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Having been in non-drug, legal, harm situations, there's a huge pressure not to involve authorities. Embarrassment and hassle, costs (perhaps not in Canada) are

Having been in non-drug, legal, harm situations, there's a huge pressure not to involve authorities. Embarrassment and hassle, costs (perhaps not in Canada) are bad enough. Legal and social repercussions due to officially having a problem on your record can really damage. (Applies to people seeking mental health help, too!) Add in potential to be arrested and it's not hard to see why someone might delay or even let someone die. It's easy to visualize the damage of being wrong - you just "ruined" someone's life just because they might be in mortal danger. If there was a guarantee of no investigation, no publicity, no named record, this might not happen as much. Also, making easy, cheap access to naloxone might mean more users would carry around antidote.

jessaustin 10y ago
You're right, of course. The coworker was probably quite young, and the outcomes you describe loomed larger for her than the actual outcome. This sort of thing really ought to be addressed in high school, but unfortunately all we get is, "drugs're bad, mmm-kay?"
- MichaelGG 10y ago
  If the coworker had drugs on them, the potential outcomes might actually _be_ far worse than the actual outcome here. They'll feel like shit. But you know, in a few years, the emotional pain will have subsided quite a bit. And it wasn't really their fault, directly, totally - it'll get rationalized. Whereas a drug arrest, a criminal history, that could take much more work and time to get over.
  - jessaustin 10y ago
    Well sure one definitely doesn't call 911 while possessing illegal substances, but it just takes a minute to walk out to one's car/the dumpster/some other place the cops ain't going to search because one called an ambulance for an unconscious coworker. Who would complain, the manager who wasn't present? Actually this train of thought would be pretty ethically indefensible.

jessaustin 10y ago

You're right, of course. The coworker was probably quite young, and the outcomes you describe loomed larger for her than the actual outcome. This sort of thing really ought to be addressed in high school, but unfortunately all we get is, "drugs're bad, mmm-kay?"

MichaelGG 10y ago
If the coworker had drugs on them, the potential outcomes might actually _be_ far worse than the actual outcome here. They'll feel like shit. But you know, in a few years, the emotional pain will have subsided quite a bit. And it wasn't really their fault, directly, totally - it'll get rationalized. Whereas a drug arrest, a criminal history, that could take much more work and time to get over.
- jessaustin 10y ago
  Well sure one definitely doesn't call 911 while possessing illegal substances, but it just takes a minute to walk out to one's car/the dumpster/some other place the cops ain't going to search because one called an ambulance for an unconscious coworker. Who would complain, the manager who wasn't present? Actually this train of thought would be pretty ethically indefensible.