Arbitrator rules nurses' addiction contributed to inappropriate behaviour
A nurse who stole pills from the hospital where she worked, was fired after being caught red-handed.
On Feb. 15, 2013, Jennifer Vaillancourt was working as a nurse at Holland Orthopaedic and Arthritic Centre in Toronto when she was accused of stealing hydromorphone, lorazepam and clonazepam over a two-year period (the extent of pill record-keeping), and falsifying documents to hide the thefts.
When confronted by management during a meeting, Vaillancourt refused to say anything. She was given a formal suspension and asked to leave while the hospital conducted an investigation. Marilyn Bogle, patient care manager, and Laurette Sauer, human resources representative, retrieved the nurse’s coat from inside the nursing station before she left the hospital.
Sauer detected 23 gabapentin pills in Vaillancourt’s coat pocket and discovered various 20 dollar bills adding up to roughly $500 in cash. However, she was not confronted with the potential theft of pills, which at that time were confirmed to come from the hospital’s stock.
Ten days later, another meeting was held and the nurse was again accused of theft. She again denied the allegations after meeting with a union representative for two hours prior to the meeting.
Vaillancourt was given a termination letter stating she was being fired for cause due to theft of narcotics, criminal misconduct while handling narcotics, gross violation of nursing standards and breach of trust.
In May 2014, during one of many arbitration hearings before arbitrator Norm Jesin, Vaillancourt finally admitted to the thefts. But the employer’s representative found the apology insincere.
Finally, in 2015, Vaillancourt fully owned up to her workplace malfeasance and explained she was in treatment for an addiction to pills and alcohol after a 2011 finger injury. She further attested to diverting pills from patients since 2008.
The thefts stemmed from a diagnosis in 2006 of ADHD, which caused her daily anxiety.
In arguing for Vaillancourt to get back her job, the union, Ontario Nurse’s Association, said her medically established benzodiazepine and opiate dependence meant she was protected under a disability clause from being terminated.
“I am satisfied that not only does the grievor suffer from a disability in the form of addiction, but I am also satisfied that the diversion of drugs by the grievor established by the employer and acknowledged by the grievor in her evidence, was connected to the addiction and would not have occurred but for the addiction,” said Jesin.
The arbitrator rejected the employer’s argument that Vaillancourt made the choice to continue to steal drugs and was not forced to do so by her addiction.
“The disease of addiction is coincident with chemical changes within the brain that make resistance to the urge to continue drug use extremely difficult.
Furthermore, destructive behaviours such as theft, lying and dishonesty or often coincident with the disease as the addict seeks to continue the drug use,” said Jesin.
He ordered Vaillancourt reinstated with a long list of conditions including no abuse of any drug or alcohol, no access to any controlled substance while on the job, submitting to urine testing when drug use is suspected and continuing to be treated for addiction.
The conditions were to last for 60 months.
Reference: Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre and the Ontario Nurses’ Association. Norm Jesin — arbitrator. Brian Smeenk, Ken Bennett, Marc Rodrigue for the employer. Sandy Donaldson for the employee. Sept. 26, 2016.
