Healthcare employers increasingly have become targeted by claims under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Houston partner Mauro Ramirez writes in the February 2019 issue of Medical Journal-Houston. To accommodate an employee’s needs while ensuring patients receive the care they deserve, employers should:
- Identify the essential functions of the job.
- Listen and consider an employee’s accommodation requests.
- Engage in an interactive dialogue with the employee before deciding how to respond to his or her request for accommodation.
If the interactive process is conducted in a thorough and thoughtful manner – whether an accommodation is granted or denied – an employer should have a reasoned, documented explanation for its actions. In light of such evidence, an employer is much more likely to withstand a subsequent legal challenge.
To read the full article, visit Medical Journal Houston.