Supporting rehabilitation for the impaired healthcare employee: a case study

A case study describing detection, intervention and treatment of a chemically dependent hospital pharmacist, leading to generalizations and conclusions concerning the handling of impaired health care workers. The willingness of one hospital's management and administration to offer continued employment and support to an impaired pharmacist throughout an extended period of rehabilitation has resulted in a story of success on both a personal and an institutional level. From this experience, the authors have concluded that this humane reaction to an employee in need is a viable alternative to more typical reactions involving legal prosecution.