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Patterns of drug or alcohol abuse evolve over time and it is helpful in DOT Training to learn this fact. Keep informed of trends so that you can help your employees avoid the latest traps and steer them to the proper resources.
As recently as the 1990s, it was commonplace for employers to host holiday parties where alcohol flowed freely. Workers would gather around the water cooler the following week to laugh about inebriated employees who embarrassed themselves. Don't let your DOT Training program degenerate into these discussions. For many employees talking about alcohol means cutting up. Keep a straight face and expect everyone else to do the same.
Nowadays, of course, such parties are rare. Serving alcohol at a company-sponsored event can expose the employer to claims of “vicarious liability” if someone who attends the party causes harm due to excessive drinking.
To manage this risk, employers remind their workers that the organization’s substance abuse policy carries over to employees’ behavior at off-site parties. And by serving only non-alcoholic beverages—and forbidding attendees from bringing alcohol onto the premises—employers further reduce their risk.
This new, alcohol-free version of the holiday party illustrates the changing nature of substance abuse. It’s a moving target. Personal habits, usage patterns and social mores rarely remain static. By staying abreast of developments relating to drug and alcohol use, you can play a more influential role in helping your employer—and your employees—avoid problems caused by substance abuse.
To take another example of changes in this area and an important area of DOT training is examining how alcohol and street drugs (such as marijuana) have traditionally posed the most serious problem for substance abusers. In recent years, over-the-counter medications have entered the mix. Some types of sleeping pills, for instance, are emerging as dangerous substances that undermine work performance, cognitive functioning and alertness on the job. Also cover these issues DOT training.
An even more ominous trend involves the sharp spike in methamphetamine abuse across the United States. Recent surveys show that methamphetamine, a highly addictive stimulant, is increasingly being swallowed, snorted, injected or smoked in the workplace. Employees may view meth use as a way to increase their productivity and brighten their mood.
But after the initial six- to eight-hour rush of euphoria, users may experience agitation that can spark violent behavior along with other negative and harmful side effects.
Admissions for treatment of meth abuse have increased in all parts of the country, although the problem is particularly pronounced in certain regions. Overall, methamphetamine/amphetamine admissions increased from 13 to 56 per 100,000 people (ages 12 and older) from 1993 to 2003, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
To learn more about this issue and obtain resources to educate your employees and help them seek treatment, see www.methresources.gov.
The latest research on substance abuse finds that it often leads to psychological addiction. When addiction afflicts an individual, loss of control over the use of the substance occurs. Withdrawal produces predictable symptoms and physical indicators.
Workers at all levels will continue to abuse brain stimulants such as methamphetamine/amphetamine and cocaine. It’s important to note that pseudoephedrine, a key ingredient in over-the-counter cold, cough and allergy medicines, can be used to illegally produce methamphetamine. That’s why many large retailers are limiting shoppers’ access to these items, often by requiring them to see a pharmacist and even show photo identification and/or sign an acknowledgement form.
The popularity of stimulants does not mean that brain depressants such as alcohol, narcotics, marijuana, tranquilizers and muscle relaxants are no longer a problem. In fact, alcohol remains the most frequently abused substance both in and out of the workplace: It’s two to three times more commonly abused than all other drugs combined. [SOURCE: www.ohsu.edu/croet/outreach/symposia/subabuse.html]
You are in a unique position as a supervisor to support, educate and guide employees to the proper resources to address substance abuse. But to do your job effectively, it helps to stay up-to-date on the ever-changing nature of drug and alcohol abuse.
WARNING: Many states are tracking an increase in methamphetamine abuse. The drug’s rising purity levels, coupled with the development of new and even more addictive strains, indicates that this increase will continue.
TIP: At DOT Training Classes, reserve time to discuss the latest substance-abuse trends with your peers. Share facts, exchange ideas and develop strategies to combat the next wave of dangerous substances that are gaining popularity in your region. Prepare for the discussion by requesting the most recent information related to substance abuse from your local police department, state health officials and the EAP.
IT’S TRUE: Oxycontin, a prescription drug that has contributed to workplace substance abuse, was introduced in 1995. This highly addictive medication for chronic pain is made from a synthetic morphine called oxycodone. If you suspect an employee is hooked on this drug (which starts as a desire to manage pain and escalates into signs of depression, poor concentration and frequent unexplained absences), work with your substance-abuse team to refer the individual to a medically supervised detox program.
DOT training should include a discussion on methamphetamine abuse first took hold the United States, the drug was made in large labs in California and also entered the country via trafficking from Mexico. But it’s now spreading across the country because of the emergence of small, makeshift labs, especially in rural America.
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