Nanny and pneumonia

[Anonymous]

My charge was Dx with pneumonia this weekend and he's miserable, and I'm pretty mad. Guess how I found out? In a text, after MB left. Honestly, I'm mad because now IVE been exposed to pneumonia, it's a baby for gods sake, he wants to be held and cuddled and sneezes all over me, plus (and they know this) I take care of a newborn at night. Is it really to difficult for mb or db to stay with their kid while he's this sick? I'm probably making zero sense but it's because I'm mad they didn't think it important enough to tell me face to face NOR stay with their sick baby.

[Anonymous]

From WebMD (http://www.webmd.com/lung/understanding-pneumonia-basics):

"Many of these germs are all around us. They usually can't get past a healthy person's natural defenses. Pneumonia is most common in those with weaker or compromised immune systems, elderly people, cigarette smokers, alcoholics, and people suffering from other diseases such as the flu."

You should be fine, and it's a bit much to expect the parents at either of your two jobs to be worried about both your health and the health of the other child. If you won't work with actively sick children, and you care for two babies, you're going to be very unpredictable ...

[Anonymous]

Pneumonia isn't your run of the mill cold, especially in a baby

[Anonymous]

If you're moderately healthy, you aren't going to catch pneumonia from a baby. I'm usually all for the parents staying with their kids beyond a mild cold, but a little baby with pneumonia isn't going to get you sick, and I think you can handle giving him the necessary cuddles. He'll probably sleep most of the day.

[Anonymous]

Although I cannot begin to imagine the mindset of parents who would leave their baby with pneumonia, the chances of you catching it or passing it on to your other change are small. Wash your hands every single opportunity you get for at least one minute and both wash-up and change clothes before you go to your second job.

Seriously, what kind of a mother would leave a baby with pneumonia?!!

[Anonymous]

There'd be an uproar if a nanny with pneumonia went into work sick, and not on antibiotics.

[Anonymous]

Pneumonia can last for weeks. A mother who has to pay for insurance, antibiotics, and possibly days off work if the kid gets worse.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There'd be an uproar if a nanny with pneumonia went into work sick, and not on antibiotics.

You don't understand how immune systems work. The uproar would be because the nanny likely wouldn't be up to her usual standards, AND children have much weaker immune systems than full grown healthy adults. If OP is in her 70's and sickly, sure be concerned, but en she shouldn't be caring for infants anyway.

[Anonymous]

Given that you work 2 jobs with different children, you should probably have a policy with each family that does not require you to work if the child has x, Y, and Z. The parents that hire you should know this upfront. One of the main reasons I hired a nanny over daycare was so that the nanny could take care of my child when he is sick when I cannot stay at home. If my son was very ill, I would absolutely try to stay home (like I did when he had RSV) but I'm sure he's had many colds/illnesses that are contagious that are not that serious and I would not feel compelled to stay home with him given that we have a nanny.

[Anonymous]

Have you cared for the baby within the past week, before he was diagnosed, did he have cold symptoms?

Guess waft you've already been exposed. Pneumonia can live in it's host and be contagious up to 6 days before symptoms appear. He most likely had cold symptoms sometime last week.

This is why I get a pneumonia vaccine.

I would let the night family of the baby know but chances are that baby has also been exposed. Whether you or the baby will get it will depend on your immune system and baby's best chance is if it's breast fed