Have You Ever Ignored Symptoms of an Illness?

May 01, 2019

Healthcare professionals are notorious for avoiding the very medical services they provide.

As a recent American Journal of Infection Control survey found, 40% of clinicians reported going to work during a flu epidemic, despite knowing they were sick and potentially contagious to their patients.

Some even ignore more serious symptoms. Last year, Jennifer Gaydosh, a cardiac nurse at the Rose Medical Center in Denver, Colorado, ignored crushing chest pain and numbness down her left arm for 6 days. Her colleagues diagnosed her with spontaneous coronary artery dissection, or SCAD, and rushed her into treatment.

"I know exactly what the warning signs are, so I've rolled my eyes at people who stroll into the emergency department reporting chest pain that has been going on for two days. Why would anybody risk his or her life by delaying treatment?" she told Prevention Magazine .

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