Close Menu

Graves' Disease

Accommodation and Compliance: Graves' Disease

On This Page

About Graves' Disease

Graves' disease (toxic diffuse goiter) is characterized by hyperthyroidism and one or more of the following: goiter, exophthalmos, and pretibial myxedema. Many symptoms and signs are associated with Graves' disease. The more common signs are goiter, moist skin, tremor, eye signs (stare, lid lag, and irritation), nervousness, fatigue, and weakness.

Graves' Disease and the Americans with Disabilities Act

The ADA does not contain a definitive list of medical conditions that constitute disabilities. Instead, the ADA defines a person with a disability as someone who (1) has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more "major life activities," (2) has a record of such an impairment, or (3) is regarded as having such an impairment. For more information about how to determine whether a person has a disability under the ADA, see How to Determine Whether a Person Has a Disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act (ADAAA).

Accommodating Employees with Graves' Disease

People with Grave's disease may develop some of the limitations discussed below, but seldom develop all of them. Also, the degree of limitation will vary among individuals. Be aware that not all people with Grave’s disease will need accommodations to perform their jobs and many others may only need a few accommodations. The following is only a sample of the possibilities available. Numerous other accommodation solutions may exist.

Questions to Consider:

  1. What limitations is the employee experiencing?
  2. How do these limitations affect the employee and the employee’s job performance?
  3. What specific job tasks are problematic as a result of these limitations?
  4. What accommodations are available to reduce or eliminate these problems? Are all possible resources being used to determine possible accommodations?
  5. Once accommodations are in place, would it be useful to meet with the employee to evaluate the effectiveness of the accommodations and to determine whether additional accommodations are needed?
  6. Do supervisory personnel and employees need training?

Key Accommodations

  • Limiting lifting, reaching, pushing, and pulling by job restructuring
  • Using Proper Lifting Techniques
  • Reallocating lifting duties, if marginal
  • Providing assistance moving objects, to reduce weight
  • Organizing items in a way that reduces the need to move or lift items
  • Reducing weight to be lifted by separating items into smaller groups
  • Reassigning an employee to a modified duty position or modifying duties by removing the lifting duties
     

Accommodation Ideas:

Situations and Solutions:

The following situations and solutions are real-life examples of accommodations that were made by JAN customers. Because accommodations are made on a case-by-case basis, these examples may not be effective for every workplace but give you an idea about the types of accommodations that are possible.

Events Regarding Graves' Disease