TRENDS IN DRUG USE BY LINDSAY LENNEN, ALERE
Global Drug Testing: Opportunities and Challenges
of customers in different countries in addition to the provision of a global collection service. Tis article summarizes aspects that must be considered prior to offering a global testing service.
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Drug Trends—What to Consider? It is well known that drug trends differ by continent and this should be considered when offering services overseas. For example, PCP is routinely included in the testing panel of federally mandated programs in the United States, but is virtually unheard of in the United Kingdom, therefore testing for PCP would be of no benefit. Similarly, propoxyphene was included on testing panels in the United Kingdom for many years, but since its withdrawal as a therapeutic drug, the prevalence of illicit use is very low, so there is no longer any need to test for it. While established drug testing labs are routinely testing for the more traditional drugs, in order to develop a global testing business, it is important that labs consider the inclusion of methods for identification of new psychoactive drugs. Trends and regional laws for use and supply of such drugs should be researched. For example, mephedrone, a synthetic cathinone, became controlled in the United Kingdom in 2010. Originally one of the “legal highs” the U.K. government took steps to make it illegal because of the effects to users. Since legislation employers in the United Kingdom have seen the need to include this in their drug panels and it has become part of routine drug testing.
In Country Laws It is vital that drug testing labs consider in-country laws governing drug testing. For example, in Germany, random drug testing is not legally permitted and in the Netherlands the law prohibits pre-employment drug testing. The European Workplace Drug Testing Society (EWDTS) provides a useful summary of specific rules in Europe. Visit htp://
www.ewdts.org/ for more information.
Professional Bodies— How Can They Help? U.K. drug testing labs refer to information published by organizations such as the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) based in Portugal and the U.K. Forensics Early Warning System (FEWS), who provide important information
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on drug trends and emerging drugs. Trend information supplied by these bodies the EWDTS sets guidelines for testing labs in terms of chain of custody and cut-off levels and general best practices. Te EWDTS is an important resource for drug testing in Europe.
It’s Not All About Urine Testing With major developments over the past 20 years, service providers must to be able to offer drug testing in a variety of sample types. Te sample of choice will vary by country and by organization. For example in the United Kingdom, police forces and the military oſten choose hair for pre-employment drug testing because it gives an overview of drug use in a given time period (on average 1 month per centimetre of hair). In the construction industry where evidence of recent use is required, urine remains popular. However, for recent use and ease of collection oral fluid testing is now being considered. It is important to provide the right service to the customer according to their specific requirements. Te advantages and limitations of each sample type must be discussed to assist the customer in choosing the sample best suited to their workforce. For example, if oral fluid is used for pre-employment, only recent drug use (1 to 2 days) will be detected. Organizations should be made aware of this short window of detection of drug use and would be advised to ensure an adequate random drug testing program to capture any users not detected initially.
Electronic Chain of Custody Te principle and practice of chain of custody is foundational in workplace drug testing. As businesses strive to operate in a paperless environment, a recent change that has to be considered in global drug testing is the introduction of electronic chain of custody forms (eCCFs). Labs are beginning to have an awareness of the importance of electronic chain of custody to their customers and whilst there will be a ramp up in some organizations, it may be an immediate requirement for others. Due to the time it will take for labs to develop and implement
Spring 2016
s the need to offer global drug testing programs to multinational organizations increases, drug testing providers should consider the specific local requirements
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