WHO  SHOULD  PARTICIPATE:

Workplace testing for illegal drugs emerged as part of the nation’s “War on Drugs.”  The federal government led this effort by establishing reliable drug testing procedures and requiring testing of millions of employees.  These tests targeted a panel of five drugs that were widely abused:  cocaine, heroin, marijuana, methamphetamine, and phencyclidine.  This group of tests is called the federal 5-panel, NIDA 5, or DOT-5. 

However, in more recent years, the surge in use of medications as prescribed has spilled over to use other than as prescribed.  Prescription drug use and abuse and its possible impact on workplace safety has heightened employer interest in testing for these drugs, particularly for hydro­codone and oxycodone.  Testing for prescription drugs can raise complex issues of interpretation by medical review officers (MROs) and appropriate responses by employers.  Little has been published to date to guide MROs through the complexities of prescription drug positives as highlighted in the preceding bullets.  MRO review of illegal drug positives is a comparably simple task. 

This monograph incorporates relevant federal rules and guidance for 5-panel drug tests and for distribution and use of prescription drugs.  The CME credits from this monograph will fulfill a portion of both Federal and MROCC certification requirement.

  MONOGRAPH  LEARNING  OBJECTIVES:

At the conclusion of this activity, participants should be able to:

>Explain to a client about the pros and cons of testing for prescription medications so that the client recognizes that it is different and more complex than testing for illegal drugs.

>Summarize pharmacokinetic and laboratory issues for prescription drugs and how they affect test sensitivity

>Appraise the legitimacy of prescription medication use in a manner consistent with federal laws and guidance and professional standards, when reviewing a positive result for a donor who claims to have used a prescription medication in an unconventional manner.

>Distinguish between likely and negligible risks based on medical information that may impact safety or qualification and notify employers only of those conditions that are likely to impact safety or qualification.

>Identify and properly interpret results where one or more identified analytes may represent either parent drug or metabolite.

CME from this monograph is fully AMA PRA Category 1.

Monographs are a great way to keep updated on the
latest techniques and procedures within the MRO arena.