Drug Test

[Francisco]

I am an amature guitarist and thought it would be nice to spend some time at the local hospital this holiday season.  The volunteer board had me fill out a ream of paperwork.... I was ok with that.. then they wanted to do a criminal background check(which is understandable), so they had me provide my social security number.. which made me uncomfortable.  Now they want to give me a drug test.  (For the record, I havent done illegal drugs for over a decade.) This last request really goes against some of my core beliefs. I have huge issues  with this.  Now I have to reconcile my desire to be charatible and alturistic with my firm convictions rooted in independance and personal freedom.  Do I subjugate my values for the greater good? Stand firm and look for another volunteer venue?  Do I compromise by taking the drug test and having a few drinks right before I preform?  Please step me through your thinking on this.  Any guidance?  Be Excellent, HepKat

[Graent]

Dear Adam: You have outlined a classic "right vs. right" ethical conflict. It can only be solved by prioritizing your

values. Adhering to your principles is important: while I can see requiring drug tests for, say, school bus drivers, in this case it makes no sense at all, so the invasion of privacy it involves has no counterbalancing benefits. Perhaps writing a letter to the hospital administration, pointing out that you wished to volunteer but could not do so by ratifying a senseless and intrusive policy, might prompt some needed re-thinking. In that case, good will come out of your NOT volunteering.

However, in all likelihood, nothing will happen, and the people who suffer for your standing on principle are the patients...who are just innocent bystanders. So the real choice is 1) helping people while swallowing your own legitimate objections to a stupid policy and 2) not helping people and not changing the policy either.

If the objective is to try to address both issues, I suggest this: volunteer, thus gaining credibility with the hospital, and write a letter laying out how their pointlessy intrusive policy nearly cost them a volunteer with something to contribute, and made what should have been a rewarding experiece less so.

So maybe you can achieve both your objectives. Always look for the broad solution: many ethical problems aren't the zero-sum game they seem to be.                             Jack