Hi Sandra
i think what you did is absolutely the right thing to do you have
reported this with honesty and done so as a health and safety
practitioner - i wouldnt change any of it in fact i like how you
reported this back - i try not to get involved in alcohol cases and
direct it back to the manager regarding drug and alcohol policy -
however like you say if there are underlying issues triggering it i
will support them with this
well done i have learned from this piece of reflection you have
shared here with us
steph
On 27 Aug 2011, at 20:48, sandra glenn wrote:
> Going back to the problem of a person appearing to be under the
> influence of alcohol-
>
> This happened to me with a person who had been referred for OH
> opinion due to possible alcohol problems. I am not sure if I did
> the right thing though and would be interested in the views of others.
> The person attended their OH appointment but smelt strongly of
> alcohol, was scruffy/unkempt and appeared unsteady on their feet.
> This person also had a job working in environment with vulnerable
> clients so i did also need to consider duty of care to them.
> I told the person I thought that they had been drinking alcohol and
> seemed unsteady but the person denied this strongly and said they
> had spilt some alcohol on their clothes! I did continue with the
> OH consultation partly due to concerns about any risks to client
> group where they worked. I discussed with the person re the reason
> for referral and possible alcohol problem. They said they drank
> only very moderate alcohol occas and did not have any such
> problem. I enquired re personal/work stress, social situation, PMH
> and any underlying health conditions eg depression. I discussed
> with the person about what I intended to put in my OH report namely
> that:- in my opinion, the person appeared to be under the
> influence of alcohol although they strongly denied this reporting
> only very moderate occasional alcohol intake. I would mention the
> alcohol and drug policy of the organisation with more info about
> this available though HR and also advised re need to consider duty
> of care to clients group. If I remember rightly the person also
> gave written consent for a GP report but said they had not attended
> the GP for a very long time. The person gave me consent for my
> OH report which I later completed and sent. (I did try to discuss
> with a colleague or OHP in the main office for advice before
> sending but no-one available and I decided to send the report anyway).
>
> This happened some time ago with no comeback. However, I was left
> wondering about the validity of consent given if the person was
> under the influence of alcohol but also felt that it was probably
> justified to send my report due to the client group. I think the
> same would be the case if the employee worked in an environment
> with health and safety risks eg machinery or using sharp tools. I
> think that just to refer person to an OHP could have fudged the
> issue as the person might have attended a new appt sober and the
> opportunity for manager to address the problem may be missed.
> I definitely think it would be useful to have further guidance in
> cases like these with H&S issues as well as potential ethical
> ones. What would you have done?
> Sandra
>
>
>
> Date: Sat, 27 Aug 2011 11:15:38 +0100
> From: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: [OCC-HEALTH] Alcohol and BO Referrals
> To: [log in to unmask]
>
> But did you get a 99 with extra raspberry ripple for the
> inconvenience??
> Anne
>
>
> On 26/08/2011 11:18, "Celia" <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
> I once had a man foisted on me who had come for training, arrived
> in an ice cream cart and brought round to the OH dept because he
> was drunk. What they expected me to do
> was beyond me but it was taken out of my hands when he set fire to
> the department! sounds a bit far fetched but that was in 1976 when
> people were allowed to smoke, and he
> almost went up in flames with the curtains.
> Since that date I have firmly refused to deal with drunks, can you
> blame me?
> Celia
>
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: sharon naylor <[log in to unmask]>
> To: OCC-HEALTH <[log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Fri, 26 Aug 2011 6:57
> Subject: Re: [OCC-HEALTH] Alcohol and BO Referrals
>
> Nowt on Google - in my reports I have said such like " It was
> difficult to engage with mr Bloogs because he appeared
> disorientated and confused. In view of this I terminated the
> meeting and cannot offer any specific advice" Over to management -
> this particular case is just a bit more complicated and bound to be
> acrimonious. However the client DNA so problem over until next
> week I suppose
>
> My decision is - any grief from the individual or their union rep
> and I will just stop the meeting (nicely and politely) . Privately
> I am getting a lot less benevolent when dealing with stroppy
> clients. One of the main problems (AGAIN!) is the "medicalisation"
> of management issues as managers are unwilling to tackle.
> Date: Fri, 26 Aug 2011 09:16:13 +0100
> From: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: [OCC-HEALTH] Alcohol and BO Referrals
> To: [log in to unmask]
>
> Did you find anything by googling Sharon?
>
> As I mainly do telephone assessments it's not something I can tell
> over the phone :)
>
> But I'm wondering about the language we use in reports in such
> cases - should it be along the lines of "the client presented
> himself in a manner that was not condusive for assessment; I advise
> you discuss this with him"?:
>
> Carr
>
> On 26 August 2011 01:33, Jeremy RF Smith <[log in to unmask]>
> wrote:
> Hey Bet,
>
> I have a problem - I'm anosmic so I have a fundamental issue with
> alcohol or BO related referrals. However, If I did have a client
> who rocked up 'worse for wear' (and if it wasn't on the referral it
> would have to be obvious for me!) I would terminate the
> consultation as how could I say that they had understood my advice,
> given informed consent etc without them saying that they hadn't
> really understood?
>
> Your Ken...
>
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