Introduction:

As it is being pointed out by a lot of people, and rightly so, drug testing is very subjective and it could lead to a completely different result if you slip up even once during the process. Any mistake could have the final results manipulated to a huge level and we’re here to explain how.

But first of all, let us talk about how important specimen collection is for the process of drug testing. When to collect the specimen, how to collect it and how to handle it throughout the process are some of the questions one needs the answer to. However, the one big question that we oftentimes miss out on is: What specimen should be collected?

Specify the drug

Well, there are millions of cells in the human body, organized into tissues, organs and organs systems that carry out specific functions. Now which cell accommodates these drugs, which drugs do they specifically accommodate, when do they do it and for how long is our point of focus. Let’s simplify this for you.

The type of specimen required for a test would involve a specification of the type of drug and a suspicion as to how long were they consumed before. Sure, other factors also weigh in at times but these two are the basic ones and in any drug test, these factors won’t budge.

Check the look back time

If the look back period for the drug abuse is 2-3 weeks, urine testing for alcohol or drugs would be just fine for you. Hair are dead pieces of protein and accommodate a lot of metabolites in them. For a look back period of 90-100 days, hair testing specimen would make an excellent sample. Oral drug test wouldn’t even give you a look back time as much as a urine test. 

So, you could use that one for a quick screening such as reasonable drug testing or post-accident drug testing. Other than that, you’d have to rely on further test to confirm the results of oral screening. For quick onsite drug testing, an oral sample would do well. 

Ease of collection should be considered

The ease of collection also needs to be considered, and the collection needs to be seamless without any chance of cheating. Oral sample collection is usually very difficult to cheat on, and so is hair sample collection. Urine sample collection cannot be done under surveillance and hence, it is prone to manipulation. 

Dilution can make the drug levels go below cut-off levels.  However, there are ways to detect any dilution or tampering done to that specimen with urine testing results. 

Consider the type of drug testing you’re conducting

If you are looking for a quick drug test to give you an idea about whether or not the person is under influence, oral testing or saliva testing is your way to go. If you’re in for a serious matter and it involves you investigating the person’s drug usage, a backup test with urine and hair samples is particularly required. 

Look what kind of event led you to conduct the testing

Coming to the types, as mentioned before, post-accident testing and reasonable suspicion testing could be done with oral samples. Pre-employment testing for drugs might involve using hair or urine as samples to assure you’ve not been using drugs in the past few days or months. Similarly, in returning to work after rehab, same tests might be demanded of you.

Conclusion:

Based on the above-mentioned factors, you need to choose the best testing agency in your area. A good drug testing agency is crucial to minimizing drug usage by your employees. If you are looking for someone to help you conduct a drug testing in port of Corpus Christi, 24/7 Onsite is the best option for you.