Drying Out

sobekneferu · August 2003

This isn't really an HR question, I was just hoping someone had some knowledgeable opinions on the subject. I work in a women's shelter, and although we used to have a policy dictating that women who came into the shelter under the influence of drugs or alcohol must leave immediately, they have relaxed the rules considerably, and have begun using one of the conference rooms as a "drunk tank". The women get sick in this room, they may be in an altered state, and our staff are not trained medical personnel. My concern is that someone will choke to death, or have a seizure, and we will be liable in this situation because we provided a place for them to "sleep it off".

Like I said, not an HR question per se, but there are so many smart people who frequent this board, I thought someone might have some good advice, or even a similar situation to share.

Don D · August 2003

My initial thought is that your facility would be wise to engage the services of someone who can train some of the staff as 'first responders' with CPR and basic first aid skills. Fire departments often will do this for a small fee. Another concern I have is that if the 'tank room' is not camera-monitored, you are creating potential liability with leaving somebody in there unattended and unobserved perhaps overnight with no professional level of response available for emergency. Can you transport them to the police lockup for overnight recovery and then go get them and bring them back for your services when they are sober?

Balloonman · August 2003

Don has good advice about first responders. Also though you have a blood borne pathogens issue.........with the cleaning up of the puke. x:9 Something you should consider. Those that do your first responder training can also usually conduct blood borne pathogen training.
My $0.02 worth.
DJ The Balloonman

Crout · August 2003

I'm not sure about the "knowledgeable" part, but I do have an opinion. When you say "they" changed the rules, who are you referring to? Was this a policy decision, or a staff practice that evolved? I think that's an important distinction, and that's where HR can become involved. As you pointed out, there are real risks to your company with the "drunk tank" scenario, but if the drunk tank is deemed necessary to your operations, then you need to ask yourself how you can best serve your company. What you can do as an HR professional is to establish the policies, procedures, and training necessary to mitigate the risks. If the staff aren't medically trained, what training do they need? Does every employee know who to call in an emergency? And so on. Now if the decision makers in your company are not aware that this practice is going on you obviously have a duty to report the activity, and advise them of the potential risks involved. If someone dies in your shelter the liability could be huge.

LindaS · August 2003

I agree with both posts. I think there is potential liability for both leaving a person in an "altered state" without adequate supervision. You have a potential for the person to choke, possible alcohol poisoning, etc.. If you want to continue to offer this serviceeither install cameras, and have someone monitoring them, or have a trained person in the room with the individual while they are "drying out". As for your employees, OSHA requires that any person who has a potential for exposure to bodily fluids be trained in bloodborne pathogens. You should also look at training EEs as First Responders.

Shawn · August 2003

If your staff are not trained medical professionals then do not allow these folks to come in and use your facility as a detox center. You now have established a pattern of allowing folks with a medical condition (self-induced) to seek refuge in your facility. Liability in this areas is great.

sobekneferu · August 2003

Thanks for the responses - I needed some validation. What happened is that we have a new Executive Director who is not as touchy-feely as the previous one, and the staff - especially the managers for the shelter program are rebelling. Unfortunately, this is not the area to be pig-headed. I have long made the argument that if someone were to die or hurt another person while we're allowing this, our entire program would be in jeopardy - but what does HR know, right?

Drying Out

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