Monthly Archives: July 2020

What to Expect From the Department of Transportation (DOT) Drug Testing?

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Generally, DOT drug testing comes in the form of urinalysis. It means that you should give a urine specimen so that a certified laboratory could use a 5-panel drug test to determine the presence of illegal substances.

In most cases, the urinalysis collection site can be at the clinic, doctor’s office, laboratory, or in-house testing center. It does not matter where you should go, because you will have to go there in person and give the specimen on site. 

The best way to learn everything about false-positive test results is by clicking here for additional info. 

Therefore, as soon as you arrive at the collection site, you will have to provide photo identification so that they can determine who you are. 

Besides, you will also be a written explanation of the overall procedure that you should conduct. We recommend you to read it as carefully as possible.

In some particular situations, you may need to sign a consent form. That way, you will remove your right to sue anyone involved in the drug screening process.

Collection Process

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Everything depends on the state you live in, but from the point when you start with the urine collection until they send it to the testing site, no one should be in the collection area except you and other certified collection site employees.

You will get two single-used and clean specimen bottles with lids or caps. Remember that the collection of containers and bottles have to be wrapped separately based on DOT regulations.

Before you enter the room to produce the urine sample, you have to leave all your belongings, including a briefcase, purse, jacket, and coat. You can bring a receipt and a wallet.

The most common question people tend to ask is whether someone should be next to you while producing a specimen. Generally, you will have all the right to do it without observation. However, it would help if you remembered that there are exceptions to this particular rule.

Only if the personnel have reasonable suspicion that you are trying to tamper with the sample, they can decline the current specimen and give you a new date in which they will be next to you.

You should enter this website: https://harbor-house.org/guide-to-dot-drug-test/ to check out the guide to DOT drug test. 

However, the person who observes you must be the same sex as you, which is an important consideration you need to remember.

The minimal requirement for the urine specimen includes 45 milliliters of it. If you are unable to produce that much in a single try, they will give you fluids to consume, and you will have to remain at the collection site until the next try.

However, when you produce a clear and untampered urine sample, you should keep it in your sight all the time until they sign it with your name and place it in a shipping container for testing purposes.

You should be aware that if the urine sample leaves your sight, that could affect your results and could lead to a severe breach of your perspective. In that case, you will have to undergo a procedure once again.

Remember that if the collection person leaves the area during the time while you are producing a specimen, and before sealing and labeling the bottle, the sample becomes obsolete.

The first thing the lab technician will do is check the urine’s temperature. The main reason for this is that the temperature is the first sign that you tried to tamper with the results. 

If you used a disposable container or a cup, the technician would pour the urine into two specimen bottles with an idea to create a split sample for double-checking. You have to be aware that they need to seal it with a tamper-proof seal before you leave the premises.

The collection technician will fill out the Custody and Control Form, and you will have to provide additional personal info, including phone number and date of birth, among other things.

You should also sign the form we have mentioned above and the label on the bottle with your urine sample. The technician will provide you a copy of a form, and on the back of it, you will be able to note the different medications that you are currently using.

That way, you will reduce the hassle of others, finding that you are consuming legally prescription meds. Remember that you need to be up-front about your therapy because that way, you will reduce chances of failing and becoming disqualified as a DOT employee.