Drug Screening Policies

An Outpatient Substance Abuse and Co-Occurring Disorder Treatment Center located in Chatsworth, CA.

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HVRC drug screening policies support the maintenance of the alcohol and drug free environment that we maintain. Drugs and alcohol are incompatible with the healthy, safe, and efficient environment which we determine necessary for successful treatment and recovery. Employees, clients, and all personnel associated with our programs endanger the health, safety, and recovery of those in our care when under the influence or in possession of drugs and/or alcohol. Furthermore, considering the nature of our mission, it is imperative that the drug-and-alcohol-free policy be strictly adhered to. This page will describe, in detail, what can be expected with regards to our drug screening policies.

Drug Screening Criteria

It is the policy of The Hollywood & Vine Recovery Center that outpatient screening for drugs of abuse (DOA) is medically necessary for presumptive (preliminary) testing for a specific drug(s) when meeting the following criteria:

  • Verification of compliance with treatment

  • Identification of undisclosed drug use or abuse

  • Evaluation of aberrant* behavior beginning at the start of treatment. (*Note: aberrant behavior includes, but is not limited to, lost prescriptions, repeated requests for early refills, and prescriptions from multiple providers, unauthorized dose escalation, and apparent intoxication.)

  • Receiving treatment for chronic pain or other highly abused medications.

  • Monitoring for relapse of opioid addiction or substance use disorder.

  • Clinical evaluation suggests use of non-prescribed medications or illegal substances.

Drug Screening Frequency

It is our policy that outpatient drug screening is to be performed at an appropriate and random frequency based on both clinical and Client needs. The frequency of screening is at the lowest level to detect the presence of drugs.

All presumptive or preliminary drug screening must be medically necessary and thoroughly documented according to the following frequency:

  1. For Clients with 0 to 30 consecutive days of abstinence, presumptive testing may be performed randomly but no more often than 3 presumptive tests per week.
  2. For Clients with 31 to 90 consecutive days of abstinence, presumptive tests may be performed randomly but no more often than weekly.
  3. For Clients with > 90 consecutive days of abstinence, presumptive testing may be performed randomly but no more often than twice per month.

When situations arise where drug screening is deemed appropriate to uphold our Drug-Free Environment, our staff follows written policies to protect against the falsification and/or contamination of any specimen sample including but not limited to following the Department of Health and Human Services Substance Abuse and Mental Health Urine Specimen Collection suggestions.

When Drug Screening is Required

A drug and/or alcohol screening will be required of Clients when there is “reasonable suspicion” that a violation of the Drug-Free Environment Policy has occurred. Whenever possible, the request and referral for testing after “reasonable suspicion” will be based upon the observations of a clinical team member and the concurrence of a fellow governing member on duty. “Reasonable suspicion” means suspicion reasonably drawn from specific, objective facts and reasonable inferences drawn from such facts may include, among other things:

  • Observable phenomena, such as direct observation of drug or alcohol use, possession or distribution, or the physical symptoms of being under the influence of drugs or alcohol, such as but not limited to slurred speech, dilated pupils, odor of alcohol or marijuana, changes in affect, mood swings, etc;
  • A pattern of abnormal conduct, erratic or aberrant behavior, or deteriorating performance which appears to be related to substance use and does not appear to be attributed to other factors;
  • The identification of personnel or a client as the focus of a criminal investigation into unauthorized drug possession, use, or trafficking;
  • A report of alcohol or other drug use provided by a reliable and credible source; or,
  • Repeated or flagrant violations of HVRC’s safety or work rules, which are determined by a supervisor to pose a substantial risk of physical injury or property damage and which appear to be related to substance use or that may violate our Drug-Free Environment Policy, and do not appear to be attributed to other factors.

Drug Screening Confidentiality

To protect the confidentiality of personal information, all paper records pertaining to drug and/or alcohol screening are stored in fire and waterproof secured storage in the Client’s file. The information contained in these files shall be utilized only to properly administer this Drug-Free Workplace Policy, to comply with authorized requests for information as required by law, and to aid in the defense of HVRC in the face of any lawsuit or other proceeding initiated by or on behalf of the specific staff member.