What exactly are benzodiazepines and how can they affect workers’ health and well-being? Our chief toxicologist Dr Phil Tynan breaks down the history and profile of these psychoactive drugs.

Unfortunately, the early enthusiasm for benzodiazepines was somewhat misplaced. Benzodiazepines turned out to be just as addictive to patients as barbiturates. The psychoactive effects remain even for continuous use of 3 to 4 weeks.

Benzo abuse can also result in serious health conditions for users. Unmanaged withdrawal can lead to life threatening crises associated with severe fitting. Meanwhile, mixing BZOs with alcohol or opiates increases the risk of fatal overdoses.

Despite these health risks, benzodiazepine use still has its benefits. Benzos play a legitimate role in helping patients deal with insomnia in the short term. They are also used as potent anti-seizure agents and as treatment options for alcohol withdrawal.

These days, doctors still rely on benzodiazepines to treat patients suffering from panic attacks and generalised anxiety disorders.

To combat this, the government named Xanax as a controlled drug. By restricting BZO prescriptions, authorities believed it would help prevent doctors from over-prescribing and onselling the drugs. It would also discourage patients from ‘doctors shopping’, or seeing multiple treatment providers to get medical prescriptions illicitly. The government hoped to stop the diversion of medical BZOs.

At first, these regulatory efforts seemed to have worked. The country saw a noticeable decrease in benzodiazepine use. However, this gave way to a new wave of BZOs hit.

The problem resurfaces with benzo analogues in the black market

Instead of diverting benzos from medical supplies, smugglers have resorted to selling ‘pressed’ versions of the drugs. Pressed BZOs are drugs that were turned into liquid or powder. Drug makers then cut and press these substances into pills and sell them as knockoffs on the streets.

To make matters worse, drug dealers are now selling new analogues of current BZOs. They have nearly-identical drug molecules and mostly similar effects with known benzodiazepines. However, Australian laws do not cover these new benzo analogues.

One example is Flubromazolam, which is an analogue of Valium. This drug is 10 times more potent than Xanax and can cause serious harm to users.

Benzodiazepine abuse can often lead to workplace accidents. Workers who use the drugs can experience an 81% post-usage impairment when performing complex tasks, especially spatio-temporal tasks.

Benzo use significantly impairs working memory and limits the ability to pay attention. It also prevents proper risk-assessment since the drugs tend to block a person’s ability to worry.

Urine tests are a more effective way of drug testing for benzodiazepine use than oral fluid tests.

Only a small amount of BZOs make it to oral fluid specimens, causing oral fluid tests to miss the presence of the drugs.

Benzos also have almost the same detection window and impairment period. However, some of the new analogues are more difficult to detect and can only be assayed during a laboratory drug test.

Stopping benzodiazepines abuse may not be as simple as cutting off drug supplies. As long as there’s a significant demand for the drugs, people will find a way to get their benzo fix.

One way to address the issue is by raising awareness on the dangers of BZO dependence. It is recommended that workplaces implement a drug and alcohol education and training program.

By letting people know how benzodiazepines can damage their health, they’ll be more keen on avoiding them.

Your workers are the backbone of your business. That’s why it’s important that you’re aware of their health and well-being.

If you suspect anyone in your organisation is suffering from substance abuse, it’s best to act now and intervene. The safety of your employee and the future of your company may depend on it.

For help in conducting drug and alcohol testing at the workplace, contact us today.

As with any new standard in workplace drug testing, the change to the new requirements will evolve over the coming months as device manufacturers, on-site testing providers, regulatory bodies and others respond to the updated standard.

There are a number of significant as well as minor changes required to how an on-site saliva test for drugs of abuse is tested, collected, transported and analysed in a laboratory.

A. Donor Informed consent

Drug testing companies should inform donors of the procedure for addressing disputed results. The expansion of collection procedures requires collectors to do the following:

B. Tamper evident seals

If a donor places their initials on the seal of their test sample, they also have to put their initials on the Chain-of-Custody form.

Safework Health already requires donors to place their initials on seals and sign the Chain-of-Custody form. There won’t be any major changes to its existing procedures.

Under AS/NZS 4760:2019, the Chain-of-Custody form should feature additional items. This includes the expanded donor informed consent and recording transport device.

A. New screening cut-off levels

AS/NZS 4760:2019 sets new cut-off levels for substances identified during drug screening.

• THC screening cut-off is now down to 15 ng/mL from the initial 25 ng/mL
• Oxycodone levels now has a cut-off of only 40 ng/mL

B. Verification

The new standard requires drug testing companies to verify their sample transport devices. For our part, Safework Health already verifies its existing devices, such as Quantisal.

A. Reportable cut-offs

Standards Australia and Standards New Zealand has updated its guidelines for reportable cut-offs involving an oral fluid drug test.

THC

AS/NZS 4760:2019 reduces the reportable cut-off for THC screening tests from 25 ng/mL to 15 ng/mL. It also lowers the threshold for confirmatory tests from 10 ng/mL to 5ng/mL. However, both moves have raised significant concerns regarding the potential impact of passive cannabis smoking.

Cone et al report (2015)

In 2015, Cone and fellow researchers came across similar findings to those of Niedbala et al.

In their own report involving an average OF THC 6 passive subjects, Cone et al found that all passive THC exposures were undetectable 75 to 90 minutes after use. They came across the result regardless of the subjects’ exposure levels.

One can derive a 90 minute to 2 hours limit for potential passive cannabis exposure. Any collection after this period would be ascribed to active use of the substance. Concerns regarding passive smoking can therefore be negated.

Screening OF THC cut-off at 15 ng/mL

The process may be able to capture some passive smokers only if they are:

• Exposed to high [THC] cigarettes ~ 11.3% Δ 9 -THC.
• Staying in a very poorly ventilated environment NOT a standard room.
• Tested after 90 to 120 mins of exposure or if they are in a THC contaminated room.

Confirmatory OF THC Cut-off at 5 ng/mL

The process may capture passive smokers if they are:

• Staying in a poorly ventilated environment.
• Tested within ~ 3.5 hrs of exposure or if they are in a THC contaminated environment.

These guidelines will not be applied under any other circumstances.

B. Format change

All reports should clearly specify that the security seals for specimens are intact. The statement effectively replaces the practice of appending ‘CoC complete’ on collected samples.

Collectors need to record the devices used for OF collection, transport and storage (e.g. Quantisal).

Testing reports will now use AS/NZS 4760-2019 as their concluding standard reference.

Standards Australia and Standards New Zealand have set guidelines in cases where there is a disputed result. Drug testing companies are required to do the following:

• Recommend replicate analyses
• Obtain the Donor’s consent before they send disputed results for reanalysis.
• Issue disputed results to the donor, the requesting authority and to the laboratory that originally tested the sample in question.

Standards Australia and Standards New Zealand define a Collector as someone who has successfully completed training for the following:

• Oral fluid collection
• On-site drug screening (if applicable)
• Handling, storage and dispatch of specimens

A Collector also needs to show that they are competent in executing their duties.

NOTE: Courses for Collectors may be provided by the Vocational Education and Training (VET) Quality Framework, the Faculty of Clinical Forensic Medicine (RCPA), the New Zealand Qualification Authority. This also includes programs that offer equivalent training.

Safework Health provides our own accredited training courses for oral fluid collectors.

Safework Health has begun introducing the new guidelines established with AS/NZS 4760-2019. We started adopting the new guideline in October 2019. Our team is working with clients to help familiarise them with the changes.

If you have questions or want to discuss AS/NZS 4760-2019 more in depth, feel free to contact us today.

You can also buy a copy of the new Standards Australia or Standards New Zealand guideline HERE.

References:

• Niedbala et al J Anal Toxicol. 2004 Oct;28(7):546-52
• Niedbala et al. J Anal Toxicol, 2005 Oct;29: 607-15) .
• Cone et al  J Anal Toxicol 2015 Jan; 39(1):1–12

Beyond the already stated financial losses, it is your legal obligation to provide a safe and healthy work environment for your employees.

Especially when you consider the effects of drug and alcohol use at work — lack of focus, poor concentration, aggression, unstable moods, lack of coordination, and unwanted sexual advances.

Clearly none of us wants an employee to exhibit these highly inappropriate behaviours. We also don’t want anyone else on our team to experience such bad behaviours from their coworker.

Legally, speaking, you cannot force an employee to undergo a test if it’s against their will. Doing so could lead to civil liability.

Trying to reason or threaten your employee will rarely have any positive results. At best you’ll get a definitive ‘no’ from your worker. At worst you’ll cause a revolt and outright destruction in your entire team.

It is best to stick to well established rules and procedures. This is where a well-written and clearly-worded drug and alcohol policy comes in.

David Dilger, an employment and safety lawyer at Edge Legal, believes companies could insist on drug testing as part of employment as long as it is reasonable.

Workers don’t necessarily have to see any mentions of an alcohol and other drugs policy in their contract. They could find something like ‘you’ll comply with our policies and procedures as lawful and reasonable direction’.

An employee has to comply to a workplace drug test, provided that it is a lawful and reasonable direction, Dilger expplained. If they were to refuse, they could face disciplinary action and might even lose their job.

In some cases, a worker can get fired not because they failed a drug test but because a court or tribunal found them to be non-compliant with a reasonable policy.

Dilger added that more modern alcohol and other drugs policies prioritise work health and safety rather than penalising employees.

Workers who refuse to participate in drug testing could be considered in breach of their duty. Their employers might take their refusal to be going against a policy meant to ensure the safety of their workplace.

In Australia, it is perfectly legal to conduct workplace drug testing at work. However, crucial to effectively enforcing it is establishing a workplace drug and alcohol policy beforehand.

Why? Because it is important that your employees are aware of the following:

• Reason for drug tests
• Who will do the testing
• Drug testing schedules
• How often the drug test will be carried out
• Drug test types
• Accepted blood alcohol limits
• What to do in the event an employee tests positive for drugs or exceeds accepted limit for alcohol
• Disciplinary measures for employees who will refuse to be tested

This is legally the only way to go about drug testing. The methods, frequency and consequences must be clearly stated. Every employee should be fully aware of these guidelines. Meanwhile, as an employer, you have to follow all of the things you’ve outlined in your drug and alcohol policy.

Similarly, if you update your processes, you must reflect the changes in your policy, inform everyone affected and have proof you have done so.

If you do not have a sound drug testing framework for your workplace, you simply cannot enforce any kind of drug testing. Even if an employee tested positive, you would likely not be able to apply any kind of consequences.

One of the best ways to do this is by teaming up with an experienced workplace drug and alcohol testing provider.

Having a capable and reliable drug testing partner can help protect your company from liabilities related to workplace substance abuse. It can also make your workers feel more comfortable and trusting of your policy.

Substance abuse in the workplace can become a major obstacle to your company’s success. It can compromise your sustainability and productivity. It can also threaten the safety of your employees and customers.

According to the National Centre for Education and Training on Addiction (NCETA), each year Australia incurs an estimated:

• $6 billion in lost productivity due to alcohol,
• $2 billion in absenteeism due to alcohol, and
• $1 billion in absenteeism due to drug use.

In a recent study, NCETA also found that a company’s working environment has the potential to either prevent or worsen AOD use and/or abuse in the workplace.

Let’s talk more about that later. For now, consider this…

1. Keep Your Alcohol and Drugs Roadmap Handy

The road to success can be a bumpy ride. You’re bound to encounter sharp turns, blind spots, and barriers along the way. Alcohol and drug use in the workplace can complicate your journey all the more.

But that’s where your drug and alcohol policy guidelines come in. The more comprehensive your policies are, the easier it will be for your company to navigate through trickier terrain.

That’s a lot to ask. What’s more, it’s downright irresponsible to assign that big of a job to people who may not be sufficiently prepared for it. And all on top of their regular work!

Remember our three questions at the start of this article? You have to think of who your designated AOD drivers are, their current skill level, and their improvement plan.

You need drivers specifically trained to understand AOD. Only then can they interpret your AOD roadmap effectively, fairly, and consistently.

Initial alcohol and drug training will equip your drivers with some skills to handle the task.

3. Make Upskilling a Habit

But training is never a one-shot deal. Whether we’re talking multiplication tables, dance steps, or even card tricks, people need constant repetition to make things stick.

Your managers will require even more periodic drug and alcohol re-training to help them master their new skills. That’s how they’ll become full-fledged advocates and enforcers of your policies.

Continual training workshops will keep your supervisors updated on matters concerning illicit drugs. These may include new drugs in the market, newly discovered risk factors, and even breakthroughs in testing and intervention.

All in all, alcohol and drug training programs will put your designated drivers in a better position to identify factors that may lead to drug and alcohol abuse.

They say knowledge is power. And the NCETA study mentioned above, which involved 100 supervisors who undertook drug and alcohol awareness training, seems to prove this adage.

According to the study, NCETA researchers found that the subjects were able to proactively change their workplace environment for the better.

And of course, employees steeped in more toxic work cultures are far unhappier. This means they’re more likely to use alcohol and drugs as coping mechanisms.

Armed with this realization, plus their newly acquired knowledge and tools, the managers became more adept at:

• spotting the signs and symptoms of addiction
• identifying workplace stressors (e.g. bullying, which can be a precursor to substance abuse)
• promoting positive habits and behaviours
• reducing workplace risks and discouraging unhealthy habits

As a result, the NCETA study found that the managers were able to effectively improve work conditions and anticipate AOD triggers in their respective companies.

The Best Balance: Training Across the Board

Clearly, specialised drug and alcohol training empowers managers to maintain a drug-free environment.

This kind of deeper dive is best suited for business owners, top management, HR staff, security officers, and other supervisors who can take their turn at the driver’s seat.

Prof. Ann Roche, NCETA Director, says companies will benefit from a wider and more periodic implementation of the top-down approach. However, it is especially advised for industries with high rates of illicit drug use.

NCETA likewise emphasises the value of AOD training for rank and file. In fact, Prof. Roche recommends using an enhanced method which combines the top-down and bottom-up approaches.

She says that complementing supervisor training with employee drug awareness training will make a company better equipped to tackle drug and alcohol problems head on. And companies would do well to roll out regular training programs to keep everyone well informed and on their toes, she further reiterates.

As the number of drug-using employees in the workforce increase, so will the use of synthetic urine. As drug testing companies create more sophisticated drug testing methods, so will the drug users who try to cheat a drug test.

Does synthetic urine actually work? Can drug users actually evade detection? The answer is yes. The fact is particularly worrying especially for employees in safety-sensitive industries.

Synthetic or fake urine is equivalent to artificial urine and is a substitution method to evade a conclusive positive test result. Its design mimics real human urine and contains the very same components found in real human urine. Creatinine, ammonia, and nitrates are also present in synthetic urine. Even the odor of fake urine is the same as that of real urine. Manufacturers of fake urine make sure that the synthetic urine is undetectable even to drug testing companies and can be purchased for as low as $15.

What’s even more worrying is that synthetic urine can be purchased at truck stops. Clearly, this means a big percentage of illicit drug users are employed to drive vehicles. This endangers not just the drivers themselves but also other people’s lives.

Although it’s not 100 percent successful, synthetic urine will only be more useful to illicit drug users desperate to evade detection. Other less sophisticated options focus on dilution. Drug users have used dog urine, lemonade, and various household products in an attempt to give negative or inconclusive results.

Not all drug testing companies have sophisticated fake urine detection methods that include validity and pH tests. Validity tests are tests that include checking the temperature and creatinine levels of a urine sample. Whereas a pH level test helps determine if the urine sample is a diluted sample.

Contact us today to learn how you can keep your workplace safe from drugs and alcohol.

A report by the National Drug Strategy Household Survey confirms this: a majority of cocaine users are between the ages of 20-39, educated, employed, and living in major cities. In addition, they also belong to the highest socioeconomic status. As Will Tregoning — founder of a non-profit organisation committed to challenging current drug policies — once said: “A lot of wealthy people take drugs.”

Read on to find out the incredible truth about drug abuse in white-collar professions in Australia.

A high stakes job puts the pressure on professionals. Long working hours, an intense social scene, plus a large disposable income create the perfect context for drug abuse.

In 2016, the Daily Telegraph accessed court documents detailing the operations of a drug syndicate in Sydney. Shockingly, a 64-year-old suburban grandmother headed the family-run drug syndicate. They admitted to peddling 30 bags of cocaine a night. Distributing the lot to their high-flying clients in Sydney’s northern and eastern suburbs. Furthermore, Sydney police also note a steady increase in drug-related incidents in Sydney’s wealthiest suburbs around the same time.

The Oceania market for drugs is extremely lucrative according to the 2014 United Nations World Drug Report. In fact, the most powerful drug trafficker in the world, Sinaloa Cartel kingpin “El Chapo” established a cocaine importation business on the eastern part of Australia. In 2015 Police intercepted a shipment by the cartel of 240kg of cocaine, worth about $83 million in Sydney. The monthly consumption of cocaine across the Australian east coast is about 500 kilograms a month.

Dr. Christian Rowan, Addiction Specialist at The Banyans Health and Wellness Residence says cocaine use is popular due to its stimulating effects. On it, the user is wide awake and buzzed on energy. Two major reasons for using it are to stay awake and alert for work and to unwind and relax for socialising.

Cocaine users also prefer the drug because of its very few physical symptoms. With less obvious symptoms, social users can shrug it off as a harmless habit. Being high on cocaine may not as obvious as being high on marijuana, but that’s what makes the drug so insidious. Because the negative effects of cocaine develop gradually and are not immediately noticeable, it is particularly dangerous.

Because of its high cost and the class of people who use it, cocaine has also become a status symbol. There is a sense of glamour to using cocaine and being one with the elite. What’s interesting is how cocaine users do not consider themselves addicts, referring to themselves as “recreational” users.

Another factor that adds to the growing number of cocaine users is the misconception that cocaine is not as dangerous as other drugs. Since early users of cocaine are introduced to it socially, it makes the drug seem harmless. Furthermore, the social context makes them unaware of their developing drug dependency. However, socially driven cocaine use is highly dangerous.

The findings, published in the medical journal PLOS ONE show that cocaine users have increased aortic stiffness, greater left ventricular mass, and higher systolic blood pressure. According to Professor Gemma Figtree of Sydney Medical School, there are acute side effects of cocaine use. Some of which include myocardial infarction or heart attack. Cocaine users often use it in conjunction with alcohol, which is harmful to their health.

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in Australia. And men who suffer from heart disease are getting younger and younger. Could growing cocaine use in the country have something to do with it?

Functional users of ice use it to be more alert, more confident, increase their energy and stamina. Ice, traditionally used by the blue collar workers are now common in finance, management, and IT. And according to the group, ice addicts are able to hide it from their friends, family, and co-workers.

The largest ever seizure of ice was in eastern Melbourne — police found $900 worth of ice, equivalent to 9 million hits.

In 2015 a business analyst from one of the leading trading companies in Australia detailed his 20-year heroin addiction. At the time of writing, he was expecting a large Christmas bonus. That’s on top of earning $100,000 a year. The man admitted to injecting himself with heroin at least once a day and had been an addict since the age of 19. He was still spending his days analysing numbers and advising senior management on business strategies.

In his own words, he was very lucky to have been able to keep his heroin addiction hidden for so long. “I am just a normal person, who happens to have a massive weakness for heroin,” he added.

The director of psychiatry at Royal Brisbane Hospital was astounded to have met such a high-functioning drug abuser, much less a heroin addict. This is clearly not typical, but it highlights how good drug users are at covering up their addiction.

From 2016 to 2017, there were 5,112 emergency department visits and 9,636 hospital visits due to opioid poisoning alone. According to AIHW spokeswoman, every day there are 150 hospitalisations in Australia due to opioids. Every day in Australia, there are three deaths due to opioid misuse — and the most heavily affected group are Australians that fall between the ages of 35-44. The most common pharmaceutical opioids responsible for deaths were codeine, oxycodone, and morphine.

Monash University student Samantha Lalic analysed the dispensation of opioids under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) from 2013 to 2017. She found that 1.9 million Australians begin taking prescribed pharmaceutical opioids every year. Out of the 1.9 million new users, about 50,000 of them end up using pharmaceutical opioids in the long-term, beyond what their doctors prescribe.

Doctors are eager to prescribe pharmaceutical painkillers and their powerfully addictive nature makes patients want to continue taking them long after the need for pain killers has passed. AIHW research data in 2016 shows that 11 percent of Australians admitted to using opioids for non-medical purposes.

Between June and August of last year, researchers from the National Wastewater Drug Monitoring program quietly collected wastewater samples from 58 wastewater stations in the country. The results of the latest wastewater testing were published in February of this year. The sixth annual testing exposes not just the drug habits of Australians according to locality, but also how much Australian’s spend on illegal drugs last year– which is a whopping $9.3 billion.

Test results show oxycodone and fentanyl consumption is on a steady rise in the Australian Capital Territory. However, Tasmanians still remain the highest consumer of prescription drugs. Sydney is still cocaine capital with the highest consumption rate of the drug. Ice use in regional Australia grew consistently, with Canberra taking the top spot for residents taking more doses of the drug in a single day. Particularly concerning about this is that ice use is on the rise among young Canberrans.

Furthermore, Victoria takes the place for a state with the highest rates of heroin use, while cannabis use in higher in the regional than metropolitan areas. With MDMA, there is a large variation in the recorded use of the drug. But research shows that it is mostly used for recreational purposes such as in music festivals, where an increase in overdoses cases sparked a national debate. Moreover, alcohol use remains consistent all throughout Australia. It remains one of the most consumed drugs in the country.

The wastewater test results show that there are drug users in every pocket of Australia, both in the regional and metropolitan areas.

To sum it up, drug users in our country are intelligent, articulate, employed and have the drive to succeed. A majority are not even aware that they have an addiction, which makes it difficult to address drug abuse.

With the prevalence of drug abuse among white-collar professionals, are you sure that none of your employees are affected? People who work in high-stakes industries are under immense pressure to perform well. Consequently, they may turn to drugs and alcohol to keep their heads above water.

The only way to help a drug-addicted employee and avoid potential disaster is through a drug and alcohol testing program.

The first step is to introduce an enforceable drug testing policy for your company. You are then able to perform mandatory workplace drug testing and address drug use, hopefully in its early stages.

Safework Health can help you secure and safeguard your company and workforce from drug and alcohol abuse through our comprehensive drug testing services.

If you want to know your options, give us a call today.

If Australians in high and respectable positions have taken MDMA — can you be sure that someone in your staff is not an MDMA user?

Over the past 6 months, there have been five drug-related deaths attributed to MDMA. The spotlight is now on this illicit drug.

MDMA or methylenedioxymethamphetamine is a derivative of amphetamine. It is also referred to as ecstasy and Molly, although there are some significant differences.

MDMA vs Ecstasy

A common street name for MDMA is ecstasy.

When Ecstasy boomed in popularity in the early 1980s, it tended to consist of pure MDMA, or sometimes its chemical sister MDA (3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine). But after MDMA became illegal in the U.S. in 1985, purity began to decrease.

Throughout the 1990s and 2000s, drugs such as cocaine, ketamine and methamphetamine were common adulterants in Ecstasy.

MDMA vs Molly

The term Molly is short for “molecular.” It was given this nickname because this ecstasy drug comes in powder or crystallised form, as opposed to the more traditional pill.

It is commonly marketed as being pure MDMA. But Molly is often the furthest thing from pure MDMA. Synthetic cathinones, also known as “bath salts,” appear to be the most common adulterants or outright replacements.

Dr. Perl also explained that MDMA deaths are mostly due to complications. As the drug greatly impacts the user’s blood pressure, heart rate, and body temperature.

Worryingly, she adds that those who drive under the influence of MDMA are impaired and face the greatest and most fatal risks.

At present, MDMA is more accessible than ever before. Ninety percent of users in the survey describe it as “easy to obtain.” Five or six years ago, only 70 percent of users found it easy to obtain.

Analysis of the Ecstasy and Related Drugs Reporting System (EDRS) reveals that more than one in four people who take stimulants are taking ecstasy on a weekly basis.

In an effort to make festivals safer, the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre interviewed 299 regular users of ecstasy. The average age of participants in the study is 21. And the vast majority were either in school or gainfully employed.

The study shed light on the behavior of MDMA users: they rarely take the drug alone. Nine in ten reported that the last time they used the illicit stimulant, they combined it with alcohol, cannabis, and hallucinogens.

In the AIHW National Drug Strategy Household Survey 2016, MDMA or ecstasy takes the second place in the most commonly used illicit drug by Australians.

Furthermore, the highest rate of illicit drug use (55 percent) is among 30 to 39-year-olds. Next are 40 to 49-year-olds (under 55 percent), then 20 to 29-year-olds (49 percent), lastly are 50 to 59-year-olds (48 percent).

The profile of who uses illicit drugs in Australia is a surprise. It dispels the myth that drug use is prevalent only among the young, uneducated, homeless and unemployed.

In fact, people with post-school qualifications have a 47 percent rate of lifetime drug use. The rate for people with no post-school qualifications is much lower at 34%

In addition, people in the paid workforce have a 51 percent rate of lifetime drug use, compared to 43% among the unemployed.

The results speak for themselves: MDMA drug use is prevalent among adults in the workforce. Imagine these MDMA users driving cars, operating systems, flying planes, and performing surgeries.

It’s a harrowing prospect for a business owner, which is why it is imperative to address MDMA use early on before the stakes get higher.

Dr. Amy Peacock, the head of NDRAC’s Drug Trend’s project expressed concern over the long-term effects of MDMA use, such as:

• irregular heartbeat
• psychosis
• chronic headaches
• seizures
• kidney failure
• hemorrhaging
• a permanent change in brain function
• memory loss
• depression

For users with pre-existing health conditions, the risks are greater. In fact, most drug deaths that involve MDMA are due to complications and fatal reactions.

Workers in safety-sensitive industries who use MDMA are putting not only themselves in danger but also others. While the effects of ecstasy last 24 hours, residual effects can last for days. So if an employee takes ecstasy over the weekend, he or she will be experiencing the aftereffects while at work.

The stigma surrounding illicit drug use and a lack of a workplace drug policy is a potentially lethal combination. By the time MDMA use is found out, it’s usually too late.

An employee who takes MDMA over the weekend will usually carry over the aftereffects into work. A user coming down on ecstasy will suffer from the following:

• Anxiety
• Paranoia
• Impaired judgment
• Lack of focus
• Poor concentration
• Blurred vision
• Muscle tension

As an employer, you are responsible for any accidents at work that involve ecstasy use. In effect, you are legally bound to pay for Workman’s Compensation claims.

Things could get worse if an employee files a case against negligence in court. And the bills from the litigation process can easily pile up in a short span of time.

The good news is, you can proactively protect your business and employees from the dangers of MDMA use.

You do not want ecstasy users in safety-sensitive jobs where they operate heavy equipment or transport people or goods.

With a workplace drug program that includes testing for ecstasy and MDMA, you’ll find out who among your employees take ecstasy. After which, you can take the necessary steps as stated in the workplace drug policy. This is the best thing that you can do to address ecstasy use at work.

Safework Health offer safe, hygienic, and discreet onsite testing for ecstasy so there is minimal disruption to your workforce. We can also help you develop a comprehensive MDMA safe workplace program that includes education programs that deter drug use among your employees.

If you want to find out more about developing a drug policy or ecstasy testing, please get in touch with us today. All our discussions are strictly confidential.

According to the Alcohol and Drug Foundation, one in ten workers have had negative experiences with co-workers taking drugs. These include being prevented from doing their job, always covering for their co-worker, and experiencing minor to major accidents at work.

Every worker should still feel safe in their working environment. Rampant drug use in the workplace robs employees of the chance to feel safe, and thereby affects their productivity.

Things to look out for are:

• Frequent absences
• A negative disposition or having a bleak outlook in life
• Lack of focus and productivity
• Loss of interest in daily activities
• The need to sleep at work
• Not eating well or a lack of appetite
• A frequency of accidents and mishaps
• Requesting for worker’s compensation much more than the average employee
• Involvement in workplace fatalities

Some of the signs and symptoms of drug abuse are:

• Bloodshot eyes
• Dilated pupils
• Sudden and drastic weight gain or weight loss
• A gaunt and tired appearance
• Slurred speech patterns
• Highly irritable
• Frequent drowsiness
• Changes in personal grooming habits; no regard for hygiene
• Unusual body odour
• Trembling
• Excessive sweating

If your co-worker has more than two of the signs above, you have every right to be worried.

Sometimes, a colleague’s empathy and concern go a long way. Remember that you are dealing with someone’s livelihood and reputation. This is a delicate matter that has to be dealt with using utmost confidentiality.

1. Talk to our co-worker

If you choose to talk to your colleague, avoid being confrontational. You do not know what your co-worker is going through. There are many reasons why a person could show the above symptoms.

It’s best to start by asking them how they are and if they’re okay.

Always, always, come from a place of compassion and try to empathise with your co-worker. Make sure he or she knows that you are concerned for their well-being.

It could be that your co-worker has developed a poor way of handling stress and pressure. It could also be that he or she is having a very difficult time at home.

While a drug user may not admit to having a problem, it won’t hurt to reach out.

After speaking with your co-worker, it is probably time to alert human resources to the situation.

3. Talk to their Supervisor

If reporting to Human Resources fails to yield any results, talk to your supervisor.

You should also refer to your company’s drug and alcohol policy. Ideally, there should be written guidelines for handling a drug using employee.

The best workplace policies include drug testing and training and education as part of their program.

In the event that your company does not have a workplace alcohol and drug policy, suggest to create an immediate action plan to assess the situation.

Sitting back and minding your own business is not the attitude you should be taking when dealing with a possible drug addicted colleague.

Every employee has a responsibility to maintain a positive and safe workplace where you all can thrive. Always take it upon yourself to take the necessary steps to prevent any untoward incidents at work.

Contact us today for information on how we can keep your workplace safe from drug use and abuse.

We launched two innovative strategies nationwide to combat these attempts at cheating:

1. Enhanced detection technology in the laboratory
2. Enhanced screening technology, which we now utilise for all collections in our NATA accredited laboratories Australia-wide. This option is also available for all our existing customers.

Several years ago, we highlighted the issue of fake urine detection in onsite workplace drug testing.

“October saw an unprecedented number of detections in our Perth toxicology laboratory of urine that was not from a biological source. Our normal rate of detection is fairly low (although never zero).

But last month we positively identified more than 5 times our usual monthly average of various formulations of synthetic urine in our Workplace Testing samples.

The fake urine samples came from mining clients in the Pilbara to construction clients in metropolitan Perth.”

It is important to note that all of the fake urine detected last month passed the currently available on-site testing methods. The typical tests measuring creatinine, pH and specific gravity all showed normal results for these samples.

All of this got us to thinking through – how good are our current detection methods? And how does our approach stand up to the best practice we utilise here in Australia and overseas?

We knew most synthetic urine would pass the relatively simple tests used on site. But even our much more sophisticated testing in the laboratory did not detect as many of the new brands as we hoped (see the chart below).

So our team of experienced Scientists, together with our medical staff were determined to update our detection strategies. We now utilise a further range of biological markers present in human urine and not the synthetic version.

We have been applying this automatically to all collects performed on our premises Australia wide for quite some time now.

For obvious reasons, we don’t want to give details of which brands worked and which were not detected.

Our team also came up with a chart. A green tick means it will be detected as a fake and reported as such. A red cross means it would typically pass undetected.

As far as we know, this is the most advanced screening technique for synthetic urine in Australia. In fact, many laboratories offer little more than the minimum required by AS4308, which is closer to the basic screen outlined above.

With that being said, we also acknowledge that this is an ever-evolving field. And that even with our latest update, it appears that Brand L may pass undetected. Therefore, we will steadfastly continue to evolve and progress our detection techniques in the coming months.

Finally, as part of our service offering, and to ensure we remain at the cutting edge of innovation and best practice in drug testing in Australia, we are going to use the “Advanced Screen” on all pre-booked or walk-in drug screens.

Especially since pre-booked tests are particularly vulnerable to “cheating” attempts since individuals can have several days notice to consider implementing confounding strategies.

The “Advanced Screen” is also another option for your regular or routine laboratory confirmations.

Contact us today to learn how you can keep your workplace safe from drugs and alcohol.

Q: How big a problem is fake urine detection in Australia?

A: So far, quite rare. But the table above shows that most labs won’t detect it at present. Therefore, the real prevalence is hard to know. However, Safework Health has seen a steady increase across the past 12 months or so, albeit from a very small base.

Q: Can I have all of my samples sent to your lab for fake urine detection?

A: Yes, although there is a small cost implication. It’s unlikely to be routinely warranted given the very low detection rate currently. A number of clients do request that 10% of all samples get the Advanced Screening option, or that particular “mass tests” will have it applied to all.

Q: Is this an argument for oral fluid or saliva testing then?

A: There are pros and cons for both types of tests. We are also looking at some chewing gums and mouthwashes used prior to oral fluid testing which appear to be effective in reducing the chances of a positive test result in oral fluid. So the same issues apply to both testing types.