Decades of Patient-Focused Laboratory Testing

Drugscan is a long-standing toxicology lab with nearly 40 years of experience delivering quality laboratory testing. Drugscan is accredited by the College of American Pathologists (CAP), licensed by Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA), and certified by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). Drugscan is one of only a few labs in the United States that maintains all three credentials.

While toxicology testing has widespread utility, Drugscan specializes in toxicology testing for the treatment of patients whose medical condition requires the use of controlled substances. With millions of Americans meeting the criteria for a substance use disorder, and overdose deaths remaining high, safe prescribing practices and patient monitoring are more important than ever.

One practice area utilizing toxicology is chronic pain management. While there are many ways to treat pain, those whose treatment plan includes the use of chronic opioids will require routine testing to ensure that medications are being used safely and risk to the patient is managed closely. It is common practice for routine laboratory testing to be part of chronic illness management. Testing patients to mitigate medication risks is one way of doing just that.

The early identification of medication misuse is essential for early intervention to prevent complications of controlled substance use including eventual substance use disorder (SUD). While monitoring a patient during their use of controlled medications may include multiple modalities, toxicology testing is the most objective tool available to providers to determine what medications or substances a patient has been exposed to.

Toxicology testing is also important in the management of SUD. Providers can utilize urine drug testing to determine how well an individual is recovering. It may help providers to identify relapse early or to monitor how closely a patient is adhering to their prescribed medications used to treat SUD, as these drugs also carry certain risks. Providers treating SUD can use information obtained through toxicology testing to ensure treatment is individualized based on the substances with which the patient is struggling. SUD is a complex and volatile illness that often includes periods of wellness and periods of relapse. Laboratory testing is vital to ensure patients are given the type and level of care they need throughout their recovery.

As with many clinical tools, toxicology testing is most useful when it is combined with a provider’s thorough assessment of a patient. Providers who use toxicology results to guide discussions with patients may be able to identify at-risk medication behavior quickly but also identify barriers a patient may be facing. For example, a patient who is negative for prescribed medication and looks to be diverting or misusing medication may have financial barriers or transportation barriers that prevent them from regular access to their medication. They could also be intolerable to a medication’s side effect profile or not understand appropriate dosing and risk. All of this can be learned through discussions with a patient following laboratory testing and allows for provider intervention.

Drugscan is dedicated to a Patient’s First approach to urine drug testing. Members of our team have worked tirelessly throughout the opioid epidemic to educate patients and providers on the importance of prevention, to advocate for a vulnerable population often lacking in resources, to promote healing and harm reduction for those suffering with SUDs, and to do all we can to equip providers with the results they need to advance quality outcomes for patients.

To partner with Drugscan for all your toxicology testing needs, please contact our Customer Service Team at (800) 235-4890.