In a factory environment full of risks, drug and alcohol use should always be a significant concern.
In 1994, 90% of Human Resource Directors from major UK organisations stated that alcohol consumption was a problem for their company. 17% of them said it was a major problem that caused multiple issues that affected the employees and the company.
Fast forward to 2022/2023, the number of people entering drug and alcohol treatment has increased to 137,749 (130,490 and 133,704 in the previous years).
Therefore, Wright Medics conduct detailed workplace on-site drug and alcohol screenings in various environments, including factories.
Why are Drug and Alcohol Screenings Crucial for Factories?
Drug and alcohol misuse can cause numerous problems in a factory:
- Compromised safety at work: Drugs and alcohol can result in potentially fatal accidents and serious misuse of equipment
- The loss of productivity in the workplace and an increase in absenteeism
- Physical and mental health issues
- Massive damage to the company’s reputation
- Poor morale in the workplace.
Are Drug and Alcohol Screenings a Legal Requirement in the UK?
As of today, drug and alcohol testing in the workplace isn’t a legal requirement.
However, because of the potential damage drugs and alcohol can cause in a factory, employers have a duty of care to offer excellent testing services.
The 1974 Health and Safety Work Act requires organisations to create and maintain a safe work environment for their employees; drug and alcohol testing falls into this bracket.
How Can Wright Medics Help?
Wright Medics offers a high-quality testing programme for drugs and alcohol.
Wright Medics Drugs Testing
Our test for drug use involves a short questionnaire that the employee fills out. In this questionnaire, we determine if the employee has a history of drug use, medical or recreational.
After the questionnaire, the employee will need to take a urine test, which is effective at detecting the presence of the following drugs:
- Cannabis
- Cocaine
- Methadone
- Opiate
- Methamphetamines
- Tramadol
- Ecstasy
If the urine test produces a positive result, we will submit the sample to an independent laboratory so they can re-evaluate it.
Wright Medics Alcohol Screenings
At Wright Medics, we conduct alcohol testing with a breath test. We use a Draeger AT-6810 machine, which is similar to the machine used by the UK Police Force.
Our fully certified and trained paramedics professionally administer the test. Here is the Wright Medics alcohol test procedure:
- One of our paramedics will ask you to take a deep breath
- You will then blow into the mouthpiece (forcefully but evenly)
- Don’t touch the monitor while you blow into the device
- We will generate the result in ‘per mil’ units.
This test should take around five minutes.
Depending on the client’s policy, we can administer a second test 20 minutes after the first if the result is above zero.
Wright Medics is on Hand for Drug and Alcohol Screenings
Demonstrate excellent duty of care to your employees; contact Wright Medics today to arrange drug and alcohol testing.
Our paramedics are fully registered and receive excellent training, so your staff will be in skilful hands.
For a thorough drug and alcohol screening, contact us on 01909 730507 or enquiries@wrightmedics.com. Alternatively, complete our contact form, and our attentive customer service team will contact you promptly.is