The vast majority of physicians (96 percent) said they would work while sick with a cold, and 36 percent said they would work while sick with the flu, according to study cited in CBS News.
The study from UC Irvine Health surveyed 474 physicians who were at different stages of their medical careers.
Here are five findings from the study.
1. Approximately 77 percent of physicians said they would work if they had diarrhea, and 54 percent said they would work if they were vomiting.
2. Around half of physicians surveyed said they'd work if they had a fever between 101 and 103 degrees Fahrenheit. About a quarter said they'd work with a fever over 103 degrees.
3. Only 30 percent of physicians said they would wear protective gear such as face masks while working if they had the flu.
4. The survey found physicians in their medical residency training and physicians who worked in emergency medicine or surgery were more likely to come in while sick.
5. According to study researchers, the notion of coming in sick stems from a deeply-seated sense of motivation. "There's such a strong sense of work ethic in physicians, and a strong sense of duty that we have," said study researcher Kimberly K. Truong, MD, a resident physician at UC Irvine.