3364-25-128. Nicotine-free pre-employment process

(A) Policy statement

The university of Toledo medical center ("UTMC") recognizes the U.S. surgeon general findings that tobacco use in any form, active and passive, is a significant health hazard. UTMC further supports the findings of the American hospital association that recommends that hospitals "serve as a role model of health for the community." UTMC recognizes that smoking and the use of tobacco and other products containing nicotine is detrimental to the health and safety of everyone.

(B) Purpose of policy

To support the community effort toward better health and safety, UTMC requires all candidates for employment at UTMC to be nicotine-free. All external candidates seeking employment at UTMC must submit to a cotinine test during their pre-placement screening. This is a pre-employment test only. The cotinine test will detect the presence of nicotine in all forms of tobacco.

(C) Scope

All individuals, including rehires, seeking any position at UTMC, including faculty, staff, contingent, temporary, resident, and select graduate* and undergraduate student* positions, will be required to submit to a cotinine test upon an offer of employment at UTMC . All applicants will be informed, either during the application process or through oral communication, that any employment offer is conditional upon successful completion of a cotinine test. This policy does not apply to positions within the university of Toledo college of medicine and life sciences ("COMLS"), even if those people may perform work at UTMC.

*Graduate assistant and student worker positions that will be working in any patient care areas or enter patient care areas in the course of performing the duties of their job.

(D) Roles and responsibilities

(1) Prior to or concurrently with conditionally offering an individual employment for a position at UTMC , human resource representatives will provide the applicant the telephone information to occupational health for purposes of scheduling an appointment for medical screening which will include a cotinine test. Any applicant who chooses not to allow the cotinine test will be informed he/she is no longer a candidate for employment.

(2) Occupational health will notify human resources of all cotinine test results. A human resource representative will subsequently contact applicants who test positive to withdraw the offer of employment. Human resources will also notify hiring department managers of applicants who test positive and are not eligible for employment. A separate notification process will be followed for faculty and resident hires.

(3) Applicants who test positive for cotinine will be eligible to reapply after ninety days from the test date. These individuals will also be given information regarding free smoking cessation offerings.

(4) No applicants will be permitted to actually begin work until the results of the cotinine test are determined and proper notification is provided.

Effective: 4/6/2020
Promulgated Under: 111.15
Statutory Authority: 3364
Rule Amplifies: 3364
Prior Effective Dates: 07/29/2019