Introduction
As an Assistant Manager of a Home Health Care Agency, my responsibility is to make sure everyone in the agency is happy with their job as well as no rules and laws are violated. The current situation with the employee being mistreated after a severe illness should be thoroughly investigated and the proper policies defined. I suggest the following first three steps to be taken as soon as possible.
Key Steps
Firstly, I would do the research about the disease. Tuberculosis is an infectious disease that can seriously affect people. In 2018, 9,025 cases of TB were reported in the U.S. in total, with almost 70% of them among non-U.S.-born people (“Trends in tuberculosis,” 2018). It means that most infected people might have obtained this disease in other countries. TB tests for such groups of people, including those who travel to countries with high TB cases rates should be necessary at our agency.
Secondly, I would talk to the agency’s Human Resources Department. I would find out if telling the employee’s diagnosis to her co-workers violated her privacy and if the corresponding policies exist. Such situations may occur in the future, and the agency needs proper policies on how to handle these emergencies with care about their employees. After that I would interview the employee’s boss as I need to know why he was acting so estranged. If there is a lack of information about contagious diseases, the company should provide training for all employees. Not only tuberculosis but also other infections may occur, and the employees should understand when such conditions are dangerous.
Conclusion
The lack of policies concerning such situations in the agency led to the unsettling consequences. A thorough investigation of this case should help develop new strategies on how to deal with infectious diseases in the workplace in order to provide safety for all employees. As a part of them, TB tests, training for employees about tuberculosis and other infections, and HR policies should help to prevent such situations in the future.
Reference
Trends in tuberculosis. (2018). Web.