drug screen
 

I got a job offer today from a local hospital, and the job offer is contingent on me passing a drug test tomorrow. I'm rather naive about these things, so I don't know if it's a urine test or a blood test.

Unfortunately I took a 5-mg tablet of hydrocodone yesterday, which I have by prescription from my doctor for occasional arthritic hip pain. Because of this, I'm worried that the drug test will be positive, and the job offer will be withdrawn.

I am a very honest person. I'm thinking of getting a note from my doctor in hopes that the employer will be understanding. My wife suggests drinking lots of water, also. Do you think I'm basically screwed? :(

You have a script, so you are covered. When they run the test, they *should* ask you on a form about any prescribed medicines ...

Agreed, you have a script for it.

I'm pretty sure a hospital will be familiar with legal dispensing of pain management meds.

Thank you, much appreciated.

SmileWavy

Meanwhile, drink as much water as you can stand. If you pee a full amount about 4 times before the test, your urine should test negative. Your blood will test negative by tomorrow anyway, so count on the urine test to be what they do.

If you took a hit on a doob, you're toast. Takes 4 days. Any of it can be found in a strand of hair for months on end. But, they don't do that.

The tricky part is disclosing. You might want to mention that you have a script and hope it doesn't come up positive.

Thanks, Milt, I'm doing that right now.

I mean drinking lots of water. :)

Do you usually get a choice between blood or urine test? I can imagine a touch of "performance anxiety" preventing the valve from opening and creating embarassment at a minimum. Hey, shy bladder is somewhat common, eh?

Have never had to take a drug test, but with a history of shy bladder, I'd probably opt for blood test if given a choice. How does it normally work?

Wifes niece just took a drug test for a job... drank lots of water just before... they took a piece of her hair.

Lol, you don't get a choice in the manner of the drug test. There is a section that asks about prescription meds, be honest and have a valid script. You will be fine.

A urine test is the norm for work place drug screening.

Blood is taken for DUI offences.

****! Hit the wrong buttons and lost the Browser.

Anyhoo.....the short version: I was a Drug Testing Coordinator for six years and 15,000 participants in the project. Collection staff could not accept information from donors about prescriptions. Urine specimen goes to a lab. Lab report goes to the MRO (Medical Review Officer) who tries to contact you. If they are successful, you will provide information about your prescription including the prescribing doctor and the pharmacy that filled it. If that is valid and you are taking the medicine correctly, there should be no problem. In a couple of days, the medicine is washed from your system anyway, in the case of hydrocodone.

if they give you a cup to fill, poop in it and give them some solid evidence!

LOL, I love that stoopid joke.

Superman is correct. If the test is positive, the MRO (Medical Review Officer) will contact you and discuss it. If you have a prescription, it will be confirmed and if appropriate, your test will be considered negative.

One thing to be aware of is that if your urine is excessively diluted that can be cause for question. Drink plenty to ensure "adequate specimen volume" - LOL - but don't try to drown yourself. You've done nothing wrong, just drink and do your test.

angela

I've had two tests in the past 4 months. The new way to test is the swab, sort of like a q-tip, that you just hold in your mouth for 5 minutes. They told me the piss quiz is old tech and all testing will be this way now.

Exactly.

Thank you, everyone. Much obliged for all the info. :)

When it comes to determining whether a specimen is too diluted, what they are looking for is a "human" proportion of creatinine in the urine. Creatinine is a sort of protein, or linked to protein. So yeah, don't drink so much that your urine looks like water. If this happens, then oftentimes it becomes time for an "observed collection," which is where the shy bladder thing comes into the picture. Further, to maximize the presence of creatinine, they say you should eat a nice steak the night before. This rumor is not confirmed, but not purely wives-tale either. Not a bad idea. Might I suggest a nice rib steak, grilled or BBQ'd with a subtle amount of appropriate spices.

99% of pre-employment drug screens are piss tests due to costs. Hair tests are way too expensive. Pretty much anything you put into your body will be gone within 72 hours (at most) for a urine test. Even less if it is more of a one time thing.

No! I've freely admitted to "stuff" here, and one time I was up for a "test" and still showed a "trace" 5 weeks later when I paid to take a "pre-test"...I over-diluted, and was questioned about the "clarity", but gave 'em, some bs "beer drinking with a college buddy" story and got the job (they wanted me BAAAD :)). One co that I wasn't gonna work for anyways (my choice) was doing hair samples...I told 'em to F-off...none of their freakin' business. Their loss...

don't eat a poppy seed bagel