ajcjobs > BlogBreak > Archives > 2006 > October > 02 > Entry
My Office Makes Me Sick!
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Most people believe that they contract minor infectious diseases from home or from being in public places but recent studies show that your workplace may a cesspool of infection.
A study by the University of Arizona in 2002 found that the typical worker’s desk has hundreds of times more bacteria per square inch than the office toilet seat.
Other items on the desk such as your phone or your computer keyboard serve as prime real estate for germs that cause colds, flu or gastrointestinal diseases.
Did you know that some of the most vicious germs can live for 3-5 days on office surfaces? Now even though I am a registered nurse by profession, I never dreamed that desktops could be this nasty.
When you think of your own personal hygiene habits? Do you wash your hands after every trip to the toilet?
Do you cover your mouth with your hands when you sneeze and then begin keyboarding immediately? It’s no wonder that these surfaces are so inundated with viruses and bacteria.
When was the last time you cleaned your desk, computer or phone? Most people don’t clean anything in the office until it’s so obviously soiled that fingers stick to it or until something is spilled and has to be wiped up.
Another thing to consider is the fact that most of us come to work sick these days. When you have the sniffles, sneezes or just a touch of diarrhea, don’t you usually take some pills and go into work, hoping to feel better?
Would you do this to your kids or by extension their classmates? Why would you share your germs with everyone else in your office?
So what do you do? Well, the answer is simple, wash your hands with soap and warm water for 18 seconds or so after using the toilet or covering your mouth with your hands during a sneeze.
Use a tissue if available (if not available, get some). Use alcohol-based gel sanitizers or disposable hand wipes if a sink isn’t available. Wipe your desk surfaces with disinfectant wipes occasionally!
Above all, you should stay home when you’re sick. With avian flu and other strains already of a concern to employers, you could impact the bottom line of your company and avoid a little discomfort and downtime yourself!
Do you have stories of people working when they are sick and being proud of it? Has your entire office come down with the flu or bronchitis because of one person or their child? Is your desk filthy or are you OCD about these things?
Comments
By Anti-Bacteria
October 2, 2006 09:31 AM | Link to this
Good topic! I work in an office of about 30 people, which means that disease spreads a lot faster in a smaller setting!
Our HR director contracted Bronchitis from her son and made everyone else sick within a week. We all told her to stay at home but her workload was so big, she just couldn’t.
Needless to say, I was out sick for an entire week and got my husband and daughter miserably sick too.
It’s a ripple effect people!
By Amy
October 2, 2006 02:48 PM | Link to this
It’s bad enough to have all the invisible germs and dirt, but I recently had a “soot problem” with my desk — VISIBLE grime, too! My cubicle (half-cubicle, actually) is under an air-conditioning vent that was spewing black soot all over my desk. It looked like Santa Claus had been tramping over everything. Fortunately, the building maintenance crews put something in the vent to gather up all the soot, but there’s no telling what invisible nasties are floating around in this windowless, recycled-air petri dish of an office!
By GenXDen
October 3, 2006 10:01 AM | Link to this
I’ve worked in many offices where people would come in to work whilst being sooooo incredibly ill. I think what people need to realize is that there is no shame in staying home in the event that they are contagious and too ill to be working.
Then again, I have to say that there have been times that the employer was less than understanding about an illness and actually asked me to come in anyways. Needless to say, I refused - getting everyone else sick would have accomplished nothing!
It really boils down to all those things our mothers told us when we were little, doesn’t it? Cover your mouth when you sneeze or cough, wash your hands, etc.
Here’s something that works for me……..the telephone. IF someone IS sick AND in the office, I tell them NOT to come to my desk - just give me a call…that’s why we have phones!
Here’s another one…….e-mail. Say it with me, people….e-mail. When sick, don’t show up at someone’s work station to tell them about a problem or situation or need, e-mail them. It’s easier to wipe your keyboard than to explain why you felt justified in spreading germs and making them sick.
By Reality Check
October 3, 2006 10:25 AM | Link to this
For some strange reason, it’s the women that don’t wash their hands after restroom use that are the ones that most enjoy bringing potluck to the office.
By Germ-free
October 3, 2006 10:40 AM | Link to this
Men don’t use toilet tissue or wash their hands a good portion of the time after they use the restroom!
I keep hand sanitizer and clorox wipes at my desk!
By Katie Noland
October 3, 2006 11:35 AM | Link to this
I’m not a germaphobe but I worry about office germs a lot. I get sick easily and the only thing that works for me is Airborne. It’s a tablet that you dissolve in water. I drink 2-3 of those a day while I’m at work if I feel like I might be getting a sniffle. It really seems to help. Just a suggestion!
By Germs
October 3, 2006 11:45 AM | Link to this
I am guilty. I haven’t taken a sick day in almost 2 years, but that doesn’t mean I haven’t been sick. Sometimes being sick isn’t an option. And its sad when you have to worry about if you will still have a job when you get back in the office.
By Cletus Snow
October 3, 2006 12:23 PM | Link to this
I carry lysol spray in both cars and a minican in my briefcase. Try to stay as far away as possible from people who are sick.If you are sick stay home!
By Alicia
October 3, 2006 01:54 PM | Link to this
Good luck with not coming to work sick. My company frowns on sick time. In fact they don’t even offer sick leave :( Can you say looking for a new job!!
By Marie
October 3, 2006 01:57 PM | Link to this
We definitely have a bunch of sickos in my office.
By JustMe
October 3, 2006 04:10 PM | Link to this
Are you kidding? The way my company is about us taking sick days, I’d have to be practically on my death-bed to stay home. If my large corporation would get into the 21st century & allow us to telecommute and not be so anal about people calling in sick - OK, I know there are a lot of slackers who will abuse it, because we aren’t given X amount of sick days per year, our policy is if you are out “sick” more than two days consecutively you must provide a doctors note…..more than five days inclusive of a weekend and/or holiday, or more than three times in a calendar year (regardless of duration), you get written up. Considering how tenuous jobs are across the board, I don’t know too many people who are going to stay home & potentially make themselves a target for layoffs. Two days off with an illness is not enough if you want to be certain you’re not going to spread it around.
By Workerbee
October 9, 2006 03:45 PM | Link to this
I have been appalled by this trend in business/workplace management that penalizes workers for staying home sick. Okay, so a person is out a day or two recovering from a cold or flu and workflow slows down a bit. Balance that against the overall slowness with which a WHOLE OFFICE who is ill works - I think a day here and there is a small price to pay for maximum office efficency and worker satistfaction.
The problem goes deeper than just this though…managers and business owners need to look past the “bottom line” and realize that in most industries a happy and loyal workforce is their #1 asset to longterm prosperity!
By Kelle
October 11, 2006 03:14 PM | Link to this
Sick people should work from home. That’s why they make laptops and remote networks. But the office environment is still 10 times better than a classroom. I taught pre-schoolers (who don’t quite comprehend the concept of germs, yet:) and I was sick constantly! I know it’s sometimes hard for parents to find day care on such short notice. But working adults should know better!