Substance Abuse and its Effects on Workplaces and Employees - Coursework Example

 Substance Abuse and its Effects on Workplaces and Employees Abstract The issues relating to alcohol and drug abuse are of immense importance in today’s era where male and female counterparts of the society are equally involved in such practices. The harmful effects of dugs make it more important for the researchers to find the reasons, behavioural changes and societal needs that are causing such increasing trends in it. The areas that are affected by alcohol and drug abuse involve social, financial, cultural, family and work life of individuals. This paper aims to understand how it affects the job performance of employees and give some recommendations to improve the situation. This paper also defines the problems linked with substance abuse and aims to define alcohol related issues specifically. Introduction: People face different kinds of problems in their life like financial, business, social and health problems. They try to face these problems and to control stress and mental strain they start using drugs and smoking as a prop. However, drugs and smoking are not the solution of any problem, but are the reason of upcoming health and psychological problems. Smoking has been declared as a more severe risk to human life than other addictions. Cigarettes alone are responsible for the waste of more human lives than collective danger of alcohol, accidents, suicidal crimes, AIDS and illegal drugs. Despite that, 21% of adults, 22% of high school students and 8% of middle school students smoke. One in five of all deaths every year in the United States have been credited to smoking, killing more than AIDS, suicide, alcohol, car accidents, homicide, and illegal drugs combined (American Cancer Society, 2004). However, a great amount of people are addicted to drugs, which are also a chief cause of ill-health nowadays. Drug abuse not only affects an individual but harm the whole society or community. The people who are addicted to alcohol consumption, cocaine and other drugs not only waste their money and precious time due to intoxication but also leave a bad impact on their young ones. Research explains that increased sales law enforcement can decrease the selling of drugs to individuals. For instance, setting up enforcement of lowest alcohol buying age laws is desired to make them more efficient (Grube, 1997). This paper aims to address the issues related to drug abusing and further emphasizes on the extreme drinking patterns and their effects. This paper also proposes some recommendations to avoid alcohol consumption issues in the workplaces and also defines the possible effects of imposing laws, rules and programs against it. Problems Related to Alcohol and Drug Abuse: Drug abuse is harmful for the social and cultural values of a person. Intoxicated drivers do not just harm their own life but may also create risk for the other drivers and people around. Drug abusers being well aware of these problems do not quit it. Extreme drinking and consumption of drugs is really terrible for physical and mental conditions. Alcohol increases the risk of serious illness like heart disease, liver disease, reproductive problems and memory loss. It is declared in journal of the American medical association, the death rate of Alcoholic women is comparatively greater than Alcoholic men. This journal also declares that the danger of breast cancer rises with the regular use of alcohol. Youngsters drink alcoholic beverages for fun and fashion purposes but afterward they get addicted to it. Students being the most important part must be kept away from drinking and drug addictions. These habits are changing their attitudes towards their family, friends, studies and responsibilities. They are creating a severe risk to their lives and future. It starts as fun takes over you and begins killing you slowly. In other words it can be said that Alcohol is just like a slow poison. I have been drinking alcohol since the past five years and it seems that I am not leaving this habit in the distant future. It started off with family problems and seeing my father drinking it influenced me to start with the habit of drinking. Emotional distress and parental influence was the main reason to start off with the habit. In order to handle the increasing misery which was caused due to many problems (financial and family) I resorted to the drinking of alcohol. At first it provided me a sense of relief but a point came when the distress began to mount all over again (Elliott & Shelly, 2006). People start the habit of drinking due to many reasons which mainly include emotional distress. According to some theories drinking of alcohol provides relief to increasing stress. A time comes when a person has feels like evading himself from the reality that is the time when he has the urge of drinking. Drinking of alcohol is commonly found amongst the new young generation. This is because young people start the drinking process thinking that it would lead to the betterment of their frame of mind. Recent research has proved that avoiding alcohol at times can lead to the usage of more alcohol. To further prove this a ten year model research was conducted to find out about the relationship between alcohol consumption and the coping up with emotional distress. The ten year model showed that if drinking helped in coping with the emotional distress the consumption of alcohol increased but if it did not the consumption decreased. (Holahan, Moos, Holahan, Cronkite , & Randall 2001) The environment I worked in played another major role in the adopting of the habit of drinking. Due to working stress and other factors including accessibility of alcohol during working hours I was tempted to drink excessively. Research has suggested that the availability of alcohol during working hours is a factor for excessive drinking. Easy to get alcohol and drinking it with all the friends together during the working hours is supposed to be really easy for the working people. The factor of drinking with friends had a great influence on me and I, being a social person liked drinking alcohol with them. In order to avoid drinking in the work places management took grave measures. Competition of drinking with friends while working and the amount of alcohol you can drink as compared to others is a usual sight in the office. Nowadays the labour unions and the management gave salary cuts to employees and formulated a strict scheme against excessive alcohol drinking during working hours. These measures gave a blow to my financial flow but I coped up by reducing the level of drinking during work hours. This scheme has been successful to quite a level but it requires a further amendment and realization of the environmental factors involved in the availability of alcohol at work places. Drinking results in accidents and un towards incidents. To curb this issue many governments are taking necessary steps and till date they are quite successful. Moreover the education provided by the government and NGO's has been quite beneficial for people to avoid drinking in the early stages. Alcohol can lead to fatal diseases which ultimately might kill. Avoidance of alcohol at a later stage is not easy and the new measures of avoidance constructed by NGO's are helping me to avoid alcohol. But it seems like a long journey until I stop drinking. Recommendations and Effects: Substance abuse creates many problems for the individual’s personal and social life. Their health, work performance, family relationships and daily life is affected badly for this sole reason. Knowing the grievance of this issues both public and private sectors are putting their efforts to reduce and eventually eliminate risks associated with substance abuse and drug dependency. The workplace problems that are associated with drug dependency are looked into by various public health and welfare agencies and in the private sector employers are contributing to resolve this issue. However, without government’s interference and legal rules against it, it is difficult to eliminate it (1,3). The first solution to this problem is the awareness about the health risks associated with substance abuse among employees. According to the study of Weisner et al. (2009) information about chemical dependency and drug abuse is the initial step to approach the process of fighting its harms. The study emphasizes on employers’ contribution towards its negative impacts. The awareness programs, treatments for employees involved in drug abuse and keeping the psychological distress related to the workplace are helpful tools to control the increasing instances of substance abuse in the workplaces. The employers may greatly help in reducing such practices and making the workplace safer for workers, customers and other associated people. Nancy N. Delogu (2007) also presented a study reviewing the problems associated with drug abuse in the workplaces. Delogu’s study emphasizes on the effectiveness of Drug-free workplace programs. The use of drug-free workplace programs helps in eradicating the risk of drug abusers’ involvement in employments which clearly provide drug-free policies for their employees. The written policies against the use of drugs and alcohol at workplaces are also required by the law in some states. This requirement places a legal emphasis on the employers to show a zero tolerance attitude against drugs and intoxication within the work timings and premises. However, a policy which does not incorporate off-work practices of employees is also flawed to some extent. The policy makers must keep in view that the organization’s image and name is linked with the activities and actions of its employees. When investigating a crime, people do not just come to know about the personal activities of the person involved but also the company or organization he works for. Hence an organization must impose such regulations and policies which clearly state the prohibition of illegal activities and drug consumption. Nowadays alcohol abuse and the excessive usage of it, is leading to deaths and society failure. This is either through the reckless driving after getting drunk or because of the after effects which are lethal to the consumer of alcohol. Today in the modern world little governments are taking strong measures to limit the usage of alcohol. These measures aim towards the reducing of alcohol related damages and harms. These different measures include the introduction of laws which are non alcohol friendly. While driving, drinking of alcohol has been strictly prohibited by some governments. The governments are providing the drivers with the required education so they can drive properly. A strong measure in this regard was taken by the U.S government in which they took strict action against those who had a previous record of reckless driving while getting drunk. Check posts were designed to look out for the people who drink alcohol. This in turn helped me in my real life to be careful of not being drunk while driving. This was an important step to control the number of accidents which occurred on the road. The availability of alcohol was made difficult by the governments by imposing taxes so that it is not cheaply and openly available. This discouraged the consumers of alcohol and thus was another big measure which helped to curb the problem of alcoholism. In the recent years many nongovernmental organizations are also working towards the cause. They help educating the people about the disadvantages and the proper use of alcohol (Alcohol research and Health Vol 24). The social benefits of such awareness programs, policies and laws do not limit to a safer and more peaceful workplace but also benefits people outside the work premises. The regulations and policies help in eliminating the increasing risks of accidents inside and outside the work premises, health problems, family issues, violence and other unethical practices. People save time and money by not involving them in such illegal drug consumption. The use of such policies may help in reducing the risks of accidents, violence, disputes and mishaps in our workplace. More safety and protection will result in a better performance of employees. The workplace safety also impacts the psychological health of employees. All employees including me, will work more efficiently. The steps of employers will not only encourage us to abstain from consuming such drugs and alcohol but will also develop loyalty towards the employers. A sense of being important to the employers will motivate us to help them in reaching their goals. The rules and regulations supported by health education regarding drug and alcohol consumption will lead to an everlasting fear from it. Conclusion: Drug misuse and binge drinking are not health risking habits but also be fatal if not managed timely and effectively. The risks associated with these habits are not limited. Such habits do not let the drinker and his associates feel safe anywhere. Drug abusers are tend to be more aggressive, violent and careless. Their behaviours and actions lead others to mental and physical distress. Workforces, with a diverse population struggling to achieve the employer’s goals, may be distracted because of intoxication or uncalled behaviour of one or more employees. In order to provide a safe and secured working environment to all employees and other people proper arrangements and rules must be regulated. Hence we can say that although substance abuse and drug consumption rates are high among employees nowadays, there are ways to improve this situation. This study proposes 3 main ways to improve this situation including awareness programs, alcohol-free workplace policies and working together with governmental and nongovernmental organizations. Bibliography: Delogu, NN (2007). Essential elements of a drug-free workplace program. Professional Safety. 52 (11), 48. Weisner C., Lu Y., Hinman A., Chi F.W., et al. (2009). Substance use, symptom, and employment outcomes of persons with a workplace mandate for chemical dependency treatment. Psychiatric Services. 60 (5), 646-654. Elliott, K., & Shelley, K. (2006). Effects of Drugs and Alcohol on Behavior, Job Performance, and Workplace Safety. Journal of Employment Counseling. 43 (3), 130. Latest approaches to preventing alcohol abuse and alcoholism. (2000). Alcohol Research and Health, Vol. 24, No. 1, 2000, P. 42-51. Holahan CJ, Moos RH, Holahan CK, Cronkite RC, & Randall PK. (2001). Drinking to cope, emotional distress and alcohol use and abuse: a ten-year model. Journal of Studies on Alcohol. 62 (2), 190-8. Weisner, C., Matzger, H., Tam, T., & Schmidt, L. (2002). Who Goes to Alcohol and Drug Treatment? Understanding Utilization within the Context of Insurance. JOURNAL OF STUDIES ON ALCOHOL. 63, 673-682. Weisner C, & Schmidt LA. (2001). Rethinking access to alcohol treatment. Recent Developments in Alcoholism : an Official Publication of the American Medical Society on Alcoholism, the Research Society on Alcoholism, and the National Council on Alcoholism. 15, 107-36. Read More