Welcome
HEMIC
Hawaii Employers’ Mutual Insurance Company
PATHWAY TO SAFETY
SERIES
Substance Abuse Program
by HEMIC Loss Prevention Services
Drugs In The Workplace
• Threatens the home, schools, and
communities.
• Estimated 30% of all injuries occur to
individual’s under the influence of drugs.
• The National Council on Compensation
Insurance reports an estimated 140 billion
dollars are lost annually in accidents, lost
productivity, thefts and absenteeism.
• Thousands of lives are lost annually.
Substance Abusers
• Substance abusers are 3-4 times more likely to be
involved in an on-the-job accident
• Substance abusers are 10 times more likely to be
absent
• 5 times more likely to file a workers compensation
claim
• 51% more medical claims than non-abusers
• 25 - 30% less productive than non-abusers
• Median dollar costs for medical claims of substance
abusers is 83% higher
• Substance abusers average $19,000 per person in
additional losses associated with absenteeism,
turnover, W/C, and medical care coverage
Additional Facts
• 98% of Fortune 200 Companies do drug testing
• 65% of companies with 500 or more employees do drug
testing
• Only 4% of companies with 10 or less employees do
drug testing
• Turnover rate is 47% higher during the 1st year of
employment for substance abusers
• Drug positive applicants are 2.4 times more likely to be
disciplined
• Cocaine positive applicants were 5.5 times more likely to
be disciplined
• An estimated 9% of applicants are screened out annually
through drug testing
Substance Abuse Program
Checklist
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Program Coordinator
Written Program
Who Will Be Tested
Reasons For Testing
Disciplinary Actions
Program Coordinator
• May be in charge of
• Random selection process
• Notification of selected candidates
• Scheduling of testing activities
• Maintenance of confidential records
• Receives Drug Testing Results
• Determines Compliance With Company’s
Program
• Complete the Annual Testing Summary
Drugs To Be Tested
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Marijuana
Cocaine
Opiates
Amphetamines
Phencyclidine (PCP)
Use of Marijuana
• Shreds of material in pockets, bobby
pins, clips
• Pleasant Euphoria
• Lethargy, inability to concentrate
• Impaired motor skills
• Distorted sense of time and distance
• Sweet aromatic aroma
Use of Cocaine
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Restlessness and nervousness
Mental confusion
Irritability and anxiety
Excessively active
Long periods without eating or sleeping, likely to
be emaciated
• Chronically runny nose, respiratory problems
from snorting cocaine
• Seizures, dilated pupils
Use of Opiates
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Mental dullness
Scars on the arms, hands/injections
Constricted pupils
Scratches frequently
Gooseflesh
Loss of appetite
Nodding/slurring speech
Restlessness, sniffles, red eyes
Use of Amphetamines
• Reduced appetite
• Exhaustion
• Similar effects to cocaine,
but last a long time
Use of Phencyclidine (PCP)
• Non-communicative, blank staring
appearance with eye flicking from side to
side
• High stepping, exaggerated gait
• Increased insensitivity to pain
• Extreme mood swings
• Combative tendencies
• Extreme strengths often exhibited
Signs of Drug Misuse
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Change in attendance at work
Dramatic swings in attitude
Change in work habits
Poor physical appearance, dress and
personal hygiene
• Efforts to cover arms to hide needle
marks
• Association with other drug users
WHO SHOULD BE TESTED?
REASONS TO BE
TESTED?
Pre-Employment Drug Testing
• All new hires
• Selective drug testing
• Recommended testing inclusive of:
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Employees
Managers
Supervisors
Administration
All Payroll Recipients
Random Drug Testing
• Every employee has equal chance to be
tested
• Random tests are unannounced
• Annual testing rate of 25% - 50%
• All employees must be in the pool of
names
• Every employee includes all employees
receiving payroll
Post Accident Testing
• Drug testing for reportable accidents
is defined as any incident that results
in:
• Property damage
• Personal injury
• Injury of another person
• Death of another person
Reasonable Cause Testing
• Employee’s appearance or conduct
is indicative of the use of drugs
• Two supervisors or officials should
observe the conduct if possible
• Employee must be taken immediately
to collection site
• Document employee’s action that
resulted in test within 24 hours
Testing Process
• Urine specimens collected under highly
controlled conditions
• Requires a designated collection site
• Acceptable security for collection
• Chain of custody documentation
• Use of authorized personnel
• Privacy during collection
• Integrity and identity of the specimen
• Transportation to the laboratory
Laboratory Testing
• Labs must be certified
• National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)
• Immunoassay Test
• Initial screening test
• If negative, no additional tests on specimen
will be performed
• If Positive, Gas Chromatography Test
• A confirmatory test conducted
• Results reported to the Program Coordinator
SCHOOL DRUG TESTING
Recordkeeping Requirements
• An accurate record keeping system
requires:
• Safeguards against the unauthorized
release of information
• Proper chain of custody documentation
• Protection of the privacy of employee
• Overall program effectiveness
Results of Controlled Substance
Test
• Information that should be
maintained in the employee’s file
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The date of the urine collection
The location of the collection site
The identity of the lab performing tests
Whether the test findings were
“positive” or “negative”, and if
“positive” the name of the drug
Annual Summary of Drug Testing
Program
• This summary should include:
• Total number of tests administered
• For Each Category of Testing:
• Number of individuals who failed
• Failure rate
• Disposition of each employee who did not
pass a drug test (Violent Reaction?)
• Determine What Your Company is Going
to Do With The Information In File
DISCIPLINARY ACTION
COMPANY POLICY MAY VARY
Normal brain of young adult
male
FRONT VIEW
No more “ice” use but progressive
damage four months later
FRONT VIEW
No more “ice” use but progressive
damage four months later
LATERAL VIEW
Before Using Ice
After 4 Years of Using Ice
Acknowledgements
• Legislative Information Service of Hawaii,
Honolulu
• Dr. Carol M. Law, President, Drug-Free Workplace,
Inc., Pensacola, Florida
• National Council on Compensation Insurance,
National Council on Alcoholism and Drug
Dependence, and the American Society of Safety
Engineers
• SCHACHTER, KRISTOF, ROSS, SPRAGUE &
CURLALE, Attorney’s @ Law, San Francisco,
California
• United Postal Service (USPS), Washington, D.C.
• General Motors Corporation, Detroit, Michigan
Mahalo
Have a safe
and healthful
day.
HEMIC