Originally Posted by
susanlauren 
"Professional alcoholics" are often found in the legal profession, the medical profession, in the arts and in the construction industry. Fortunately (and unfortunately), a number of these groups have assistance programs available to their members. Based upon the experience of a family member who went through an alternative program, I would not want to be involved in a professional monitoring program. It saved my family member's career, profession and life and the program itself was expensive, inconvenient, and humiliating. There was no confidentiality -- participation in the program was a matter of public record and was published to in the professional newsletter to nearly 200,000 other professionals. Perhaps your profession is different (i.e., dignity, confidentiality), Pigtail, but if it were me, I would avoid being involved in a monitoring program at all costs. That would be an absolute last resort.
It sounds like you are describing the program that put on this seminar-- an assistance program for people in my profession. I had heard of it before but didn't realize what exactly it was. I thought that if someone in my profession thought they were having an alcohol program, they could call into the hotline and be put in touch with other recovering folks in the profession, and be told where the AA meetings are, etc. Well, this is true, but it's more than that. Someone can call the hotline for ANYONE in our profession and express concern about suspicions of alcoholism/addiction. For instance, this person smelled of booze at a 9:30 am meeting, this person was late in finishing a project and it affected the client, etc. The program committee then decides what to do-- often it's an intervention, or sometimes just a call or a letter to the person saying someone else expressed concern and they're there if they need them, or sometimes the matter is so serious that discliplinary proceedings are brought against the person to decide whether they can continue on in our profession and under what conditions.
The monitoring program is not voluntary but is part of last resort methods to allow that person to be able to stay in our profession. If they messed up big and affected clients, or did something fraudulent like steal clients' money, then they can be banned from the profession and only allowed back in if they petition the right committees and show proof of recovery/sobriety, and agree to a monitoring program with random drug tests and breathalyzers etc.
I understand what you mean about lack of confidentiality and it being a humiliating experience. I had questions about anonymity and privacy in my head while listening to distinguished members of my profession talk about how part of their job is to identify and help other people who are struggling with addiction. On the other hand, many of these same people say they were saved by the assistance program. One person had gone back out and said that if it weren't for a random test he was called in for as part of the monitoring program, he probably would have died.
So I guess I have mixed feelings about it although I am thankful I found recovery on my own. I think a lot of people in my profession (including me) have ego/image problems and we allow ourselves to think everything's okay because we are "successful" and have powerful jobs. We are able to lead double lives very successfully. Maybe the only time some people hit bottom is if it is forced on them externally and if they see their career--which is their number one safety blanket or identiy--threatened. We also have very serious ethical obligations that are breached just by the nature of being under the influence, which can cause us to do things that further breach ethics and blur the lines, but we often get away with it because of our positions. So from a standpoint of protecting the public and the integrity of the profession, I see why the program exists.
I agree it would be my last resort and I am very glad I have not had to have any interaction with them. In fact when I went to, like, my third AA meeting there was someone there who identified herself as being in my profession while she shared. Then afterwards she came up to me and if I was in the same profession and said she had thought so, and that she can hook me up with a meeting that is for people in our profession. I said "No thanks, I'm not ready for that right now." Right not my anonymity is important to me. Maybe someday in the future I will want to help others by sharing my experience, and I won't be so embarrassed--the fear of stigma has definitely been lifted for me as I realize this is a disease, nor some moral failing--but right now my very biggest fear would be to be in a room full of others in my profession! I have issues with my profession and some of the "types" of people who seem to grativate to it as it is, and for my recovery is very separate from my profession, and I'd like to keep it that way for quite some time. (I understand I have over-lapping issues, but to me my recovery is a large umbrella over everything else in my life, including the "job/career" category).