Submitted by petercooke on
in
Forums
I just got an offer for my dream job in a great company, and have accepted (thanks manager-tools for your great advice!!).
As a next step in the process, the company will perform a drug screening and background check (including signing medical release forms). I thought I had nothing to worry about, but wanted to get your perspective on the following concern:
-4/5 years ago I went through tough times and was diagnosed with depression and anxiety. I was prescribed depression and anxiety medication and was able to recover pretty well.
I have not been using anti-depressants for a couple of years, but still take a very small dose of anti-anxiety medication.
I assume both medications will show up in the medical history.
I assume my current small dose of anti-anxiety medication will show up in the drug-screening (maybe they even ask what medications I am taking, and will be forced to disclose)
The performance in my current company has been stellar the last 3-4 years, and that was one of the reasons the new company extended an offer.
What are the chances of the new company withdrawing the offer if they find about my past conditions and current medication?
Any suggestions on how to handle the situation?
Virtually zero
If you're in the US or many other western countries, there are sanctions for using medical history ( there are are exceptions related to performance issues that do not apply here).
The only way your history here would work against you would be if someone got spooked and decided to not hire you and then manufactured a false reason to withdraw. This is illegal and unethical.
The chance of this is only negligibly more than zero.
Mark
Read those medical release
Read those medical release forms carefully. In my limited experience with companies, I have never heard of anyone looking at medical records. But given I have a seriously ill wife, I'm very familiar with medical records, and how hard it is to get them. Did you list the names of your doctors on those release forms? Or was it just releasing THE RESULTS OF THAT DRUG TEST.
Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I think they can require a medical exam, but I really, really, don't think they can just pull your medical records for a job unless it was national security or something. That's what underwriters do for insurance, and they have to know the name of every doctor. Not only that, pulling medical records can be expensive.
What you might want to do is call your doctor who prescribes the anti-anxiety and ask him if it will show up on the urine test or long you must be clean on it.
I doubt it would show up,
I doubt it would show up, but IF, and only if, it does I would treat it as any other potential weakness that you addressed and overcome...
"In the past I have had an issue with anxiety but I sought professional help and worked with them to control it. As a result I take a prescribed medication and have not had issue with it. I think my performance in my current role speaks to the fact that this is not an issue."
Steve Simmons
CGEIT, CISA, CISM, CISSP
DiSC=7115
Drug tests
Where I work we screen all potenial employees but it is only for illegal drugs not prescription medications. So I would doubt that any anti-anxiety medication would show up unless it is medical mariquana. If something is found, we don't find out what it is, we just get a note that something was found and then we follow-up with the potenitial employee. Our nursing staff are pretty gould about explaining the process and what your rights are. I take an anti-depressant and noting turned up, no one knows except for the few people I have discussed this with. Funny the things you share in a one-on-one. In this weeks one-on-one someone got to tell me they won the lottery!