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Many high schools are now performing random testing to keep kids off drugs and alcohol. Alcohol high school testing is gaining popularity. Even employers are using more sophisticated tests such as drug follicle hair testing to ensure they are getting the best, most reliable employees. But, what about in our own homes? Is it the right choice there too?
At home drug and alcohol tests can be purchased online and performed at random. They vary in price and can be found at many different places. If you are a parent you are always worrying. Would this type of test stop that worry? Some adults say that they like the idea of a random test on their children. Their argument is that there is already random testing being done at work so why not perform the same tests at home. Others argue that the test should not be necessary because parents should have an open line of communication with their children.
One big problem that exists with the in home drug testing is that it can often show a false negative or a false positive. The testing done with these kits is not in line with the guidelines followed by professional medical organizations. It would be painful to accuse a child of drug use when the test shows a false positive or feeling a sense of security if the test shows a false negative. Another problem is that most of the tests won’t show the type of rug used and may not help diagnose a more serious drug abuse problem.
While many may feel this is an acceptable thing to impose upon adolescents, there are some who strongly disagree. The flip side says that it may end up damaging the parent-child relationship because kids may feel a sense of violation, mistrust and even less of a desire to communicate with their parents. The relationship between parent’s and their adolescent children is often tenuous at best. Perhaps it is best not to do anything that would harm that already delicate balance.
As with random high school testing, at home testing may help to relieve some of the peer pressure associated with youth. It may be an easy out or kids when asked if they want to participate in alcohol or drug use. They can simply say that they have random drug testing at home so they can risk their parent’s finding out. Plus it may show some kids how much their parents really care for them. While some feel it may hinder communications, others say that it will make children open up and understand how much their parents are interested and involved in all aspects of their lives. Perhaps it would give children a boundary they need.
As parents struggle to develop a productive, trusting relationship with their adolescent, they may look to many different methods in which to do that. Each child is different and each home situation is different. While the in home testing may be right in some cases in will not be right in others. While the answer about if and when to use these tests is ambiguous at best, it is certain that schools and employers will continue to utilize such tests more and more in the future.
Posts Tagged ‘Alcohol Tests’
At Home Drug or Alcohol Testing: a Parent’s Choice
What are Your Rights When it Comes to Workplace Drug Testing?
Hopefully, if your company cares about its employees, your employer would explain the reasons for the policy, how the testing will be carried out, the procedures for consent to testing, the consequences of refusing consent and the type of testing that will be performed and the possibility of medical review of your test results. In addition, a certified agency should carry out the testing, whether it be breath, saliva or urine alcohol testing .
Do you have the right to refuse testing?
Yes, but the consequences if you refuse differ from company to company.
Can I get arrested if my drug test comes back positive?
It depends how much of a user you are and other circumstances involved. Are you also a dealer? Were you high when you took the test? Did you come to work that way? Each employer is different on how they handle a positive test. Perhaps you will get a warning, or you just may not be hired, or be let go, depending on the situation.
Here are the pros and cons of possible testing procedures that could be asked of you for employee drug testing:
Breath Alcohol Testing
Inexpensive
Provides instant results
Accurate only for recent users
Given under supervision
Not as intrusive
Saliva testing:
Doesn’t show metabolites in the saliva as long as they do in the urine or hair
Provides a relatively short window of detection, approximately 10 to 24 hours.
Is taken under supervision to deter tampering
Sample is less invasive then a urine sample
Urine alcohol testing:
Inexpensive
Provides ability to test for several different types of substances
The specimen can be adulterated, substituted, or diluted
Has a small window of detection
Urine can take up to 2 hours before alcohol is present in the system
With EtG testing, urine alcohol tests up to 80 hours only
Intrusive and rather embarrassing form of testing
Hair Alcohol Testing
Probably one of the least intrusive methods
Accurate, safe and fool proof
The only alcohol testing method to prove alcohol consumption of past usage up to 12 months
What is hair alcohol testing?
Hair alcohol testing is also considered one of the least evasive substance tests around. Instead of urine alcohol testing, breath or saliva testing that demands personal body fluids, hair alcohol testing only asks for a small sample of hair, taken from the scalp. This is done by trained nurses that can collect a candidate’s sample discreetly in their home or place of work. As hair grows it absorbs everything we put into our bodies, fed from the bloodstream. What we absorb is stored as chemical markers that are locked in the hair and show a history like watermarks in a canyon, showing the history of time. These markers, including fatty acid ethyl esters, FAEE’s only occur when ethanol alcohol is consumed. The more alcohol an individual consumes, the greater the concentration of these markers in the hair.
So when it comes to employee’s rights, if you still have questions, contact your state or an employment lawyer for assistance.
Posted in home drug test 
Tags: Alcohol Tests, Consequences, Drug Alcohol, Saliva Testing, Workplace Drug