Risk of Prescription Drug Abuse - Assignment Example

Notably, a disabled employee who relapses into chemical dependency is not protected by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) from adverse employment action, which may include termination. But if the person with a history of chemical dependency is no longer engaging in drug use, he is protected by ADA from employment discrimination, provided he has been in recovery long enough to have become stable. This means the employee is in a long-term recovery program with long-term abstinence from drug use.

In the case of the employee taking patients’ medication for self-use, the first step would be to establish whether the employee is addicted. Confronting the employee to admit that he diverted the drug for his use is the next step. Firing the employee may not be the best option here. The Human Resources department would place the employee on a medical leave of absence and help her report to a drug rehabilitation facility.

On completion of the in-patient portion of the drug rehabilitation program, Human Resources should then fire her for gross misconduct involving the diversion of patients’ drugs. Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, drug addiction is considered a disability. But here he won’t be qualified under ADA since he is engaged in the illegal use of drugs. The legal section will be able to take over from here and handle the case if the employee decides to sue the organization. That will, however, be a futile attempt.