Sylvain wrote:
"Gig 601XL Builder" wrDOTgiaconaATsuddenlink.net wrote:

You are right about the tests failing. Especially the quick tests.
They fail at a rate close to 50% both false positives and negatives
that's why we stopped using them. We use a lab with a mass
spectrometer that could probably tell what you had for dinner last
Thursday. And a positive is a positive only after a medical review
officer talks to the tested individual and finds out all the legal
substances that they could have ingested that might give a false
positive.

I know this is getting out of the aviation thing; but, if these
advanced techniques you mention are so refined, how comes we often
hear about problems with professional athletes being falsely accused
of doping? Since there is a lot of money at stake, I wouldn't think
they go for the cheap version of the tests; pro athletes are
surrounded by physicians who should know better about what substances
might or might not cause a problem; the whole thing about chain of
custody of the samples should be taken care of very carefully because
of they are under a lot of scrutiny, etc. So, if they can't seem to
get it right in such a context, why should I trust my hypothetical
employer on this issue?

(note that my current employer doesn't require such a test -- I don't
have teen age kids, and only smoked the thing where it was legal to
do so)

--Sylvain

The pro athletes have real good lawyers. Add to that (like that isn't
enough) a lot of the things that athletes use are already in the human
system naturally and the performance improvement comes from increasing the
amount that is there.

As far as trusting you employer I don't ask you to. We always use a third
party lab that then uses an independent medical review officer.

Since you mentioned good tests you'd be surprised at some of the
organizations that use the cheap tests. We had an employee that failed for
cocaine on a Tuesday and admitted to me that he had used it Sunday
afternoon. He thought it was strange though that we caught him because the
day before his FEDERAL probation officer had tested him with the little
instant read cups on Monday and he passed.