“In Germany and Italy, it is common practice for drivers convicted of a drug-driving offence to have a hair test before regaining their licence”

Last year, RAC research found that fewer than one in 10 people read the labels on prescribed drugs for any warnings about driving or operating machinery while taking medication. In Europe, approximately 4,500 deaths and 135,000 serious injuries are caused annually by drug driving. In 2001, the UK’s Transport Research Laboratory found nearly one in five drivers killed in car accidents had drugs in their system. More astonishing data came from Durham Police in 2002 – blood screening tests indicated that half of all driver fatalities in their region from January to June had drugs in their system, more than the number of drink-related deaths. And the Home Office reports almost one in five people between the ages of 16 and 24 are regular drug users. These figures impact on road-safety issues and through any industry that employs fork-lift truck drivers, van drivers, machine operators or, indeed, any employee who drives a company car.

So what options are there to help redress the lack of public knowledge, to support the law and employers’ drug policies? Three key actions need to be encouraged:

(i) an awareness campaign
The greater awareness of the risks of combining drug-taking and driving, the better the chance people will positively choose not to endanger themselves and others.

(ii) an opportunity to treat addicts
An addiction to drugs can mean a phsyical and mental dependancy that no law can legislate against. More opportunities for treatment and rehabilitation will encourage users to seek help earlier – before a fatal or injurious accident takes place.

(iii)implementing effective drug-testing programmes
Legislation or policy can be effectively managed with drug testing for deterrence and for assessment, and the options available are becoming more practical and less invasive. Saliva tests can help ascertain whether drugs were in the system at the time of an accident. Because they are easier to collect than urine or blood samples and their window of detection is shorter than urine, oral fluids’ analysis can be more appropriate for post-incident or “for cause” testing.

For assessing whether someone has successfully undergone treatment or for confirming abstinence, a hair test provides a definitive profile of drug use over weeks and months – using a urine or saliva test in these contexts is almost pointless as anyone abstaining for a few hours or days can avoid detection.

In Germany and Italy, it is common practice for drivers convicted of a drug-driving offence to have a hair test before regaining their licence: the profile of any drug use over the last few months provides a far greater safety net for the community. Actively encouraging all three elements will make a strong contribution to cutting the rapidly increasing danger of drug driving.

Tricho-Tech provides drug testing services to transport,
manufacturing and insurance services as well as police forces,
hospitals and government departments. They are the only
UK laboratory to hold UKAS accreditation for testing for
drugs of abuse in hair, saliva and urine (certificate 2212).
Tel: 029 2068 2051. Website: www.tricho-tech.co.uk