What is a doctors note? Well, technically, a doctors note is used to excuse you from a day's work or school activities. You may need a day off to recover from that wild party you went to last night, to spend a little time with the family or even to recover from the crazy deadlines of the past week. In fact, if you consider what many work and class environments are like and how competitive everyone is these days, it's a wonder that more and more people aren't resorting to obtaining doctor's notes to get a little bit of R&R.

A doctor's note is also a legally-binding document which is why these are highly-prized. While many people would actually make a trip to their doctor's to obtain one, there are instances when you just can't spare the time or the cash to do so. Your next best option? Fake it. Really, the easiest way to get a day's leave is to claim that it's for medical purposes. And most organizations will expect you to produce a note from a qualified medical practitioner to validate your excuse. While various organizations adopt different guidelines for leave taking, almost none will ever turn down an application for leave on medical grounds.

So what sort of information can you find on a doctor's note? For starters, the physician's name, address and contact details, as well as your name and identification or employee number. Another vital piece of detail is the date and time of your visit. Then of course, the reason for you missing work will be cited including the number of days that you'll require off and when you'll be available to resume work. When you're required to do manual work such as if you're working in a warehouse, then the medical note may stipulate that you must be exempt from heavy lifting, driving heavy machinery and so forth. Hence, depending on the specifics of your employment, the doctor's note will include details of your illness that can be useful if you'd like to continue being exempt from hard work even after you've returned.

As you can see, there are a number of very important details that a doctors note should include. And while we're sure you'd like to attempt producing one yourself, something of this delicate nature is best left to the professionals. Especially when you consider that a minor slip-up can mean all the difference in whether you have a job to get back to or not.

Just remember that the reason you need a doctor's note is so that you can actually enjoy a day off - time off that is badly needed. There is nothing worse than having to spend the entire day worrying if your note can pass muster that you actually fail to enjoy your leave. Ideally, you should be able to simply tell your employer that you just need to take a break before possibly losing your sanity, but very often, this alone is not enough. Hence, the need for a fake doctors note.