When to Stay Home If You Don't Feel Well

Slight fever. An irritating cough. A sore throat. These symptoms make a person feel miserable, but they probably won't keep him from going to work or school.Amanda Demmel, for example, is a freshman at DePaul University with perfect attendance. Making it to class every day means going to school when she is sick."I can't stand missing school, and I'll try to keep outside symptoms to a minimum," said Demmel, 18, of Lincoln Park.

Demmel packs cough drops and takes over-the-counter medication so she doesn't disturb her classmates. And though it's tolerable to sit through a statistics seminar with a sore throat or slight fever, there are times when a person is too sick to go to work or school.

So how sick is too sick? There are some clear indicators on when adults should put on their pajamas and head back to bed.

Consider staying home

• If you have abdominal pain. It may be a precursor to vomiting or diarrhea, said Dr. Russell Robertson, professor and chair of family medicine at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine.

• If you are experiencing frequent vomiting or diarrhea. Robertson said working with these symptoms may be difficult, to say the least, and both could be a sign of a viral illness.• If you have an incessant cough or yellow-greenish sputum. Both are indicators of an upper-respiratory infection, and Robertson recommended seeing a doctor and staying home from work because the infection could be passed to co-workers.

• If you feel light-headed, have a poor appetite or dark urine. These symptoms suggest dehydration, and mental focus may be affected. For a dehydrated and lethargic person, "simply driving to work can be dangerous," Robertson said.

• If you have been diagnosed with an infection and just started taking antibiotics. Robertson said it's best to stay home for at least 24 hours so the medicine can take effect. This will reduce the risk of sharing the infection.

When to think twice

Some low-grade fevers can be controlled with ibuprofen, which makes it harder to determine whether you should stay or go.

• Stay put if you have a fever for more than 24 hours. "You are likely infectious," Robertson said. "You will take what you've got and spread it to people you come into contact with."

• Also stay put if you have a fever of 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit or higher and you have co-workers or classmates with chronic illnesses who may not be able to handle an infection as easily. Robertson said people who have diabetes, asthma or heart disease or who are undergoing chemotherapy can be more harshly affected by the same virus.

Keep kids home

Keeping kids home can be just as confusing. Parents don't want to send a sick child to school, but they also don't want to keep a faker home on the day of a test. So how can parents tell whether their child is really ill?

• If the child has a 101-degree temperature (in the same neighborhood as Robertson's 100.4) or more, said pediatrician Lori Walsh with Glenbrook Pediatrics in Glenview.

• If stomach pain moves from the middle of the belly to the lower right quadrant. Walsh said this type of progressive pain probably means the child is ill, not just hoping to skip school or dealing with anxiety.

• If the child has a combination of sore throat, headache and stomachache. "That's a triad for strep throat," Walsh said.

Send them to school

• If the symptoms show up suddenly in the morning. Walsh said sudden symptoms may be more manageable or even a bit imaginary. In contrast, kids who complain of symptoms during the night are more likely dealing with an illness.

• If they can get out of bed and eat their breakfast. "If they say 'I've got this pain' and they are eating their breakfast, I would let them go and have the nurse call me," Walsh said.

• But be aware about whether your child is even welcome at school with an illness. Walsh said some schools have policies that forbid attending with illnesses.Of course, it's easy to tell kids to take the day off. But the decision can be more complicated for adults, especially if an employee is paid hourly or fears retribution for missing work."There is some anxiety on calling in sick," Robertson said. "There is a tendency to drag yourself in."But workers may not be all that useful to employers when they are sick. "You can go to work in that state, you will take longer to get better and you lose more with productivity and time," Robertson said.

If you must go to work or school with a mild illness, be mindful of not spreading your sickness. Bring disposable tissues for coughing and sneezing, and pack disposable wipes to clean communal phones and doorknobs, Robertson said.

Healthy Trust Immediate Care Begins Issuing Medical Discount Card

Healthy Trust Immediate Care in Wheeling, Illinois will be offering a discount card for medical services provided at the clinic, and pharmacies across the greater Chicago area. The card debuts on May 1st and the first distribution point will be at Chocolate Fest in neighboring Long Grove, Illinois during the first week of May.

The whole idea of the card is to substantially lower health costs, and increase access to health care and prescriptions to residents of the surrounding Chicago North Shore communites.

The Healthy Trust Medical Discount Card is not Health Insurance

Too many families are going without adequate health care because of rising costs, high deductibles, no, or limited co pays, and in a lot of cases, no health insurance. The Healthy Trust Discount Medical card is not health insurance, and it is not intended to be a replacement for health insurance. However it provides significant discounts to those that use it at the medical clinic in wheeling, and at participating pharmacies in the area. The whole idea is to make quality health care more affordable, and give all patients more access to quality health care.

No Charge, No Applications, No Hassles

There is no charge, or application to fill out for the Healthy Trust Medical Discount Card. The Healthy Trust Medical Discount card is provided at no charge. You can either pick one up in person after May 1st at the Healthy Trust Clinic in Wheeling, or you can visit the website after May 1st to actually print your own card.

Healthy Trust Immediate Medical Care
342 S. Milwaukee Avenue
Wheeling, IL 60090
847-243-0333

Healthy Trust Immediate Medical Care Discount Program

Healthy Trust Immediate Medical Care located in Wheeling, Illinois is introducing a revolutionary medical, and pharmacy discount program beginning May 1st 2008 which is designed to make quality health care, and pharmacy prescriptions available to all residents in their service area at a greatly reduced price.

Healthy Trust Immediate Medical Care is a believer in consumer driven health care. At Healthy Trust we realize that the cost of health insurance, and medical care has become extremely expensive. We work with families, and local employers in our local service area to help provide them with the finest quality health care at greatly discounted rates.

We feel programs like this help fill the gaps when you have not reached your health insurance deductible, do no qualify for a copay, are having a procedure, exam, or preventive screening not covered by health insurance, or simply do not have health insurance.

The best part of our discount program is that there is no charge to you or your family for the Healthy Trust Medical Discount Card. Unlike other similar programs we are not charging an annual membership fee. We feel that providing affordable, quality, health care is our duty to the community we live in.

The Healthy Trust Medical Discount Card can be very useful for individuals and families looking to save money on health care. That being said this discount card is not the same as health insurance. The Healthy Trust Medical Discount Program does not pay any part of your health care costs; instead, we require you to pay a negotiated discount fee for medical services at the Healthy Trust Immediate Medical Care Clinic in Wheeling, Illinois. Once again, the Healthy Trust Medical Discount Card is not health insurance.

Healthy Trust Immediate Medical Discount Program

This component of the program allows you and your entire family to enjoy heavily discounted medical services at the Healthy Trust Immediate Medical Care Clinic in Wheeling, Illinois. Even if you have insurance, Healthy Trust Immediate Care can help you save on many health care expenses that your insurance may not pay for, such as chiropractic care, physical exams, school physicals, sports physicals, health screenings, vaccinations, elective care, or allergy shots. If you don't have health insurance, Healthy Trust Immediate Care can make medical care more affordable, and accessible.

Healthy Trust is the newest and most modern medical clinic in Chicago's North Shore suburbs. Our staff of physicians have been practicing in the greater Chicago area for almost thirty years. We have the experience and knowledge to take care of your family's immediate health care concerns.

The revolutionary concept revolves around the current state of health care in the United States. We feel that every citizen deserves the very best health care available. We believe that every individual or family should be able to get quality health care for an affordable rate. We believe that every person in need should get the best medical services available regardless of their financial situation. Familes with high deductibles, no, or limited copay's, uncoveraged procedures, or in the worst case scenario, no health insurance coverage, all need help, and the best quality health care available. Healthy Trust is proud to be the first medical clinic in Chicago's North Shore suburbs to address these specific needs.

Healthy Trust Prescription Drug Discount Program

Prescription medications are expensive, and at Healthy Trust Immediate Medical Care we are dedicated to reducing the cost of prescription medication for our patients. We are proud to introduce the Healthy Trust Pharmacy Discount Program. Even if you have health insurance we can save you money where ever you have your prescription filled.

The prescription benefit part of your program provides you with discounts of up to 80% of the usual and customary costs of prescription drugs at participating pharmacies. The discount varies from drug to drug, and participating pharmacy. You can use your card at local pharmacies such as Walgreen's, CVS, Walmart, Target, and K-Mart plus thousands of other participating independent pharmacies nationally, and in the Chicago area.

If your are a resident of the following Chicago North Shore communities you are eligible for no cost enrollment for the Healthy Trust Immediate Medical Care Clinic and Discount Prescription Card. Healthy Trust Immediate Medical Care serves the Chicago North Shore Communites of Wheeling, Prospect Heights, Lincolnshire, Deerfield, Buffalo Grove, Northbrook, Highland Park, Long Grove, Riverwoods, Des Plaines, Palatine, Libertyville, Glenview, Highwood, Northfield, Libertyville, Winnetka, and Bannockburn.