Medical practitioners urge employees that are sick to stay at home to avoid infecting colleagues. They say that even the slightest chill, fever or body aches, may turn out contagious to the work environment.
Dr Peter McGough, a medical director at the University of Washington's health clinics in the U.S. said that its best that the employee stays home if he or she is having a fever that exceeds 38°C or aching all over. He explained that those are the acute symptoms of flu that can be highly contagious in the first few days.
He acknowledged that it can be challenging to stay home especially when employees have limited or unpaid sick leave, but said it's still the right thing to do. "What they are doing is putting their co-workers at risk, and if they work in any kind of service industry, they are exposing the people they are supposed to be taking care of," Dr McGough said, according to The Star Main.
According to physicians and public health experts, the time as of now is especially critical to observe considerate health practices as there is an ample of flu and respiratory viruses going around. Influenza and respiratory syncytial virus in particular, have been going viral on children, older people and people less immune to infections, which definitely does include employees that work under stress at times, reported The Seattle TImes.
Dr Jeff Duchin, the health officer for Public Health, Seattle & King County in Washington, also urged people with the classic flu symptoms of body aches, headaches, fatigue and chills, to stay home for speedy recovery and for the good of others. He asserted saying, "There are multiple respiratory viruses circulating, and your current misery may be due to one of the non-influenza viruses, with the real flu still to come." Besides strongly suggesting employees to attain flu vaccines, he cautioned them to practice the good hygiene of washing hands and covering coughs upon their return to work.
