About: Urine Drug Screen

A urine drug screen is designed to detect illegal (and some prescription) drugs in the urine.

How the Test is Performed

It is necessary to collect a "clean-catch" (midstream) urine sample.

As you start to urinate, allow a small amount to fall into the toilet bowl (this clears the urethra of contaminants). Then, in a clean container, catch about 1 - 2 ounces of urine and remove the container from the urine stream. Give the container to the health care provider or assistant.

You may be asked to remove all your personal belongings. You will then be placed in a room where you have no access to your personal items or water. In this environment, you cannot dilute the sample, nor can you use someone else's urine for the test.

If the sample tests positive the sample is then taken to the laboratory for evaluation.

How the Test Will Feel

The test involves only normal urination.

Why the Test is Performed

The test is performed to detect the presence of illegal (and some prescription) drugs in your urine, which indicates recent use of the drugs.

Normal Results

No drugs in the urine.

What Abnormal Results Mean

If the test result is positive, it is helpful to confirm it with gas-chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS). In some cases, a test will register a false positive. This can result from interfering factors such as some foods, prescription medications, and other drugs.

The GC-MS will help tell the difference between a false positive or a true positive, resulting from the presence of an illegal drug.

View Our AS 4308 Compliant Urine Test Kits

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Posted by Drug Test Australia

For more information go to www.drugtestaustralia.com.au

Email Enquiries: sales@drugtestaustralia.com.au

Phone: 1300 660 636

Original http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003364.htm

Drug testing set to increase among office workers

Posted by Drug Test Australia

Pre-employment testing is being brought back into public discussion after it was announced that Australian resources and construction companies may soon extend drug testing to their office based staff as employers move towards more egalitarian style workplaces.

Employers often use behavioural testing and other selection procedures to screen applicants for hire, and the types of tests and selection procedures vary, and can include cognitive tests, personality tests, skills tests, medical examinations, credit checks, and background checks.

Depending on the type of test, employment testing can be conducted either online or in the employer's office, with pre-employment screening services aimed at determining which applicants are legitimately qualified and fit for the advertised role from those who are not up to task.

Pre-employment checks are often used by employers as a means of objectively evaluating a job candidate's qualifications, character, fitness, and to identify potential hiring risks for safety and security reasons. As such, risk minimisation is one of the most common reasons for organisations to begin drug and alcohol testing.

Different companies will have different requirements for their employee drug testing program. Options can include pre-employment drug testing, random drug testing, for cause drug testing, post-incident drug testing, target drug testing, annual physical drug testing, pre-promotion drug testing, treatment follow up drug testing and return to work drug testing. However, should it be conducted on office workers?

Managing Director of Employment Office, Tudor Marsden- Huggins, said there was a growing trend towards employers moving to a ‘one size fits all’ approach to ensure all staff were treated equally. “Many employers are questioning whether it’s fair to have one rule for some staff and a different one for others,” Mr Marsden-Huggins said.

“What this means is that everyone from miners and construction workers in high risk areas right through to secretaries and finance staff in generally safer roles at some organisations may have to undergo random drug testing,” he said.

Mr Marsden-Huggins said the issue was causing headaches for human resources staff as they balanced their employee’s right to privacy with the desire to create an equal workplace.

“Whilst drug testing in high risk roles is accepted as necessary for health and safety reasons, I expect some office workers may question if it is justified for their particular position such as those working behind a computer all day,” Mr Marsden-Huggins said.

“Unfortunately drug use is a problem in Australia and HR departments must tread carefully to balance the right to privacy with creating healthy, happy and productive workforces,” Mr Marsden- Huggins said.

Ultimately though, pre-employment testing such as drug testing will increase the likelihood of you securing supreme quality, skills-matched candidates that are going to be an idyllic culture fit and enduring assets – saving you time and money long term.

Peter Orthmann Hansen

Original http://www.employmentoffice.com.au/recruitment-news/17/07/12/drug-testing-set-increase-among-office-workers

Drugs and Driving FAQs

Posted By Drug Test Australia

1. Who will be required to submit to a roadside drug test?

Any driver, motorcycle rider or supervising licence holder on a NSW road or road related area maybe required to undertake one or more oral fluid tests for the presence of the three illicit drugs.

Vehicle passengers other than supervisors of learner licence holders will not be required to undertake an oral fluid test.

Specific NSW Police operations will target heavy vehicle drivers.
Police will also target roads around venues used for ‘rave’ and dance parties, suspected by Police to be linked to drug driving. 

2. What drugs will be detected by roadside drug testing and why have these drugs been chosen?

Roadside drug testing will detect the following three illicit drugs:

• Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the active component of cannabis.
• Methylamphetamine (‘ice’, ‘speed’, ‘crystal meth’ ‘base’ etc).
• Methylenedioxymethylamphetamine (MDMA or ‘ecstasy’).

These three drugs are known to be among the most prevalent illicit drugs used by drivers. 

A recent Roads and Maritime Services (replacing Roads and Traffic Authority) study of drug driving in NSW revealed that of those who reported driving on drugs, the most common drug was cannabis at 81 per cent followed by ecstasy at 13 per cent and speed at 10 per cent.

Driving after using cannabis results in longer reaction times, alters distance and time perception, lowers concentration, coordination, alertness and ability to react, and narrows or blurs vision.

Driving after using stimulants such as ecstasy and speed/ice increases risk taking and aggressive driving, causes loss of concentration, and causes blurry or limited vision.

3. How long after using cannabis can delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) be detected?

Roadside drug testing technology will detect recent usage of cannabis by detecting delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the active ingredient in cannabis.

Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) will be able to be detected for several hours after use of cannabis, though the exact time will vary, for example depending on the amount and potency of the cannabis used.

4. How long after consuming ecstasy or methylamphetamine (speed, ice etc) can these drugs be detected?

Roadside drug testing technology will detect recent usage of speed, ice and ecstasy. In some cases these drugs may be detected by roadside drug screening technology for up to 48 hours after use, though the exact time will vary depending for example on the amount taken, the potency of the drug (ie ice has a much higher potency than speed) and how the drugs have been taken.

5. Will delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) from passive smoking be detected in oral fluid?

No. There is no evidence to suggest that any THC in the oral fluid as a result of passive smoking will be able to be detected by the oral fluid testing technology.

6. How will roadside drug testing work?

Police will conduct a preliminary oral fluid test through the window of your vehicle.

You will be required to lick the test pad of the device. A result will be known in about five minutes.

7. How long will an oral fluid test take?

A preliminary oral fluid test will take about five minutes.  

If you test negative to this test you will be able to drive away.

However, if you test positive to the first test you will have to get out of your vehicle and go with a Police officer to provide an oral fluid sample in the Police support vehicle.

In the Police truck you will provide a sample of your oral fluid, which will be tested using a different oral fluid screening device. This second test should take about 20 minutes.

If you test positive to this test you will be prohibited from driving for 24 hours by Police, and the remaining portion of your oral fluid sample from this test will be sent to the State’s analytical laboratory, the Division of Analytical Laboratories for confirmatory analysis.

8. Will I be required to leave my vehicle to undertake an oral fluid test?

No, not for the preliminary oral fluid test.  Police will conduct this first test through the window of your car.

However, if you test positive you will have to get out of your vehicle and go with a Police officer to provide a second oral fluid sample in the Police support vehicle.

9. What will happen to a driver who tests positive to the roadside drug test?

If you test positive to the preliminary oral fluid test you will have to get out of your vehicle and go with a Police officer to provide a second oral fluid sample in the Police support vehicle. 

In the Police support vehicle you will provide a sample of your oral fluid, which will be tested using a different oral fluid screening device. This second test should take about 20 minutes.  

If you test positive to this test you will not be charged at this time, however, you will be prohibited from driving for 24 hours by Police. The remaining portion of your second oral fluid test will be sent to a laboratory for confirmatory analysis. 

If the presence of one or more of these three drugs is confirmed by the laboratory, you will receive a Court Attendance Notice within a few weeks of your roadside drug test with the charge of driving with the presence of an illicit drug.

10. Will drivers who return positive result to a roadside drug test be allowed to drive before laboratory analysis of the test is complete?

If you test positive to this test you will not be charged at this time, however, you will be prohibited from driving for 24 hours by Police.
After this 24 hour period you can resume driving.

11. For drivers who return positive results to roadside drug test, when and how will they receive results from laboratory analyses?

If the presence of one or more of an illicit drug is confirmed by the laboratory, you will receive a Court Attendance Notice within a few weeks of your roadside drug test with the charge of driving with the presence of an illicit drug.

The Court Attendance Notice will include the details of the charge as well as the time, date and location of their court attendance.  

You will have to attend court, which will be local to the location of the offence, to face the charge of drive with the presence of an illicit drug.

12. Will medications be detected by roadside drug tests? 

The oral fluid test will not detect the presence of prescription drugs including medicines with amphetamine–like substances or common over the counter medications, such as cold and flu tablets.

Oral fluid tests will only detect delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) the active component in cannabis, methylamphetamine (speed, ice, crystal meth, base) and methylenedioxymethylamphetamine (MDMA) ecstasy - substances that are not legally prescribed in Australia.

13. Why is oral fluid tested rather than blood or urine?

Collecting oral fluid from drivers at the roadside is much easier than collecting a blood or urine sample.

Oral fluid testing devices are a non-invasive, rapid and reliable way to screen for drugs at the roadside.

14. How accurate is the oral fluid drug screening technology?

The oral fluid test is a screening test only.  Oral fluid drug screening technology provides a reliable indicative result in a matter of minutes, making it ideal for use as a roadside screening device but not for an evidentiary result to be used at court.

Those who are screened as being drug positive will be required to provide a further additional oral fluid sample for further testing.

Only a positive drug result from the Government’s analytical laboratory can be used to prosecute for a drug driving offence.

15. What are the penalties if the laboratory confirms the presence of one or more of the three illicit drugs in your oral fluid sample?

The penalty for a first offence is a maximum $1,100 fine and three (minimum) to six months (maximum) licence disqualification.  

The penalty for a second or subsequent offence is a maximum $2,200 fine and licence disqualification for minimum six months up to an unlimited period.

16. What happens if a driver refuses to be tested?

If a person refuses to be tested at the roadside they can be fined $1,100. They will also have to accompany a Police officer to the Police truck where they will have to provide a sample of their oral fluid.

If they refuse to provide an oral fluid sample a maximum fine of $3,300 applies, plus licence disqualification for a minimum of six months up to an unlimited period.

A driver who refuses to be tested can also be prohibited from driving for 24 hours by Police.

17. What happens if I am unable to provide an oral fluid sample?

A person who has genuinely attempted but is unable to provide a sample of their oral fluid will be required by Police to provide a sample of blood in lieu of an oral fluid sample.

The person will be taken by Police to a hospital to have the blood sample taken. The state’s analytical laboratory will analyse the sample for the presence of any drug.

If they refuse to provide a blood sample then a maximum $3,300 fine applies. 

18. Don’t stimulants such as methylamphetamine (speed, ice, crystal meth, base) make you a more alert driver?

While methylamphetamine, in its various forms, can increase your alertness they can also cause you to: 

• Take more risks. 
• Drive aggressively. 
• Believe you drive better than you really can.
• Be overstimulated and lose concentration. 
• Have blurry or limited vision. 
• See things on the road that aren’t where you think they are. 
• Have scattered thoughts or delusions.

Driving when you’re coming down is also very dangerous.  When the effects of stimulants are wearing off your driving is still affected. You may fall asleep at the wheel.

19. Will oral fluid samples be destroyed when the evidentiary drug analysis is complete?

No, the remaining proportion will be stored at the laboratory for six months.
This is so a person can apply for a portion of their own sample to be independently analysed by another laboratory at their own expense.

20. What about other illicit drugs?

Drivers found to be impaired by any illicit drug can currently be prosecuted under existing Police powers for the drive under the influence offence.

There is also a new offence of drive with the presence of cocaine or morphine (heroin) in blood or urine; however drivers will not be randomly tested for these drugs using a roadside drug test.

21. Can drivers be charged with both drug and alcohol offences?

Yes. It will be possible for a person to be prosecuted for a prescribed concentration of alcohol offence as well as an offence of presence of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the active component of cannabis, methylamphetamine (‘ice’, ‘speed’, ‘crystal meth’ ‘base’ etc) and methylenedioxymethylamphetamine (MDMA or ‘ecstasy’).

However, if a person is prosecuted for a drive under the influence offence, they cannot also be prosecuted for a prescribed concentration of alcohol offence or presence of drugs offence.

22. If a driver tests positive to drugs will they be searched, or have their vehicles or property searched?

Police already have the power to search persons and vehicles for drugs or other items if they have reasonable grounds to suspect evidence of an offence may be found there.

In most cases, no search will occur. However, there could be evidence of drug or other offences apparent to police administering the test. In these circumstances they have the power to conduct a search. 

For More Information, please contact Drug Test Australia at their website www.drugtestaustralia.com.au or call or email us at;

Email Enquiries: sales@drugtestaustralia.com.au

Phone Enquiries: 1300 660 636 or (02)49203225

Original Article; http://www.rta.nsw.gov.au/roadsafety/alcoholdrugs/drugdriving/drugdrivingfaqs.html

Spot saliva test a way to curb drugged drivers

A RIDE program. (QMI Agency)

We’ve all heard of roadside breathalyser tests when it comes to drinking and driving.

But spot saliva tests for drug use?

That’s the recommendation from two Western University legal experts who have tabled a study on drug use and driving for Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) Canada.

Western law professors Erika Chamberlain and Robert Solomon claim that while the number of people driving while high on drugs is up, enforcement is lax when it comes to charging people with impaired driving because drug use is often hard to prove.

“You have more and more young people admitting to driving after drug use, not just after consuming alcohol,” said Chamberlain.

“I don’t think people realize that this is a growing problem,” said Chamberlain.

Already used in Australia and some European cities, roadside saliva tests are a quick and easy way to check for drugs, Chamberlain said.

Just like a breathalyzer, which detects the driver’s blood alcohol level, the saliva test would be used to test targeted drugs and the amount in the driver’s system.

While it’s likely going to be a few years before we see roadside saliva tests as frequently as we see drunk driving blitzes, Chamberlain said, drug-impaired driving is not an issue the government can ignore.

“It’s just going to become a greater and greater problem,” she said.

alex.weber@sunmedia.ca

--- --- ---

BY THE NUMBERS

500 — Officers in Canada qualified to conduct DREs.

$17,000 — Cost to train each officer.

2 — Officers in the London police force trained in DRE.

65,183 — Impaired driving charges laid in Canada in 2010.

915 — Of those impaired charges were for drug-impaired driving.

--- --- ---

WHAT’S RECOMMENDED

A roadside saliva test administered by police officers to screen drivers suspected of being high on drugs while behind the wheel.

HOW IT WORKS

• The test would be similar to ones used in the Australian state of Victoria, where police officers are able to demand a saliva sample from any driver at the roadside.
• The driver uses a swab to provide a saliva sample and if it tests positive for any of the targeted drugs, the driver must accompany police and take a second test, which is sent to a lab to be analyzed.
• If that test is also positive the driver is charged.
• For the system to work, the government would have to establish a specific amount for each of the drugs targeted that would mean the driver was in fact “high” at the time of the test, because some drugs can stay in a person’s body long after the impairing affects have worn off.

SKEPTICISM

While DREs accurately determine if a person has drugs in their system, the courts remain skeptical about the link between the presence of drugs in a driver’s system and impairment because some drugs can stay in a person’s body long after the effects have worn off.

--- --- ---

ENFORCEMENT NOW

Under the Criminal Code, it’s difficult for police officers to determine if someone is driving while high. If an officer suspects someone is driving while impaired by drugs they can administer a physical co-ordination test before launching a multi-step Drug Recognition Evaluation (DRE), a process designed to reveal whether a driver is impaired by one of the seven classes of frequently abused drugs — depressants, inhalants, phencyclidine, cannabis, stimulants, hallucinogens and narcotics.

--- --- ---

WHO’S DRIVING HIGH?

• Over the last decade, driving while high on drugs has become more common in Canada.
• A 2007 Health Canada study found that nearly 40% of people ages 15 to 24 reported driving within two hours of using cannabis, compared with the 20% that reported driving after drinking alcohol.
• A 2011 study comparing alcohol and drug use among fatally injured drivers from the Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse found one-third of the drivers had drugs in their system.
• Unlike drunk drivers who tend to be more prevalent at night and on weekends, drug-positive drivers are spread relatively evenly across days of the week.

Posted by Drug Test Australia

See our Australian Standard Saliva Tests 

drugtestaustralia.com.au

Phone: 1300 660 636

Email Enquiries: sales@drugtestaustraliua.com.au

By Alex Weber, The London Free Press

Wednesday, November 28, 2012 10:27:34 EST PM

Original Article http://www.lfpress.com/2012/11/28/spot-saliva-test-a-way-to-curb-drugged-drivers

Kiwi Kronic 'king' facing drug charges in Australia

New Zealand's "king" of legal cannabis faces trafficking charges in Australia after allegedly being found with a "commercial quantity" of drugs.

Matthew Wielenga was arrested about 8pm on Friday in the Melbourne suburb of Southbank. The 30-year-old is facing charges of trafficking a commercial quantity of synthetic cannabinoids and two counts of possessing a drug of dependence.

The Melbourne Magistrates Court yesterday heard he was found with more than 100kg of Kronic, a synthetic marijuana product, and 1kg of white powder said to be a synthetic cocaine sold as Diablo.

The alleged drugs are yet to be analysed and Wielenga had made no admissions, the court heard.

Defence lawyer Greg Barns said the elements of Kronic kept changing and might not fall within the substances banned by Victorian law.

Wielenga was granted bail on a A$100,000 surety and is to reappear in court on March 18.

Dressed in jeans and a dark T-shirt, he appeared to be listening intently throughout the court hearing.

The New Zealander must stay at an address in the suburb of Richmond, report to local police daily and surrender his passport.

Wielenga is a director of Lightyears Ahead, the company responsible for bringing Kronic to New Zealand. Kronic is laced with chemicals mimicking cannabis and is often much stronger than the real thing. It was banned in New Zealand in August.

Wielenga, who ran his lucrative Kronic empire from Albany on Auckland's North Shore, is understood to have travelled to Australia with about nine of his employees last week. The group were in Australia for a music festival, a source said.

Nisha Din, described as the general manager of Lightyears Ahead, said the firm strongly denied any illegal activity.

She referred the Herald to Wellington law firm Chen Palmer.

Partner Mai Chen did not return calls last night.

Wielenga describes his party pill business on his Facebook page: "I run my own company that provides products to get people high. They are sold all over the world, which gives me a great excuse to travel."

- Anna Leask, NZ Herald

APNZ

original; http://www.odt.co.nz/news/national/238659/kiwi-kronic-king-facing-drug-charges-australia

For more information on Synthetic Cannabis Testing Devices visit Drug Test Australia online or;

Phone: 1300 660 636

Email enquiries to; sales@drugtestaustralia.com.au

Police take 1700 drink or drug-affected drivers off the streets

Police test drivers for drugs. Picture: Tim Carrafa Source: Sunday Herald Sun

POLICE have taken 1700 drink or drug-affected drivers off the streets of Victoria in the first phase of its summer road enforcement campaign.

Operation RAID – Remove All Impaired Drivers – detected more than 36,500 traffic offences during the past three weeks, 3000 more than in the same period last year.

Assistant Commissioner for Road Policing Robert Hill said he was astounded.

“It just astounds me that despite the research, despite the education, despite the heartache, people are still willing to risk their lives on the road,” Mr Hill said.

“I look at incidents like the terrible collision that claimed five lives in Lara over the weekend and wonder what more we as police could have done?”

“But it’s not just up to the police. Everyone needs to play their part and show some responsibility – drivers, passengers and pedestrians alike,” he added.

One driver, a 58 year old Yarrawonga man, was seen talking on a mobile phone and holding a can of beer while unsuccessfully trying to steer his Holden ute along the Murray Valley Highway in Cobram East around 2.35 last Thursday.

“The incident occurred at the same location where two days prior, a 20-year-old Mulwala woman was killed after her vehicle collided with a tree,” Victoria Police spokeswoman Cath Allen said.

One disqualified motorist was caught with drugs in his system in the same location in Bittern and same operation as he had the year before.

And five drug drivers were detected in the Mornington Peninsula area all on Saturday night.

“Over the last three weeks during this operation, we’ve breath tested 671,863 motorists and drug tested a further 1580 motorists,” Mr Hill said.

"We’ve had more police on the road than ever, working around the clock to deter and take these risk-takers off our roads.

“My challenge to all road users, two weeks out from Christmas, is stay safe or stay off the road this summer,” he added.

The operation detected:

• 1580 drink driving offences

• 196 drug driving offences

• 1092 disqualified/suspended drivers

• 1542 unlicensed drivers 

• 3191 unregistered vehicles 

• 10,819 speeding offences 

• 3152 mobile phone offences 

• 2576 disobey signs/signals 

• 262 impoundments 

• 1528 seat belt offences. 

The 52-day campaign will run across Victoria until January 9. 

Posted By Drug Test Australia

Original http://www.news.com.au/national/police-take-1700-drink-or-drug-affected-drivers-off-the-streets-of-victoria/story-fndo4cq1-1226533910237

• Jon Kaila
• Herald Sun
• December 11, 201212:00AM