According to statistics, over 13 million full-time U.S. workers meet the criteria for drug or alcohol dependence or abuse. Dealing with an employee’s drug addiction is never easy, but it’s a reality that many business owners have to face. Finding a drug detox for you employees can be an important first step in your employee’s recovery and ability to return to work more productive than ever.
What is Employee Drug Detox?
Detoxification is the first step of treating drug addiction. During detox, the body is purified of all toxins left behind by drug use so that the individual can begin the physical and mental healing process. By skipping this process, the residual toxins left behind can threaten sobriety by causing cravings long after the drug use has ended. Choosing an employee drug detox center will depend on the type of drug the employee is abusing and how frequently he or she abuses it.
Types of Employee Drug Detox
There are three main types of employee drug detox centers: those that are medication-based, those that are holistic, and those that are detox only.
* Medication-based detox is best for employees who have developed a strong physical dependency and will experience severe withdrawal symptoms if they stop using the drug. Medication-based drug detox utilizes medications to help ease specific withdrawal symptoms to help your employee through the difficult and painful first stages of detoxification.
* Holistic drug detox provides supervised drug detox without medications, and instead focuses on withdrawal methods that are safe, natural and often have a spiritual emphasis.
* Detox-only drug detox only offers physical detox supervision without therapy or other forms of addiction treatment found at full-service drug rehabs. Your employee will be sent home once the withdrawal symptoms have passed and your employee is physically well enough to do so.
Choosing an Employee Drug Detox
An employee’s substance abuse problem does not have to destroy his career or livelihood. Research suggests that the cost of sending an employee to drug detox or other drug treatment facilities is cheaper than replacing the employee. With the proper treatment and support, your employee can return to work more productive than ever.
To increase your employee’s chances of long-term sobriety, choose an employee drug detox center that offers a variety of supportive treatment options after the detoxification process has ended. Twelve-step programs, residential treatment, and behavioral counseling and therapy can simultaneously treat your employee’s physical, psychological and behavioral addiction to drugs. Call a drug treatment center today that specializes in employee drug detox and ask how they can tailor a program to your employee’s specific needs.
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