Everyone is concerned about being tested for drug or alcohol use when applying for jobs. Even though it may bother some applicants, the employer has a responsibility to maintain the safety of the workplace.
There are different ways of drug testing currently available, with one increasing in popularity being oral fluid drug testing. Other options include blood, hair, and the most common type, urine.
Saliva drug testing is starting to find its way into more testing programs, due to its ease of use, accuracy, and difficulty to adulterate. Also, let’s point out, that it doesn’t require the same type of invasive observation that urine tests do.
What Is a Mouth Swab Drug Test?
A Saliva Drug test, which is also known as the mouth swab test or oral fluid test is a test in which the saliva sample is collected from inside the person’s mouth.
This collected saliva sample is then returned to the chamber for saturation analysis.
This process involves detecting any metabolites that occur as a result of illicit drug use. The great thing about saliva testing is that it can be done at any time since it does not rely upon urine or observation protocol.
The Saliva drug test is very popular among employers and staffing agencies since it can be administered on-site and can provide up to 99% accurate results in less than 10 minutes.
Mouth swabs can also fill the gap with recent use detection, while urine sometimes misses the mark.
What Drugs Will Be Detected?
With the Saliva drug test, there are many configurations to choose from. Choosing the right combination really depends on how many substances you would like to screen for, as well as how many at the same time.
The most basic of tests, detect 5 substances, while those who require more comprehensive testing, can opt for 10 or 12. The following substances have been the most popularly abused historically: cocaine, opioids, marijuana, methamphetamine, amphetamine, and PCP.
Marijuana can be detected for 24 to 72 hours. As for opioids, it is for 24 to 36 hours. It detects cocaine, for one to 10 days; amphetamine, for one to five days; alcohol, for one to five days; and methamphetamine, for one to four days.
Which Employers Use Mouth Swab Drug Tests?
Oral fluid as a collection option can be used by most companies without any issues.
Certain federally mandated programs still require urine, but saliva testing is currently being considered as an option as well- the specifics are still in the approval process, but it’s only a matter of time.
For a conservative example of common employment drug testing, Clinton drug testing in NC is a good place to start your research.
How accurate is oral fluid drug testing?
The saliva drug test or mouth swab test is highly effective when it comes to detecting recent drug abuse. Businesses who are looking for an accurate test that is less expensive than the standard lab option, usually opt for saliva drug testing.
There are some well-known brands in the space such as SalivaConfirm by TestCountry and Oratect by Alere which offer different options. As previously mentioned, businesses can expect close to a 99% accuracy rate on instant saliva tests from quality providers as mentioned above.