Coughing at work? (job, company, health insurance, office)
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I am trying to get over a cold that I had about two weeks ago and I have a lingering cough.
I work for a health insurance company and we have a nurse on our floor. She approached me at the end of the day and told me to stop coughing. It was getting to the point where she was about "to break" because it was bothering her. She proceeded to tell me that she knows I'm not a mean person but it had to stop. She also went on to tell me that she knows it's been bothering other people but they didn't want to approach me about it.
I take syrup, cough drops, drink water, etc. Nothing seems to help. I know it can be annoying to other people. I am aware of it. But I can't do anything about it.
I just sat there in shock as she was telling me this (not about the coughing, but her approach. She's a nurse for crying out loud!) All I said to her was "I don't know what to say." And let her talk until she was finished and lether walk away.
Anyway, I want to know if I should talk to my supervisor about what she said to me?
Has anyone else had to go to work with this as well?
I have expereinced this but I would have sided with the nurse, it is disruptive to the work enviornment and if you went to the supervisor they may make you go home sick until your better. If she was cussing you out over it then that would not be right either but she is likely frustrated ESPECIALLY since she is a nurse.
Where I work if someone was coughing as you describe, someone else would end up telling the person to go home until they got over their cough, etc. A bug just went through our office like wildfire and I got caught it - I rarely ever get sick and it was NOT fun to deal with. There's a guy who works six feet away from me who refuses to call in when he's sick - don't be 'that' guy. You will forever be blamed for every bug that goes through your office, rightly so or not. I suspect your boss won't have much sympathy for your situation, even if the nurse was a bit brash in her approach. Excessive coughing can be pretty annoying.
These people the nurse says are also annoyed by your coughing, they are probably also afraid of catching your cold. Maybe you also have allergies you aren't aware of? In any case, take the time to go to the doctor and see what can be done.
Two weeks is a long time. Time to visit the doctor.
I have a co-worker that has been coughing and sneezing every couple of hours for months. The sneezing is followed by one or two others calling out "God bless you." Fortunately she works in another room from me, but it is an open office and the sound travels. Unfortunately, we are a small office and she is teflon, so nothing is said about the distraction.
I would love to follow one of her sneezes with "God, go to the doctor!"
Where I work if someone was coughing as you describe, someone else would end up telling the person to go home until they got over their cough, etc. A bug just went through our office like wildfire and I got caught it - I rarely ever get sick and it was NOT fun to deal with. There's a guy who works six feet away from me who refuses to call in when he's sick - don't be 'that' guy. You will forever be blamed for every bug that goes through your office, rightly so or not. I suspect your boss won't have much sympathy for your situation, even if the nurse was a bit brash in her approach. Excessive coughing can be pretty annoying.
These people the nurse says are also annoyed by your coughing, they are probably also afraid of catching your cold. Maybe you also have allergies you aren't aware of? In any case, take the time to go to the doctor and see what can be done.
The OP said the cough was lingering from a cold from two weeks ago. That happens a lot. These people work for a HEALTH INSURANCE COMPANY. Can they really be that stupid? Why would they be afraid of catching her cold if she isn't sick anymore?
Someone at my job had a similar situation. She just couldn't shake the lingering cough. In my office, we felt bad for her. We didn't corner her and tell her to just STOP or imperiously look down our snouts at her for ANNOYING us.
If you have a linger cough, you're diseased. Why and whether or not you're contagious is entirely a different matter. I've had acute bronchitis due to some sort of environmental exposure. That obviously was not contagious, but I only knew that because I bothered to get checked out. Anyway, it didn't sound like nursey had a problem with contagiousness (generally not that contagious at that point), she was just annoyed. Flip her the bird. Walk the next morning and give her a good *cough* morning *cough cough*. I'd also get yourself checked out. With all the cases of pertussis going around, strep, pneumonia, bronchitis... all of those can have mild or no symptoms at all other than a lingering cough. If it's bacterial, it can linger for a long time or you can clear it up quickly with antibiotics. In almost all cases you don't want to take a cough suppressant. The whole point is to cough the mucous out. The nurse should know that, but being a self-absorbed busybody she just probably doesn't care about healing... just one of those sad, miserable, burnt-out, pathetic specimens of humanity that's best to ignore for the sake of office diplomacy.
She approached me at the end of the day and told me to stop coughing. It was getting to the point where she was about "to break" because it was bothering her. She proceeded to tell me that she knows I'm not a mean person but it had to stop. She also went on to tell me that she knows it's been bothering other people but they didn't want to approach me about it.
I probably would have lost it and told her to go **** herself.
If you could just "stop" coughing, you clearly would have already done so. It's not like you're coughing for pleasure or just to bug people. She's anurse and should know people can't just "stop" coughing whenever they want. If she doesn't know this, she's too stupid to be wandering around loose.
Tell her you're allergic to *******s and the cough seems to go away when she is not around.
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) All I said to her was "I don't know what to say." And let her talk until she was finished and lether walk away.
There's probably a reason she's not working in direct patient care. 
