# Chilling in the hospital...



## JK949 (Mar 18, 2009)

Was helping on a gas line job yesterday, strapping 1 1/4 galvi about 100ft to supply a pool heater. Spent a lot of time kneeling in brush and dead leaves and noticed my knee was getting tender. I figure I'll keep weight off it and it will be fine later.

Then as the hot day wears on, I start feeling dizzy and a little nausous while trying to stay hydrated. I run back to the shop to get some fittings and mention to my supervisor I'm not feeling good. He kinda laughs it off and jokingly accuses me of trying to get out of work. I head back and stay for another 2.5 hours, moving very slowly and limping now.

When I finally leave the job, I'm very dizzy, and my kee has almost locked up. Fortuneately I was close to home, I strip off my close and start sipping cold water and icing my knee. I start getting serious chills and my wife takes me to hospital.

I'm running a 102 temp and knee is the size of a baseball. They aspirate 3 times which means sticking a needle in a painfull wound hunting for infectous fluid. My cultures are due back by monday, they suspect some kind of staph infection. Today they made an incision, drained more fluid and packed with gauze to fight the bacteria.:thumbup:


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## pauliplumber (Feb 9, 2009)

Get well bro, next time your not feeling well listen to your body and f your boss. Well not literally.


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## user2090 (Sep 26, 2009)

Geez, sounds like you had a sucky day. Hope you get well soon.


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## PLUMB TIME (Feb 2, 2009)

I have always heard that copious amounts of alchohol would thin the blood and make everything okay:whistling2:

Get well soon.


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## mongo (Jun 26, 2010)

Hope that things improve soon.


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## ToUtahNow (Jul 19, 2008)

Wow thats horrible, I hope it works out okay.

Mark


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## AKdaplumba (Jan 12, 2010)

ewww, go slap your boss in the face when you get back to work:yes:


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## SlickRick (Sep 3, 2009)

Rest up this weekend,they are expecting you back at work Mon. Let us know what caused the infection. I heard that if you peed on it that it would heal faster.


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## Cal (Jun 17, 2008)

I had MERSA (?) in my leg 5 years ago ,,, sounds very similar ! Hope you get well QUICK QUICK !!


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## Redwood (Sep 8, 2008)

Wow, I hope they get this infection under control for you quickly...


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## JK949 (Mar 18, 2009)

Thanks guys, the staff here are really looking after me.

Anybody know what I can expect from workmans comp?


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## Redwood (Sep 8, 2008)

JK949 said:


> Thanks guys, the staff here are really looking after me.
> 
> Anybody know what I can expect from workmans comp?


Yea about 1/2 a paycheck arriving long after you are back to work...

Make sure your boss is on the same page as you...:whistling2:


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## TheMaster (Jun 12, 2009)

JK949 said:


> Thanks guys, the staff here are really looking after me.
> 
> Anybody know what I can expect from workmans comp?


Please tell me how your infected knee was work related? Even if it was you hafta miss two weeks of work before benefits kick in.:whistling2: Nice try....this is ONE reason why I dont want employees.

If I read that statement and was your employer....I'd wait a couple months and fire you. Next time it might be the flu...because you worked out in the cold.....catch my drift?


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## ToUtahNow (Jul 19, 2008)

I have to agree with TM in part. You may have a tough time proving this was work related. That is not to say you can't but it is not a slam dunk and Workers Comp may deny it.

Mark


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## TheMaster (Jun 12, 2009)

I heard countless stories of people getting hurt at home....hiding it....then clocking in and working a few hours and then claim to be hurt on the job.........when really they were hurt playing softball on saturday.......or helped a friend move and hurt their back.


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## JK949 (Mar 18, 2009)

TheMaster said:


> Please tell me how your infected knee was work related? Even if it was you hafta miss two weeks of work before benefits kick in.:whistling2: Nice try....this is ONE reason why I dont want employees.
> 
> If I read that statement and was your employer....I'd wait a couple months and fire you. Next time it might be the flu...because you worked out in the cold.....catch my drift?


Please re-read the first page. I have Strep bacteria in my knee either from a puncture or prolonged irritation. I started my day off fine and ended in the hospital. That is how it was work related.You think I want to miss work? To get 1/2 paychecks while the @$$holes who ignored me still get to sell jobs? I'm the sole breaadwinner for my wife and two kids. I'm also going under today have my knee opened up further which will delay my recovery time.


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## bartnc37 (Feb 24, 2009)

And I've heard countless stories of employers putting their employees in dangerous situations to save a few bucks. How many employers have died because of a work comp claim?


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## TheMaster (Jun 12, 2009)

JK949 said:


> Please re-read the first page. I have Strep bacteria in my knee either from a puncture or prolonged irritation. I started my day off fine and ended in the hospital. That is how it was work related.You think I want to miss work? To get 1/2 paychecks while the @$$holes who ignored me still get to sell jobs? I'm the sole breaadwinner for my wife and two kids. I'm also going under today have my knee opened up further which will delay my recovery time.


I read it.....and theres no way to prove you got bacteria in your knee at work.......and even if you did your immune system should have taken care of it,.....but it didn't. Thats not your employers fault. is your employer suppose to provide you with a "clean room" work site or pay up when you catch a cold? Gimmie a break.

You being the sole bread winner doesn't matter.....but the fact that you cant prove nor a DR can prove you got staph or strep in your knee at work.......Infact it can travel through your blood and the infection "set-up" in your knee......it doesn't have to enter the knee from the skins surface.


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## Optimus Primer (May 20, 2009)

Workmans comp pays 66 2/3's of your average weekly pay. If you are out for 7 days you will get one check. You have to be out for 21 days in order to receive your second and third check. Anything less than 21 but more than 7 you are S O L. After the 21 days you are out you will continue to receive checks for each week you are out. Feel better


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## Bayside500 (May 16, 2009)

*http://www.myfloridacfo.com/wc/faq/faqwrkrs.html#8
*



*Will I be paid if I lose time from work? *

Under Florida law, you are not paid for the first seven days of disability. However, if you lose time because your disability extends to over 21 days, you may be paid for the first seven days by the insurance company.


Reference: Section  440.12, Florida Statutes
   *How much will I be paid? *

In most cases, your benefit check, which is paid bi-weekly, will be 66 2/3 percent of your average weekly wage. If you were injured before October 1, 2003, this amount is calculated by using wages earned during the 91-day period immediately preceding the date of your injury, not to exceed the state limit. If you worked less than 90% of the 91 day period, the wages of a similar employee in the same employment who has worked the whole of the 91-day period or your full-time weekly wage may be used. If you were injured on or after October 1, 2003 , your average weekly wage is calculated using wages earned 13 weeks prior to your injury, not counting the week in which you were injured.
In addition, if you worked less than 75% of the 13 week period, a similar employee in the same employment who has worked 75% of the 13-week period or your full time weekly wage shall be used.


Reference: Section  440.02(28) &  440.14, Florida Statutes


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## Redwood (Sep 8, 2008)

Aaaahhh 2/3's vs, 1/2...

I know it's 2/3's:laughing:

Not much difference from 1/2...

Your not getting rich off it, yet every dollar gets filleted off the back of your employer the way these business owners squawk about you raking them over the coals...

It's funny how they have Selective Amnesia...

They routinely expose you to dangerous situations...


That night job on the ghetto side of town where the popping noises you routinely hear are not firecrackers.

That job that absolutely needs someone there that is 50 miles away and the weather conditions outside are blizzard conditions...

That dig job where the trench isn't properly shored and all you need to do is get in there quick and make a connection.

That job running pipe across a ceiling 20' high but he bid too skinny to afford a lift so you are working off his 16' step ladder.

Don't want to take the risk... :no:

Get injured while doing this stuff and do a comp claim... :yes:

You aren't a team player and you deserve to get canned...:furious:

You might just want to find out quick whether this guy is a lizard of not...
Better now than after you give him 5 or 10 more years of hanging you out there...

Of course California Workers Comp Laws apply in your situation...


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## Optimus Primer (May 20, 2009)

Bayside they must have changed it from when the last time i collected it which was in 1991 for a sprained ankle. They paid me for the first week but they held the second week until it was proven i was going to be out for at least 21 days. I was out for 22 so the third week of me being out i got two weeks worth in one check.


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## Optimus Primer (May 20, 2009)

This was before insurance fraud was as popular as it is now.


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## JK949 (Mar 18, 2009)

Thanks Redwood for some actual helpful info. The correct term for my condition is Septic Bursitis. One of the docs from the infectious diseases team asked about my occupation, upon hearing "Plumber" her says, "Oh yeah, this is definitely work related." It seems this condition can affect those people who spend significant time on bended knees.

http://www.isnare.com/?aid=169644&ca=Medicines+and+Remedies

Got my knee cut open further, they found more infection, flushed it out with 6 Liters of saline solution. This is super important as a skin infection was spreading, now that should be reversing it's course. And I found out this stuff is related to that flesh eating bacteria stuff, I don't have that, thank goodness.

So now the real question, should I get spinners for my wheelchair?

I'm going to call the office tomorrow and see how things go. I'm not the guy who takes a week off for sore back. I go home for a day, do yoga and pilates and show up the next morning.


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## jecks perrow (Jul 26, 2010)

Hello,
I am newbie in this forum site.
Thanks.


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## nhmaster3015 (Aug 5, 2008)

Two Words

Knee Pads :thumbsup:


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## JK949 (Mar 18, 2009)

nhmaster3015 said:


> Two Words
> 
> Knee Pads :thumbsup:



Seriously, I'll get some custom made if I have to.


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## waldrop (Dec 18, 2009)

they want to know why you aren't at work . hope you feel better


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## TheMaster (Jun 12, 2009)

I conceed it can be a problem associated with occupation...such as a maid,carpet layer,plumber,etc.......many many occupations. BUT there are often other contrubuting factors.......

As mentioned earlier, septic bursitis occurs from the introduction of bacteria through trauma. It can also occur from the spread of infection from the skin adjacent to a bursa. Skin infection is called cellulitis.
It is less likely for deeper bursae to become infected because of their location. This can occur as a result of spread from septic arthritis (an infected joint) or from bacteria carried to the bursa from the blood.
Predisposing factors include diabetes, alcoholism, steroid therapy, kidney disease, trauma, and skin disease. A history of noninfectious inflammation of the bursa (as seen in rheumatoid arthritis, gout, and pseudogout) also increases the risk of septic bursitis.

Now what are the other factors besides you kneeled in the dirt and your a plumber come into play? .......I would be checking for other health problems if i was your DR that contributed to your infection. Ever have anything like this in the past? I hate to break it to you but once you have a problem like you have...it tends to repeat itself.


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## Tommy plumber (Feb 19, 2010)

*JK949 Document Injury*

Get your wife to take some pictures of the knee. Keep detailed records in case you need them. When I used to put on eye googles and gloves, some guys would tease and make fun. Piss on them. Are they going to pay my bills when I'm injured?! Of course they aren't. What's more, if a worker circumvents some safety procedure, (ie: like taking off boots cuz nice lady doesn't want boots on her white rug) and you get a cut on your foot, workers' comp can deny the claim. Cover your behind and I hope you get well soon.


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## JK949 (Mar 18, 2009)

Thanks for the replies, you given me some questions to ask the orthopedics.


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## JK949 (Mar 18, 2009)

When I get back to work I'm going to start logging all those little mystery injuries that appear when the uniform comes off at the end of the day.


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## affordabledrain (Nov 24, 2009)

good luck with the workmans comp and get well soon


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## JK949 (Mar 18, 2009)

Well, I get to go home today!:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup: And I found these knee pads in case anyone has a similar need. I never want to repeat this experience.

http://proknee.com/product.html


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## pauliplumber (Feb 9, 2009)

I don't care how unprofessional it looks, I sit on my ass whenever possible. I've yet to have a sore ass.

I also have a thick foam pad I use for the times i gotta be on the knees.

Those knee pads look nice, if there not comfortable and quick to put on you may not use them much.


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## JK949 (Mar 18, 2009)

I've read lots of positive reviews from flooring contractor forums. Also they would be very stable on joists for attic jobs. These would be for all day commitments. I'd get something more minimal for service calls.


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## Tommy plumber (Feb 19, 2010)

When I did new construction, the emphasis was on getting job done quickly. So I followed everyone else and didn't use knee pads, safety goggles, etc. Now in my early 40's I use the knee pads, goggles, full face shield (when grinding CI pipe), gloves, etc. I still don't use eye protection when soldering, some habits die hard.


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## RealLivePlumber (Jun 22, 2008)

The electricians were laughing at us a couple of weeks ago. We had hardhats on at a residential job. (pool house, the framers were sheathing the roof and framing a coupola. We were welding structural steel posts directly below.)

Told the all to go get f'd. In front of the gc, ho, everyone.

Then the chit started to fall off the roof. :yes:


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## Redwood (Sep 8, 2008)

Tommy plumber said:


> When I did new construction, the emphasis was on getting job done quickly. So I followed everyone else and didn't use knee pads, safety goggles, etc. Now in my early 40's I use the knee pads, goggles, full face shield (when grinding CI pipe), gloves, etc. I still don't use eye protection when soldering, some habits die hard.


With eyes you have 2 chances...

I have a friend that is blind in one eye from a hit by a flying piece of metal...

He wears safety glasses more than anybody I know...

I wonder why...:whistling2:


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## wookie (Dec 16, 2008)

I use those 18"x18" interlocking rubber pads, I just use them one at a time or stack 2 if on rocks. Kinda keeps your knees dry if small amount of water is on the floor, watch out they can be slippery if you try to walk on them in wet conditions. Knee pads if crawling on rafters

wookie


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## Redwood (Sep 8, 2008)

JK949 said:


> Well, I get to go home today!:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup: And I found these knee pads in case anyone has a similar need. I never want to repeat this experience.
> 
> http://proknee.com/product.html


Did they tell you when you might be returning to work yet?


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## JK949 (Mar 18, 2009)

I'm guessing 2 to 4 weeks. I'm still taking iv antibiotics through a P.I.C.C. line in my arm. My knee is stiff from sugery and my quads have atrophied some. Currently need walker to get around.


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## PlungerJockey (Feb 19, 2010)

I have a customer I do work for every now and then, he owns a excavation business and does directional boring.

He was working one day and started feeling crappy, he thought it was the flu. He went home and took a nap. When he woke up, his hand was swollen about 3 times normal size and he had a tempature in the nieghborhood of 103. He went to the hospital and they admitted him. He did'nt remeber anything till about a week later. He came out of his coma and noticed both legs gone below the knees and 7 of his 10 fingers had been amputated.

The doctor said the infection is common in people who work in ditches, I don't remember the name. It could be the same thing you contracted. According to him there is a vaccination availible. 

I hope you feel better soon


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## Don The Plumber (Feb 14, 2010)

PlungerJockey said:


> I have a customer I do work for every now and then, he owns a excavation business and does directional boring.
> 
> He was working one day and started feeling crappy, he thought it was the flu. He went home and took a nap. When he woke up, his hand was swollen about 3 times normal size and he had a tempature in the nieghborhood of 103. He went to the hospital and they admitted him. He did'nt remeber anything till about a week later. He came out of his coma and noticed both legs gone below the knees and 7 of his 10 fingers had been amputated.
> 
> ...


I'm sure your story should make him feel much better now.:wheelchair:


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## JK949 (Mar 18, 2009)

Wow, glad I'm not that guy though I had similar symptoms. IV line came out yesterday. Found out I was allergic to at least two of the three antibiotics I was given. So now I'm taking Benadryl and Oxycodone as needed. On my way to possibly get my stitches out. My leg is gtting stronger daily, doc's are saying it's looking good. Hopefully back to work in a week or two.


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