Au pair very sick

[Anonymous]

She has been with us a good six months and never been ill. A week or so ago she looked exhausted and said she had weird tummy pain which felt kind of crampy. That stopped then she said she couldn't help with the kids as she had severe diarrhoea. She has her own bathroom but wow, the smell. It is almost like metallic,sulfur and is completely overpowering. She then came and told me she was bleeding diarrhoea so we took her go the ER and now waiting on results. Terrified we will get it if it is a bug, if she will be okay or if we are dealing with something more serious. Also what do I do for back up care, can anyone recommend an agency as current au pair won't be fit for work anytime soon...

[Anonymous]

Gosh that sounds terrible. Hope she will be okay .

[Anonymous]

Have you called your LC? You should definitely let them know what is going on.

[Anonymous]

Definitely call your LC first thing.

We have gotten temp nannies from College Nannies and Tutors before. We also had a situation where our AP slipped on the ice and broke her elbow, so she couldn't drive. She went home for two months to recover and we got an AP from rematch during that time until our first AP came back to us.

Depending on how serious the illness is, you need to be prepared for the fact that this may be it for her. If she can't work as your AP for a month or more, you may need to send her home and get a rematch AP, even though obviously this isn't her fault.

[Anonymous]

OP here. I don't know what to think. As I said, she was so healthy before. yes, need to get onto the agency.

[Anonymous]

I am sorry OP, I hope your Au Pair feels better soon. Is she still in the ER?

I can't help with the coverage question (I am NY), but agree that your LCC is first in line to ask for assistance.

[Anonymous]

Yes not many answers at the moment. Has anyone else experienced anything like this? It's the bleeding and smell that worries me. The poor girl is terrified

[Anonymous]

I'm wondering if she has rotovirus? This is the exact description of what it is like. It's awful - both my kids had it when they were little, and the smell is unbearable. It is very highly contagious --- we all likely had it when we were little so won't get it now, but it was very common when our kids were little and at Little Gym or Daycare or places like that. I was never sure if it were diarrhea or vomit - it was such a terrible and sulpheric smell. It does last a good week. The issue is making sure she stays hydrated....no crystals in her urine....so make sure she drinks even small bits of gatorade or pediasure. Good luck.

[Anonymous]

Would it cause bloody stool? I so hope it is just a bug. Trying to hide my worry as she herself is so upset.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Would it cause bloody stool? I so hope it is just a bug. Trying to hide my worry as she herself is so upset.

Norovirus can cause bloody stool

[Anonymous]

Norovirus doesn't cause bloody stool and it would also cause sickness which I don't think the OP said was happening?

[Anonymous]

So not to be gross or anything but there is a difference between bloody stool where you can see the blood and could be that it’s raw from wiping or the kind of bloody stool where the blood comes from inside and is often black. If it’s the former (red), then rotovirus can absolutely cause this. I don’t know about the latter.

[Anonymous]

How is your au pair doing?

[Anonymous]

We are just emerging from a very similar situation. For our au pair, it turned out she had C Diff, which if you are not aware, is a bacteria that is usually hospital acquired and resistant to many antibiotics. Our best guess is it was a acquired after an earlier and unrelated round of antibiotics created room for the bacteria to flourish. She had stomach pain and ongoing diarrhea, but only blood that would be caused by raw tissue from wiping so much. She is close to finishing her second round of antibiotics to treat it after a recurrence either due to reinfection or incomplete eradication. I highly recommend ordering bleach wipes (NOT regular clorox wipes or anything you can find in the store. All of the bacteria and germs you could be concerned about are in that .01% that those don't kill) Clean everything you possibly can and institute draconian hand washing rules for everyone in your household.

I hope your au pair feels better soon and your family avoids it altogether.

[Anonymous]

Poor girl! What an awful thing to happen when you're nowhere near family.

What happened, OP?