JastaPlace Drug Rehab

Drug tests can determine whether a person has recently used drugs. Drug tests are used by rehabilitation centers to ensure compliance with their programs, parents to ensure their children are remaining drug-free, and employers to ensure that their employees or potential hires are not drug users.

Drug tests do not resolve or prevent drug abuse. However, they can act as a deterrent until a real solution, such as drug rehabilitation treatment, is found. Drug testing can be especially helpful for parents who are concerned that their children are experimenting with or regularly using drugs.

Drugs and Children

Statistics show that children who are drug users are more likely than non drug users to quit school, bring weapons to school, and fight, vandalize, steal, and cut class. Drug use interferes with a child’s ability to concentrate, degrades the quality of their academic performance, and also disrupts the academic atmosphere in the school with is necessary for the whole student population to learn. Reducing these disruptive behaviors benefits the entire school community. That’s where drug testing comes into play.

Commonly Tested Drugs

The National Institute on Drug Abuse and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration have developed guidelines to govern drug testing. One mandate states that companies that employ individuals who use commercial driver’s licenses must drug test their employees to protect everyone on the road. The five drus that are mostly commonly tested are marijuana, opiates, cocaine, phencyclidine (PCP), and amphetamines.

Methods of Testing

The most common methods to test for drugs are to take samples of an individual’s urine, hair, blood, sweat, and saliva. Each one of these methods of testing has both positive aspects and drawbacks. Information about these methods can be found below:

Urine Drug Tests

• Ranges from $7-$50 for a home drug testing kit
• A lab must verify the results
• Able to detect whether drugs were used in the previous week, but cannot tell if drugs were used previous to the past week

Hair Drug Tests

• Ranges from $100-$150 for a drug test
• Unobtrusive means of testing for drugs
• Cannot detect drug use in a short period of time, but can detect whether an individual has engaged in long-term drug use
• More sensitive than the urine test, and produces more accurate results.

Blood Drug Tests

• The most expensive drug test
• An intrusive means of testing for drug use
• The most sensitive and accurate drug test
• An uncommon method of drug testing

Sweat Drug Tests

• Considered an intrusive means of testing for drugs because a patch must be worn for a long time period
• An uncommon and controversial method of drug testing

Saliva Drug Tests

• Ranges from $15-$75 for a drug test
• Considered an unobtrusive means of drug testing
• A lab must verify the results
• Able to detect if drugs were used in the past few days.
• A sensitive test for detecting amphetamines and opiates, but unreliable for detecting marijuana use.