offensive is that you have the audacity to tell someone that "they do not seem that disabled" HUH???? What does that mean? As compared to you? Where is your weblink for that? Cmon Kath? Get real. You are so caught up in your own disability that you can't see others clearly enough to be objective. If you want to really help someone, try being objective.

By the way, I also did Disability Case Management.

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by Katherinecm on Aug 22^nd, 2006, 9:17pm

I am being objective. Go back to the top and read her post. She was discussing taking one break, not taking extensive time off work... (waiting for you to read the first post...) now calm down, no one is interested in flame wars here.

If you want definitions of what legally constitutes a disability due to a headache, go to the MIDAS website and read it yourself. That is from people who make it their career to advocate for those with disabiling headaches, not from posers who don't even know which version of the word "their" (there) to use.

I did not claim that she would definitely qualify, I stated she might qualify. As I stated in my earlier post, "What is considered reasonable accomodation is going to depend on your position." And obviously she has been doing her job, she simply needed a break. A break due to severe pain is not the same thing as not being able to perform an essential aspect of the job unless she is the only person there to perform customer service during that particular time and it is such a large operation that it is neccesary for her to NOT take a break. Unlikely given the way customer service departments typically operate, but possible. Also, she already posted that she talked with her HR department and while the ADA was not discussed, FMLA was.

No one was discussing workers compensation fraud until you claimed to be an expert on the completely unrelated topic.

And btw... while I don't currently work with disability benefits, I used to full time, for over a year. No, it wasn't with PI's attempting to prove people were committing fraud and therefore deny their benefits, it was with helping people to understand and receive their benefits as a benefits administrator. And yet even with my studying for certification exams and membership in the CBA, I still did not understand the extent that the ADA protects you until my own job was protected by it.

Did I simply miss your CBA status?

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by TimJohnson on Aug 23^rd, 2006, 12:01am

Oh good grief, if you were a CBA then you would know what a Rehabilitation Counselor is as you would have been referring cases to me through your Insurance Carrier.

Listen, you're correct noone wants a flame war. I was simply offering an alternative perspective as I have been fortunate enough to have worked both sides of the coin in this business. As a rehabilitation counselor I worked with many different populations. Not only workers compensation cases but disability cases, adolescents transitionsing from school to work, etc. But the last time I looked we were discussing the ADA and how it related to disability. The law applies to comp, disability etc. all the same. That is what I have been trying to say. I dobnt need to check your link to know that as I am familiar with the statute.

I am a CH sufferer as well. I deal with all of the same issues that we all have to deal with here. So I am familiar with all of the things that many of the posters here are encountering. Job issues etc. When I saw this post, based on my experience and my former colleagues experience in a courtroom as well as conversations with trial attorneys I thought I would poat the info. I know that the more info I have, the better off I am!

It is up to you to do with it what you will. I wish you all the best and pain free days and nights!

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by Katherinecm on Aug 23^rd, 2006, 2:31am

Of course I know what a rehabilitation counselor is. My point was that your "ominous" posts may discourage people from discovering what benefits are availible to them, which is the LAST thing a support group should do. I don't understand why anyone but a troll would try to confuse people and keep them from finding out their rights. I NEVER said that someone would qualify, instead I told them to research the law and check with their HR department to see if their position qualified or not. Quite frankly, neither of us has enough information to determine if anyone here qualifies for any benefits. That is why I refferred them to the correct resources to research it themselves.

And whether you qualify for private disability insurance, social security, workman's comp, ADA, or FMLA are all different. If you were really a rehabilitation counselor, you should know that.

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by kevinpix on Aug 23^rd, 2006, 5:07pm

Tell her that you are doing the best that you can, and then inform her that other sufferers have taken disibility, to sit at home and collect a check. Be clear that you do your best to even show up, mind the fact that you are beat down too. Give her a video of an attack and she'll get it! Best wishes!

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by TimJohnson on Aug 23^rd, 2006, 6:08pm

I was going to let this go, but frankly your posts annoy me as they come across as condescending and offensive.

I have posted many times on this board to other posters as well. I am not a troll and take offense to being called one.

Because one posts an opinion or gives information that may be contrary to the information that you have posted or given does that make it wrong? Absolutely not!

Its not an ominous post, its reality and thats the way it is. Federal disability law is pretty much the same in all 50 states. Then you have each individual disability policy. These can be Own Occupation or Any Occupation policies which can involve placing you back in employment or not. It helps to know your disability policies as well. If you think I'm misinformed ask someone who has applied for benefits with a crappy private disability policy.

Every post that I have posted has involved information that each individual who applies for benefits should know. And you keep bashing me for some reason.

Applying for disability whether you are covered or not is not an easy process. More than likely it will involve attorneys and the like. If you have had a smooth transition, then you are the few and not the many. Those are the FACTS. I am not trying to discourage anyone. I am not on disability and I have not had a bad experience. It is just the truth. I wish it were different and it should be different. But that is just the way it is.

Insurance companies are not there to shell out money, they are there to save it. That is what they do. THey are there to save money for their clients. They would just assume settle disability claims for pennies on the dollar then pay them out over a lifetime. That is why they stretch them out before offering benefits hoping the claimant will settle. It is not just who I worked for, it is all of them. It is the name of the game.

Again, I have had CH for 13 years. I suffer the same as most here. I fortunately not chronic but do have 2 eight week episodes per year. I fight with my insurance company like everyone else. I am not in that business anymore, but I have a plethora of experience in the case management arena.

I'm not sure why you think I'm discouroaging anyone, but they do need to be aware of these issues when seeking benefits or looking at disability policies.

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by Katherinecm on Aug 23^rd, 2006, 6:43pm

Well Tim, I gotta say that's the first post of yours that I found clear and somewhat respectful. It's not that I'm bashing you, it's that - and you used the word ominous to describe your own writing- your posts seem purposely confusing and discouraging, not very helpful, not to mention somewhat off-topic.

Insurance companies and whether they are ethical or not don't have anything to do with whether or not someone has a right to take a break as needed at work. It's a great topic, probably very helpful for those navigating disability insurance, just not an answer to this particular question. Why don't you start a new post with advice on that?

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by Jonny on Aug 23^rd, 2006, 6:59pm

http://www.sternfannetwork.com/forum/images/smilies/Props/munch.gif

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by BlueMeanie on Aug 23^rd, 2006, 7:21pm

on 08/18/06 at 14:10:38, Superirish2005 wrote:

I tried to explain to my supervisor but she does not understand, what else can I do?

Hi SuperIrish,

Sorry to see the long debate about SS benefits, FMLA and such. The way I'm ready your original post, that may not have been what your looking for.

Are you Chronic or Episodic ? If you're episodic you may be able to let your boss know that your CH's are almost over (which they probably are if your Episodic) and you'll be back to normal real soon. There is also a letter that can be given to your boss which may help her understand the situation.

Do you have an abortive that works ? The best three are 02, Imitrex Injection and Zomig nasal spray. If one of those will work for you, they can usually abort a CH within 15-20 minutes. That may help your boss's wrestlessness with you mssing for awhile.

I've had CH's for 26 years and have worked days 2/3 of those years with CH's. A good abortive has saved me many of times. What prevents do you take ? There are many that may not stop you from getting a CH, but will help reduce the KIP level and help you handle it while on the job.

Anyway I hope you get it straightened out at work as I know that's always been more of a fear for me than the CH's themselves.

Good luck to you and I'm sending PF vibes your way.

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by TimJohnson on Aug 23^rd, 2006, 7:40pm

Jonny - thats funny!

[smiley=laugh.gif]

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by TimJohnson on Aug 24^th, 2006, 1:02am

Katherine here is your first post in this thread:

"CH is covered under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Your job is protected as long as it doesn't create an extreme hardship on the company. If you're in a company with a large customer service department they are going to be VERY hard pressed in court to say that your abscence creates an extreme hardship. It may be annoying for an individual supervisor who is trying to keep their stats up but they cannot penalize you for it any more than they can penalize someone on maternity leave. It's not as if you are doing some vital job where you are the only person qualified to do it- there are likely plenty of people to cover for you.

Technically you have a medical right to privacy (thank you President Clinton!) and you don't have to explain anything that you don't want to as long as you provide proof of disability through a doctor. You can talk to your HR department about this and you don't need to talk to your direct supervisor at all if you don't want to. There are actually advantages for companies to have people hired who are covered by the ADA act- if they don't have enough it establishes grounds for a discrimination lawsuit. As you've already explained your headaches though, it may be very helpful to print out the letter and give it to coworkers. Or you can give some vague yet truthful explanation such as "rare neurological disease."

There's some links on my website to information you can print out and take to your employer regarding your rights and headache disabilities. If your boss is still rude about it and it's a large company DON'T hesitate to go over their head- the ADA protects you from all consequences of your abscence due to CH, including negative performance reviews and harrassment from co-workers.

The ONLY potential problem is that if you've worked there less than one year you must work the full number of hours stipulated in the family leave act to protect your job in the event you need to take a long leave of abscence. It sounds like you're no where near that disabled though, so this probably won't affect you.

If you need any help, message me. "

You were the one who began with the ADA discussion which will ultimately lead itself to reasonable accommodation and disability discussion. Breaks at work (more than other employees) are called reasonable accommodation. I expanded upon that topic. This information may be helpful to Superirish, but I will let you determine that since you seem to want to determine what threads are appropriate.

My use of the word ominous was obvously a play on words. We do that with the English language. It wasn't meant to be literal, but yet again you have run away with things and here we are. My sentence was as follows:

"I didn't mean the ending line of my post to have the ominous undertones that it did." I didn't mean for it to have the negative connotation that it carried or "ominous undertones." But you have created something out of nothing. Must I explain everything to you?

Your advice to Superirish is not only incorrect it is irresponsible. She needs to keep open lines of communication between her and her employer. The last thing she needs to do is give vague answers about what she is doing. Do you think proof of disability from an MD is the only thing she will need to get her off the hook? Even though she has that if she misses enough time, she's not performing the essential functions of the job with or without reasonable accommodation. Shes just not there to do the job.

While HIPPA protects us all and our rights to privacy, our insurance companies and therefore our employers will see our medical records. And don't think I didn't review records and meet with physicians and employers to discuss all aspects of cases when working these files.

Its much more complicated then just being covered by the ADA and having the employer say, "uh ok." You mention my posts are confusing, its because this entire issue is confusing. It can be a very tangled web for someone who has never been through it to navigate it for the first time.

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by Katherinecm on Aug 24^th, 2006, 1:20am

Disability insurance has nothing to do with the ADA. They are separate issues. Stay on topic.

Secondly, if you are working for a large enough company that the ADA covers you, while someone in charge of benefits will review your medical records (likely someone in the HR department or an outsourced benefit company), your direct supervisor or coworkers have no rights to access that information, ONLY THOSE WITH THE RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES TO DETERMINE ABOUT WHETHER YOU QUALIFY. It is likely the HR department will directly instruct the supervisor to NOT ask about the covered disability, as it is against HIPAA and other individual privacy statutes to request information they have no right to have. The supervisor will likely tell the employee they should not let them know about the medical condition unless they wish to, as they have a right to privacy.

Obviously in some situations a person may wish to inform those they directly work with about CH. In other situations (such as in companies where people don't share personal situations in public or where people are likely to be edged out if not in perfect health) it is going to be to someone's advantage to NOT share theircondition except on a need-to-know basis.

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by Mrs Deej on Aug 24^th, 2006, 1:24am

on 08/24/06 at 01:02:50, TimJohnson wrote:

It can be a very tangled web for someone who has never been through it to navigate it for the first time.

Well, I'm glad we got that out in the open!! Ugggh! [smiley=huh.gif]

Superirish,

Talk to your employer, you know them and their personality better than we do, and you will know the appropriate action to take.

Best of luck,
Steph

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by ackogan on Aug 25^th, 2006, 11:26am

I used to get them at work and would have to go to a bathroom that would lock and turn the light off and lay on the cool (clean) floor with a cold can of diet coke...alternating between my neck and forehead....yuck....not fun memories...

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by Garys_Girl on Aug 25^th, 2006, 3:24pm

Hubby got attacks during the day. We handed out the letter that was provided in a much earlier link (through the O.U.C.H. website). He got a scrip for two Oxylite bottles of O2 which he carried with him into work into a backpack. Had to get security clearance in our building to carry around the O2 bottles.

He used them frequently at work - everyone understood what the problem was, and that he would be down anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour. Thankfully, we had an office, so he had privacy. It was interrupted once - and that was the last time. His being on the floor rolling around and moaning was enough.

Explain the situation to your employer. As you usually don't get hit during the day, hopefully it won't be a long term problem. Also, as you're episodic, it will end. And get a scrip for an oxylite O2 bottle. They're small and portable and good for one hit if you use high flow rate for 20 minutes. Hubby usually managed to stretch them for 2 or 3 hits using a lower flow rate but squeezing the bag every other inhale.

Laurie

Title: Re: Clusters In Work Place
Post by Superirish2005 on Aug 29^th, 2006, 10:43am

Thanks for all the responses on this topic. I am still getting them at work but have interrmitent FMLA where they allow me to log off the phones at any time but must email supervisor I am off the floor.

I work customer service and I merely need to log off phones, punch out, go off floor to washroom and notify supervisor.