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document.writeln('<h2>Drug Testing: The &quot;Study-Free&quot; Test </h2>');
document.writeln('<p>By Mary Ellen Nunes </p>');
document.writeln('<p><br>');
document.writeln('  <b>Question:</b> What is the one test you\'ll never have to study for&#151;but ');
document.writeln('  the results are critical to getting a job? </p>');
document.writeln('<p><b>Answer:</b> A drug screening test. Drug tests can identify alcohol, prescription ');
document.writeln('  drugs, and illegal drugs. Following are some questions frequently asked about ');
document.writeln('  drug tests.</p>');
document.writeln('<p><b>Do I have to take the test?</b> To decrease the chances of hiring a drug ');
document.writeln('  user, some employers require anyone offered a job to take a drug test. The job ');
document.writeln('  offer depends on receiving a negative drug test result. So, if you want the ');
document.writeln('  job, you must take the test.</p>');
document.writeln('<p><b>How does it work?</b> You\'ll probably be asked to take a urine test, the ');
document.writeln('  most popular method of drug screening. The test is used, for example, by the ');
document.writeln('  U.S. Department of Transportation for its more than 8 million workers. </p>');
document.writeln('<blockquote> ');
document.writeln('  <p><b>Urine Test: </b>The test examines a urine sample for five major controlled ');
document.writeln('    substances: cocaine, opiates, marijuana, PCP, and amphetamines. You may also ');
document.writeln('    be asked to take a test of blood, hair, or sweat.</p>');
document.writeln('  <p><b>Blood Test:</b> A blood test measures the actual amount of alcohol or ');
document.writeln('    other drugs in your blood at the time of the test.</p>');
document.writeln('  <p><b>Hair Test:</b> Researchers study hair to detect drug use. Hair grows about ');
document.writeln('    1/64 of an inch each day: two inches of hair gives a 128-day history of your ');
document.writeln('    drug use. </p>');
document.writeln('  <p><b>Breath Alcohol Test: </b>The breath test shows how much alcohol is in ');
document.writeln('    the blood at the time of the test.</p>');
document.writeln('</blockquote>');
document.writeln('<p><br>');
document.writeln('  <b>How accurate are the tests?</b> Tests are accurate if they are done using ');
document.writeln('  the guidelines of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The guidelines ');
document.writeln('  include: </p>');
document.writeln('<ul>');
document.writeln('  <li>a specific chain of custody to document handling and storing your urine ');
document.writeln('    specimen; </li>');
document.writeln('  <li>an initial screen (and a second test if the initial screen is positive); ');
document.writeln('  </li>');
document.writeln('  <li>a confirmatory test to rule out false positives; and </li>');
document.writeln('  <li>a review by a medical officer to make sure there are no medical or other ');
document.writeln('    reasons for a positive test. </li>');
document.writeln('</ul>');
document.writeln('<p><br>');
document.writeln('  <b>Can I drink something to hide the drugs?</b> There are many schemes for hiding ');
document.writeln('  drug use&#151;and most don\'t work. There are several different steps during ');
document.writeln('  the testing process that pick up on masking agents. &quot;It\'s difficult to ');
document.writeln('  get around a positive result,&quot; according to Moore. </p>');
document.writeln('<p><b>What about poppy seeds?</b> Eating enough poppy seeds can cause your urine ');
document.writeln('  to test positive for opiates&#151;three poppy seed bagels, for example could ');
document.writeln('  generate a positive test result. However, there is an additional test that looks ');
document.writeln('  for certain chemicals present in heroin that are not present in poppy seeds.</p>');
document.writeln('<p><b>What if I test positive?</b> A positive drug test may prevent you from getting ');
document.writeln('  a job. </p>');
document.writeln('<p><b>How long can I test positive after using a drug? </b>This depends on the ');
document.writeln('  type of drugs you use and the type of test you take. It takes from a day to ');
document.writeln('  more than a month for some drugs to clear your urine; it may take much longer ');
document.writeln('  for your hair to grow and be cut so that drugs don\'t show up.</p>');
document.writeln('<p><b>Should I insist on a second test if I know I\'ve received a false positive? ');
document.writeln('  </b>If you have a positive result, and you have never used drugs, speak to the ');
document.writeln('  medical review officer. In a thorough test, an initial positive must be followed ');
document.writeln('  up with secondary tests to verify the results. Because there are varying levels ');
document.writeln('  of sensitivity to certain chemicals, prescription medication, and over-the-counter ');
document.writeln('  medications, a little research may be necessary to find out why your test reacted ');
document.writeln('  positively.</p>');
document.writeln('<p><b>Who will see the results of the test?</b> The results of your test should ');
document.writeln('  be kept confidential, meaning that only people who need to know will receive ');
document.writeln('  the drug test results. This might be a supervisor, manager, union representative, ');
document.writeln('  or someone in the medical or personnel department. You may be asked to sign ');
document.writeln('  a release form that states who will receive the test results. </p>');
document.writeln('<p>When a drug test is reported as positive, the amount of the drug(s) found is ');
document.writeln('  usually not reported. </p>');
document.writeln('<p></p>');
document.writeln('<p><i><b>Mary Ellen Nunes</b> is web production/content specialist for the National ');
document.writeln('  Association of Colleges and Employers, publisher and owner of JobWeb and NACEWeb.</i></p>');
document.writeln('<p><i><span class="footer">Copyright National Association of Colleges and Employers. All rights reserved. This article cannot be republished in any form (print or electronic) without written permission of NACE. </span></i></p>');