Turney’s back on job after long sick leave
Byron Turney is back on his job as superintendent of Hartselle Public Works after a three-month battle with a staph infection. | Clif Knight
Hartselle Public Works Superintendent Byron Turney returned to work Wednesday after being out for nearly three months receiving medical treatment and recuperating from a staph infection in his spine.
“It feels good to be back,” he said. “I got tired lying around the house and sitting out in my tractor shed watching the world go by.”
One of the first tasks he had to take care of was catching up on the e-mails stored on his office computer.
“I don’t expect to find much that hasn’t already been taken care of by my two foremen, Hershel Clemons and Glenn Hollingsworth,” Turney pointed out. “They did an excellent job of staying on top of things and getting the work done. That’s typical of our entire crew and I thank all of them for being good team players.”
Turney said he had enough sick days built up to cover his extended absence.
“I’ve probably not been off work 10 days during my 23 and one-half years with the city,” Turney said. “But I never had to deal with anything like this.”
Turney said he woke up on Sunday, March 6, and was unable to get out of bed because of severe pain in his back. An ambulance was called and he was admitted to Decatur General Hospital through the emergency room.
After four days of doctor visits and tests and a possible diagnosis of a staph infection, he was transferred by ambulance to Huntsville Hospital. While there for four more days, biopsies were taken and the staph diagnosis was confirmed. Subsequently, he was treated with antibiotics and sent home to take more antibiotics and recuperate.
“I can’t recall a lot of what happened in the hospitals because of the intense pain I had,” Turney stated, “but what I do remember is that I had to have a walker to help me walk when I got home.”
Turney said his days of recuperation were filled with a lot of television, some walking in the neighborhood and sitting out in his tractor shed watching the world go by.
“I’m not 100 percent yet, but I’m getting there,” Turney said. “I still have some pain and I’m still waiting for someone to tell me how I got a staph infection.”
