LETTER FROM THE CHAIRMAN


BY SHERRI VOGLER, HOUSTON MEDICAL TESTING SERVICES Orlando Shared Its Magic at DATIA 2017


“Backyard BBQ” networking event held on the beautiful Gatlin Terrace sponsored by Alere Toxicology. We enjoyed cocktails, casual food and music while meeting and mingling with industry professionals under the stars of Orlando. A big thank-you to all of our generous sponsors and exhibitors for an amazing conference! Te theme of our 2017 Conference was


Welcome to the summer issue of focus! I hope that each of you is enjoying all the fun times of Summer; the beach, relaxation, lemonade, ice cream trucks, camping, picnics, watermelon and all the sun-filled days that Summer has to offer!


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peaking of enjoying, what about our 2017 DATIA Conference held at the fabulous Rosen Shingle Creek Resort


in Orlando, Florida? I don’t think that we have ever had a more perfect venue for our annual conference. To kick things off on Tuesday night, we had the “Mix and Mingle” welcome reception sponsored by Quest Diagnostics. Held in the expo exhibit hall, we had the great opportunity to catch up with old friends and meet new ones! While networking, we had the chance to casually meet some of the more than 70 service providers in our industry. Ten on Wednesday night, we enjoyed the


datia focus


“Share, Engage and Grow.” Our motivational speaker, Garrison Wynn, got us laughing and inspired with his opening presentation of “Te Real Truth About Success: What the 1% Do Differently and Why Tey Won’t Tell You.” Dr. Barry Sample from Quest Diagnostics then presented his always interesting “Drug Testing Industry Update”, which included key findings from the Drug Testing Index and other studies. We want to again give our most sincere thanks to Patrice Kelly, Acting Director of the Office of Drug and Alcohol Policy and Compliance (ODAPC), and her ODAPC staff for presenting us with the U. S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) federal updates. We were provided information on recent regulatory changes and the importance of complying with drug and alcohol testing regulations. Charles LoDico from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) once again gave a very informative presentation with information regarding how to comply with HHS drug and alcohol testing regulations. We had a great opportunity to meet face-to-face with these leaders of the DOT and HHS drug and alcohol testing programs, and ask our questions. In my opinion, we had some of the best


concurrent sessions and speakers of any conference. As I told you in my last leter in focus, deciding on which sessions to atend was difficult. Sessions such as the Mock FMCSA Audit, eCCF Best Practices, If It’s Legal, Why Test? Addressing the Marijuana Bully in the Workplace, What Your Clients Tink You Know But You Don’t (But Should), and many more were excellent learning experiences for us all. I am sure that Peter Bensinger, former Director of the


Drug Enforcement Agency, inspired us all with his impassioned presentation on the “Challenge of State vs. Federal Laws”. Ten to end the conference, Andrew Current, from Current Consulting Group, gave an interesting and informative presentation on the “Drug Testing Industry Survey Results” for which his company is well-known. So, by now you might be asking yourself,


how does DATIA bring together these outstanding speakers, presentations, and opportunities for networking among the leaders in our industry? Tere are many people to thank for the success of our conference. First and foremost, Laura Shelton, Executive Director of DATIA, and her team began the planning for this conference two years ago, and then did an outstanding job of executing each detail to make this conference nearly perfect. Laura’s steadfast leadership of DATIA for more than twenty years has made us come to expect this kind of excellence. Lisa Ruehle and Jim Bentley, chairmen of the Education Commitee, led a dedicated group of individuals who helped choose the theme for the conference and were there to help whenever needed. Tanks also goes out to the DATIA Board of Directors for all their efforts to make this a truly great experience for our members. And of course, deep appreciation goes out to all of our sponsors and exhibitors that helped make this conference financially possible. Tis quote by Sam Walton—“we’re all


working together; that’s the secret”—seems to be especially appropriate to express the exceptional success of our 2017 DATIA Conference. From your chairman, my sincere thanks and appreciation goes out to all those who gave their time and effort to make this success possible. ❚


Sincerely yours,


Sherri Vogler DATIA Chairman


summer 2017


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