RE: SOCW6103- Discussion1- Response to 2 Students (Wk2)
RE: SOCW6103- Discussion1- Response to 2 Students (Wk2)
Respond by Day 5 to the postings of at least two of your colleagues who chose a different law than yours and compare the similarities and differences of each law. (Please be detailed in response and use 2 APA peer reviewed responses)
Response to Nataly
Discussion One
Addiction is a very serious and important topic when it comes to the wellbeing, rehabilitation process, and health of our clients. Just because our clients may be a recovering addict or are facing the challenges of addiction at the moment, does not mean they do not deserve the fair and equal treatment just like any other individual. Being an addict can take over our control and interfere with our daily, social, and mental capabilities. Our clients can be fine and sober one minute and the next they are either over intoxicated or under the influence on their addiction pleasure. It can be overwhelming, embarrassing, and unknown that sometimes our closest friends, family members, or even co-workers may be a recovering or current addict. I do believe that there should be a form of legal protection and establishment to help protect individuals that face this everyday challenge. Jessie’s Law provides physicians and other medical professionals with this information at every step of a patient’s care, enabling them to consider the patient’s addiction when determining appropriate medical care when the patient provides that information (States News Service, 2018). Because our client’s journey and cases are not only in the presence of their social worker, but other professionals who will also engage through their rehabilitation process, this is a very important legislation factor to consider. In this case Jessie was a recovering addict who had surgery and was prescribed Oxycodone pills and died from an overdose. The miscommunication and failure to be aware of her past addiction amongst the professionals involved in her case caused her to lose her life. In the scenario presented with the co-worker coming intoxicated to work and confessing on her addiction should be established as a cry for help. Now her co-workers and her employer are aware that this employee needs help. Just because people use a substance in excess, and in some cases, becomes physiologically and psychologically addicted to it, does not always mean that government or privately organized groups respond in a serious way (Joh, 2009). This should not cost her to lose her job, but should open her eyes that she needs help. Now that the employer is aware of her addiction they are part of her rehabilitation progress and recovery process as well if they wish to proceed and not discriminate on her problem of addiction. Law may influence my future work as a professional my having an impact on the way I may or may not work with my clients. There are mandated legislative acts that permit us to act upon certain things we can do to help our clients and there are those that prevent us from proceeding because of the entitlement of discrimination or possible harm to the client. At the end of the day we need to have knowledge of the past and present legislation that will be part of our working duties with clients and the population of addiction.
References
Joh, E. E. (2009). Imagining the Addict: Evaluating Social and Legal Response to Addiction. Utah Law Review, (Issue 1), 175. Retrieved from https://ezp.waldenulibrary.org/login?url=https://s…
Manchin Urges House to Pass “Jessie’s Law,” to Save and Protect Those Recovering from Addiction. (2018). States News Service. Retrieved from https://ezp.waldenulibrary.org/login?url=https://s…
******************************************************************************Response to Jessica
Anti-Discrimination Law
The anti-discrimination law that I choose in regards to the scenario is the the Family Medical Leave Act. I chose this anti-discrimination law, because in the scenario the employee presents herself to the company’s human resource office letting them know that she is addicted to alcohol and feels that she needs treatment. The individual at the time of this disclosure is telling her human resource department that she has a medical issue that needs cared for. The US Department of Labor (2018) states that employees with a medical issue that would interfere with his/her job duties can request up to 12 weeks off. I feel as though FMLA is necessary due to it providing an employee to seek help for a medical condition and hold the job for the employee. This law also protects the employer, because it allows the employer to request a fitness to return to work evaluation (US Dept. of Labor, 2018). So the necessity of this law provides both the employee and employer safegaurds.
Influence of Law of Professional Work
It is the responsibility of the counselor to function effectively, and impairment while performing the job duties of a counselor could not be effective (Taleff, 2010). The employee in the scenario knew that they were unable to perform their respective job duties and thus went to human resources and basically explained that they were unable to complete their job duties. By stating that treatment was needed it places the need in several hands. The employee and employer are covered through FMLA, to ensure that treatment is provided for the employee and the employer is able to ensure that the employee is fit for return to their previous position.
Taleff, M.J. (2010). Advanced ethics for addiction. New York, New York: Springer Publishing.
Chapter 13, “Some Practical Guidelines”
US Department of Labor. (2018). The fact sheet: The family medical leave act. Retrieved from:
