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USADAOA UADC TRAINING. PURPOSE. This training module will provide you with a better understanding of the drug testing process. ARMY DRUG TESTING POLICY. The Army drug testing program is based on a “use standard,” not impairment.
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PURPOSE • This training module will provide you with a better understanding of the drug testing process.
ARMY DRUG TESTING POLICY • The Army drug testing program is based on a “use standard,” not impairment. • You will be in violation of Army Regulation 600-85 if the presence of drugs is detected in your system. • The amount of drugs or its current effect on your system is not important when determining if a drug test is positive. • Drug tests can identify drug use that occurs several days, and sometimes weeks, prior to the time of giving a specimen.
SAFEGUARDS • Drug testing is reliable. Over five million tests have been completed without one case of false identification by laboratory error. • Drug and alcohol testing process used by the Army protects the rights both of the soldier and the nation.
SAFEGUARDS (cont.) • There are four safeguards to protect soldiers and the Army: • clear rules for the collection of specimens • only specifically certified laboratories are used for testing • physician’s review to determine of there is a medical reason for a positive test • option for a second laboratory evaluation • The entire drug testing process is designed to ensure that you have a fair and reliable drug test.
COLLECTION PROCEDURES • Drug testing begins at the collection site. • A specially trained individual will give you instructions for providing a specimen. The Unit Alcohol and Drug Coordinator, UADC, is the unit collection expert. • The UADC will assist you in completing the required paperwork. • This process is designed to ensure that nobody spoils or switches your sample. • COLLECTION PROCEDURES • This process is called chain of custody. • Chain of custody at the collection site means: • you will handle your sample until it is released by you to go to the laboratory. • you will keep your sample in sight at all times until it is ready to go to the laboratory. • the sample will be sealed in your presence and you will initial the bottle • The chain of custody process guarantees that your specimen and its result will not be switched with that of another soldier.
FORENSIC LABORATORY • Department of Defense laboratory tests are accurate and reliable. • Chain of custody continues at the laboratory. • Specimens and their chain custody documents arrive at the laboratory in sealed packages. • Before a specimen can be tested, its package, sample container, and chain of custody document are inspected thoroughly for signs of tampering. • The laboratory will not test samples that do not conform to strict chain of custody standards.
LABORATORY TESTING • Before testing, the laboratory also checks for evidence of deliberate tampering not detected at the collection site. • The laboratory uses a two test system: • If the first is negative and conforms to quality control standards, the laboratory releases the result. • If the test is positive for one or more drugs, a second, more specific test must confirm the same result.
LABORATORY TESTING (cont.) • The second test is performed by a process called gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). • GC/MS looks for molecular “fingerprints” of drugs. • Because GC/MS is virtually error proof, it is called the “goldstandard” of drug testing. • The testing process identifies only controlled substances. It does not identify over the counter medication, birth control pills, ect.
LABORATORY TESTING (cont.) • Your drug testing laboratory is certified by the Department of Defense. • Certification requires specially trained personnel and quarterly DA inspections, in addition to continuous quality control. • Drug testing laboratories are held to the highest standards of forensic science. • The laboratory will not release a result that cannot be defended in court.
REPORTING PROCEDURES • Only illegal drug abuse is actionable by your commander. • All positive drug tests for opiates, amphetamines, and barbiturates must be reviewed by a physician before they are actionable by your commander. • This physician, called a Medical Review Officer (MRO), determines if there are legitimate reasons for the positive test. • If there are legitimate reasons why you tested positive, then the MRO would report to your commander “no urinary conformation of drug abuse.”
REPORTING PROCEDURES (cont.) • An individual with a prescription for Tylenol with codeine will test positive for opiates. • If the MRO finds that the use was according to doctor’s or dentist’s orders, the MRO will report “no urinary conformation of drug abuse” to your commander. • Soldiers who are currently taking prescribed drugs under medical orders will not be reported as positive for drug tests. • The drug testing process always allows for a second opinion. Soldiers may also request a second GC/MS from the laboratory.
CONCLUSION • An individual always has the opportunity to have a small portion of the original sample sent to another laboratory for independent evaluation. • The President of the United States directed your drug testing program for your safety an the benefit of the defense of our nation. • The military Court of Appeals has upheld your drug testing process. And so have thousands of other courts and commanders. • The drug testing process has been legally reviewed at every Army and federal level and has been found to be accurate and reliable.
