One of the questions we get asked at our Perth branch more than any other, is why does Integrity Sampling specialise in saliva testing for drugs rather than urine drug testing?
It’s a fair question, because it wasn’t that long ago when urine drug testing was the most common means of testing for drugs. So let’s look at the advantages of both urine drug testing and saliva drug testing, before we look at why saliva or oral fluid testing is our number 1 testing methodology.
Urine drug testing advantages
- Sample collection is easy. It simply requires a person to provide urine in a sample jar.
- Testing is easy and relatively inexpensive. Generally, a test strip or lab reagent is dipped in the sample, with a colour change indicating whether a drug is present or absent.
- Urine drug testing is accurate and dependable.
- Urine drug testing can indicate the presence of a wide range of drugs in a person’s system.
- Results can be obtained reasonably quickly and on-site, as long as the equipment and resources are available.
Saliva drug testing advantages
- The advantages of saliva testing for drugs are essentially the same as for urine drug testing and in fact are even more pronounced.
- For the person being tested, it couldn’t be easier, as all they need do is rub a collection device around the inside of their mouth.
- The collection device is then placed in the testing unit, in Integrity Sampling’s case the widely acclaimed Drager Drug Test 5000. Accuracy is greater than 99% and results are obtained in as little as 5 minutes. The process is quicker and easier than for urine testing.
So which is best for your Perth business? Urine drug testing or saliva testing?
While the advantages are essentially similar, with saliva testing proving better because of it’s speed and ease of use, it’s the disadvantages of urine drug testing where saliva testing really stands out:
- Collection of urine samples is invasive and many people find it embarrassing.
- If supervision levels are high, the invasiveness and embarrassment levels are even higher and may infringe on an employee’s privacy rights; if supervision levels are low, the opportunity for tampering and ‘cheating’ increases. With saliva testing, there is no opportunity to tamper with or cheat the process.
- The window of detection for urine drug testing is wider than for saliva drug testing and can be up to several days. This means that a person who hasn’t had drugs for more than 1 or 2 days – and is fit for work and safe to be at work – can provide a positive urine drug test. The window of detection for saliva drug testing is less and is a much truer indication of whether a person is fit and safe for work.
All these points make saliva testing a better alternative to urine drug testing for your Perth workplace. And it’s why Perth and all branches of Integrity Sampling choose saliva drug testing.
Rest assured that if you’d like Perth or one of our other Western Australian branches to undertake urine drug testing for you, rather than saliva testing, we can. Simply contact us to discuss your needs or, if you’re a client of Integrity Samplings, making a booking enquiry.
