was I discriminated against?

I have been attending training for work. Part of my training today involved being submerged in a pool, several times. while filling out the medical questionaire today, I included that I have an ileostomy (ostomate for 4 year, after a ruptured appendix and peritonitis). the manager said i could sit for the classroom portion, but not for the portion in the pool due to his worry that the pouching system could dislodge and expose other participants to the contents of the bag. I told him that although it is a risk, the same risk applies to any person of the public with any kind of GI condition and that in my 4 years, i have never had that issue arise. He said that he understands but was not willing to take that risk. He also said that being placed in the pool puts me at risk for an infection to the site. I asked him about his clorination of the pool and he said that it is clorinated. I told him that i do not have a compromised immune system and that anybody takes the same risk that i would be taking. In the 4 years since my surgery and living with the ileostomy, I have never been put into a position like this, and not obtaining this certification may affect my job. Even though I am by definition "disabled", I never have considered myself disabled. Has anybody else been through this before, and how did you handle it. I do have an ace up my sleeve in that one of my close friends is a lawyer and he says that the ADA give me more rights in the workplace than a "healthy" person. what really rubbed salt into the proverbial wound, one of the other participants said that he has had 2 heart attacks and 2 mini strokes within the last 5 years and couldnt swim in the deep end, the manager said that it would fine for him to tread water in the shallow end for his alloted time, and to "notify an instructor if you feel sick".

I'm going to escalate my complaint, the training is almost 1000 miles away from home and i had to pay airfare on it. so needless to say i'm pissed. he said in the 5 years that they have offered this course, that this is the first time this situation has came up. i assured him that it is not, given the number of ostomates there are in the US, and that this was just the first time he's been made aware of it. by his own admission, he said he wouldnt have been able to suspect me having an ileostomy. i'm trying coming up with alternatives that would satisfy my company and I, if this becomes a huge problem that would affect my job even more so. I was telling my buddy that when I go fishing, i like to use bait and hooks, not whip out the dynamite first thing. (one hell of an analogy).

blueglass said...
Have to say that if they ever let little kids in the pool, there's way more of a risk that they'll pee in it than that your ostomy bag is going to leak all over it. I'm not that familiar with the UOAA, but it would be good to get them or another big organization involved to give some more "official" education.

What a drag......

The pool is part of an industrial complex. Its not a regular community pool, there is a 4 foot shallow end and then it drops to 15 feet for various simulations and dive training. I've never had an issue with blow outs due to water activities, as I water ski and swim frequently. I'm going to talk with my company to see if they will buy me an abdominal guard that says per the website "tests have shown no leaks, blow outs, pull aways, or interstomal damage in 3 years of rigorous conditions" and increases in appliance duration than without the guard. the maker of the guard used it in the military and was still active duty despite having an ostomy.

on uoaa.org a person had this problem search there she found a medical article that said swimming was safe and posed no heatlh risks, she had to have it for something.
and yes that's crazy! ask him if he's gonna let someone in who cut their leg shaving, or someone with a cough or runny nose