A testing issue
June 1st 2007

A testing issueDrug and alcohol abuse in the workplace remain sensitive issues, but with employers having a duty of care to protect their employees against the risks of working with anyone under the influence, they are issues which have to be faced. A sensible drugs and alcohol policy and a convenient, nonintrusive method of testing for the substances can help tackle the problem explains Mark Burrup of Draeger Safety

Misusers of drugs and alcohol do not necessarily conform to any stereotype. For these reasons, more and more organisations are implementing policies to prevent the use of drugs and alcohol in the work place and, as part of the process, are carrying out tests to determine whether employees are affected, particularly while driving or operating machinery.

Used in post incident investigations to determine the possible cause of an accident, these tests can also be carried out as part of an ongoing monitoring process to check, for example, compliance with drink driving laws.

They can be used for random work place testing, in preemployment screening, or to test contractors and/or agency staff prior to site entry.

Different tests exist for different substances and for different circumstances and may involve the use of breath, blood, urine, saliva, hair, fingernails and toenails. When determining a person's level of "intoxification", a distinction is made between a preliminary screening test which can be used to provide support evidence that someone may be impaired, and an evidential analysis. A screening test is used to help determine whether an evidential analysis needs to be carried out afterwards or whether a blood sample should be taken. For reasons of work place convenience, hygiene and efficiency, this article is mostly concerned with screening methods rather than full evidential testing. Misusers of drugs and alcohol do not necessarily conform to any stereotype. For these reasons, more and more organisations are implementing policies to prevent the use of drugs and alcohol in the work place and, as part of the process, are carrying out tests to determine whether employees are affected, particularly while driving or operating machinery.

Used in post incident investigations to determine the possible cause of an accident, these tests can also be carried out as part of an ongoing monitoring process to check, for example, compliance with drink driving laws.

They can be used for random work place testing, in preemployment screening, or to test contractors and/or agency staff prior to site entry.

Different tests exist for different substances and for different circumstances and may involve the use of breath, blood, urine, saliva, hair, fingernails and toenails. When determining a person's level of "intoxification", a distinction is made between a preliminary screening test which can be used to provide support evidence that someone may be impaired, and an evidential analysis. A screening test is used to help determine whether an evidential analysis needs to be carried out afterwards or whether a blood sample should be taken. For reasons of work place convenience, hygiene and efficiency, this article is mostly concerned with screening methods rather than full evidential testing.

Testing for Alcohol Most people have heard of, or even experienced, the roadside "blow in the tube" breathalyser. Incorporating chemicals that change colour when alcohol is detected in the breath, this is probably the oldest method of obtaining proof of alcohol in a screening test. However, modern day record keeping requirements, combined with the need for greater accuracy, speed, test frequency and effectiveness, have prompted the development of electronic devices using sophisticated sensor technology.

By way of example, the Draeger Alcotest 6810 provides a fast, accurate solution to the problems sometimes associated with evidential breath testing. Easy to use, the 6810 can be operated within 6 seconds of switch on and can provide up to 1500 measurements with just two AA batteries.

Featuring simple, three-button operation and providing full text messages via a clear, back-lit LCD graphic display, the microprocessor controlled Alcotest also incorporates three different LED colours to provide an immediate visual confirmation of the result. Eliminating the possibility of breath sample manipulation, this hand held, ambidextrous instrument emits an audible alarm at the end of the testing process. The patented, secure mouthpiece is easy to attach and measurements can be taken at the touch of a single button.

Results are shown in mg/L, %o or % and an efficient datalogger enables 200 events to be stored at any one time. Once stored, users are able to recall the appropriate test number and display the result as and when required.

For those applications where hard copies are required the Alcotest 6810 can also be supplied with a printer.

In other applications or when required by a Court of Law, vehicles can also be fitted with the Drager Interlock, a breath alcohol measuring instrument complete with vehicle immobiliser.

Testing for Drugs A variety of methods exist when checking for drugs and some of these are more ideally suited to the work place than others. A blood test, for instance, is highly invasive and requires medically trained personnel to administer the test and must be sent for external analysis, while a urine test can be seen as an intrusion of privacy, cause "shy bladder syndrome", and is open to possible adulteration.

For screening purposes, the most non-invasive, immediate, convenient and hygienic test method involves the use of oral fluid. In fact, as studies have shown that positive oral fluid samples and positive blood samples correspond in 95% of cases, the test can also be seen to offer a reliable result.

A typical example is the new non-invasive Draeger DrugCheck Drug Testing Kit. Quick and easy to use, it enables the simultaneous, qualitative detection of up to six classes of illegal substances in a single sample of oral fluid. Comprising an oral fluid sampler, test tube and test strip, the test is suitable for use by anyone, at any time and in any environment, and indicates that the level of substance found in the oral fluid at that time may be above the cut off level of the device.

Performed quickly and easily and with no discomfort, this simple swab test is carried out under constant supervision, making it virtually tamper-proof. If the result proves to be positive, the sample can then be sent to a laboratory for confirmation.