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Teacher with diabetes

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M

moribundle

New Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 2
My headteacher, when sorting the rota for our school supporting the key worker children during this Covid 19 outbreak, asked me to work from home due to my diabetes. I was wondering if I should ask her to be reconsidered for the rota, or is my diabetic condition considered a risk?
 
Well, that depends whether you really want or need to.
 
As a teacher, I am currently at home. I have been off for some time with headaches, dizzy spells and a couple of fainting 'episodes' (lots of trips to see neurologist, ophthalmologist, MRI scans etc). Starting to regain my strength now thankfully and really hoping to be able to contribute to school life after Easter hols. If I was not currently signed off I would still be asking to work from home. We are not at any greater risk of contracting it, however if we do our auto immune disorder means that the effects could be worse than those without chronic illnesses. I am also asthmatic, which doesn't help. I also tend to catch the bugs that students carry around with them during the winter months more than most and invariably have to have the odd day off here and there when breathing is difficult (BG levels tend to be difficult to control when I am unwell too). I have asked the different people I have seen when at hospital over the past couple of months and had differing advice - one telling me I will probably get a letter from the NHS telling me to shield for 12 weeks (I didn't expect one and didn't receive one), one saying I should demand to work from home and one who said that I should be OK to go to work as long as I work in an office alone and don't come into contact with anyone.

My line manager has been great during all of this, pinged me messages asking if there is anything he can do to help. My department have not been in contact with me since one of them sent a 'ranty' email outlining how difficult it was for them to cope in my absence and on the one occasion I was unable to set cover work he wrote down a list of the problems that it had caused, especially to his mental health. HR don't seem to understand either. "We hope you're well...can you do this, don't forget this and you need to make sure you always do this". My wifes best friend is head of HR at a large multi national and is furious with their behaviour!

I suppose it is difficult for schools trying to juggle the needs of students at this time with those of parents and staff. As there is so much ignorance in terms of diabetes, they are also trying to cover themselves just in case something unexpected were to happen.
 
Sorry to hear about the complexities of your health, but many thanks for your comprehensive reply. My headteacher (primary) was the one who told me to go home, and she has not asked anything of me barring the usual setting of work. I will continue to wor from home and not request to be added to the rota- it sounds like that is the best way forward. Thanks again.
 
I'm a TA who, originally, was told to check with my GP as to whether i could work. The GP said it wasn't down to them, it was up to work and their safeguarding. Last week i emailed work asking if i could go back and was told again to check with the GP. While waiting for the GP to ring back, i spoke to my Union who said "no, if you get it you will put more burden on the NHS". The GP said "as you haven't had a letter, you could go back but you MUST social distance" ( hard when you work with younger children), any other advice says to work from home if you can. I have been finding resources, emailing them in and completing some online training so i have been working. My boss, when i explained all this said to take another week ir so and we can review it again. I feel guilty though, not being in work, and i want to do my bit to help but am worried about everything. Nobody seems to give a straight answer yes or now about working or how long we have to be off for. Very frustrating. To top it all off, my levels are all over the place atm. I think its stress and the change in routine but struggling to get them back into target.
 
freesia said:
I'm a TA who, originally, was told to check with my GP as to whether i could work. The GP said it wasn't down to them, it was up to work and their safeguarding. Last week i emailed work asking if i could go back and was told again to check with the GP. While waiting for the GP to ring back, i spoke to my Union who said "no, if you get it you will put more burden on the NHS". The GP said "as you haven't had a letter, you could go back but you MUST social distance" ( hard when you work with younger children), any other advice says to work from home if you can. I have been finding resources, emailing them in and completing some online training so i have been working. My boss, when i explained all this said to take another week ir so and we can review it again. I feel guilty though, not being in work, and i want to do my bit to help but am worried about everything. Nobody seems to give a straight answer yes or now about working or how long we have to be off for. Very frustrating. To top it all off, my levels are all over the place atm. I think its stress and the change in routine but struggling to get them back into target.
Click to expand...
Ooopps sorry, a couple of spelling mistakes!! Shocking considering i work in a school!!
 
Thanks for your reply. I agree about the guilt thing but I think the over all picture is one of staying at home and doing what we can from there. All the best.
 
Some teachers did the poll and commented here:
forum.diabetes.org.uk

Have you been offered to work/stay at home by your employer? POLL

WHO https://www.who.int/news-room/q-a-detail/q-a-coronaviruses Who is at risk of developing severe illness? "While we are still learning about how COVID-2019 affects people, older persons and persons with pre-existing medical conditions (such as high blood pressure, heart disease, lung...
forum.diabetes.org.uk forum.diabetes.org.uk
The comments might be useful.
 
Diabetes UK has issued a statement on Facebook and Twitter today that might be worth looking at relating to Sheilding. It does not appear to have been put up here yet.
 
grovesy said:
Diabetes UK has issued a statement on Facebook and Twitter today that might be worth looking at relating to Sheilding. It does not appear to have been put up here yet.
Click to expand...
Thanks. Just found an update on the front page of this site
 
Spoke to my doctor yesterday. My illness has improved and I told him I am keen to start contributing to school life after Easter - whatever that will look like! Doctor said that as I am Type 1 and asthmatic and despite both being very well controlled it would be wise for me to work from home for the foreseeable future. He said he thought it unwise that teachers with diabetes and similar auto immune diseases come into contact with the children of key (health) workers such as him as they have the potential to be spreading the disease more than most.

I emailed school first thing yesterday telling them I want to get back to work, but explaining what my doctor has said, but no response as yet. Having been out of the loop for so long I don't really know what school 'looks like' at the moment! The 3,000+ emails that I found waiting for me when I accessed the school system for the first time since February has filled me with dread!
 
The latest I heard was still that people with diabetes were considered 'vulnerable' (mostly I think because if we happened to get it badly, then having diabetes to complicate matters further isn't ideal). and so in one of the lower 'at risk' groups who are 'strongly advised' to keep to as much social distancing as possible - including working from home - but who are not considered to require complete isolation (eg so you can still go out for essential shopping/to collect medications and once a day to exercise).

But we're supposed to be careful about the whole distancing thing.
 
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