Mobile Health Encourages Drug Testing as PCP Emergency Department Visits Increases
New York, NY (PRWEB) November 29, 2013 -- On November 12 2013, The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) released a Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN) report detailing emergency department visits involving Phencyclidine (PCP) (http://www.samhsa.gov/data/2K13/DAWN143/sr143-emergency-phencyclidine-2013.pdf ). Between 2005 and 2011, PCP related emergency department visits increased over 400%. Mobile Health encourages all employers to implement a workplace drug testing policy to help curb the increase of dangerous PCP use.
The report goes further to explain that the New York City and Chicago areas suffered the most from increased visits whereas other metropolitan areas remained stable. This is particularly worrisome for New York employers who could be exposed to the dangerous effects of PCP, also known as ‘angel dust’ and ‘wet’.
PCP users regularly experience ‘out of body’ hallucinations that can lead to hostile behavior and extreme violence. Most experience a combination of numbness, slurred speech, loss of coordination, and distorted visual images. This physical deterioration helps explain why there were 75,538 emergency department visits in 2011 associated with PCP. In the same year, only 4,819 visits were reported for users of LSD, a milder hallucination-causing drug.
Although not commonly associated as a workplace drug due to its disruption, users who partake at home can still bring lingering effects to the office. Chronic users may exhibit memory problems and speech difficulties even after quitting for up to 1 year.
The DAWN report also found that users of PCP tend to consume other drugs along with PCP. 72% of all PCP related visits involved popular add-ons such as marijuana, cocaine, pain relievers, and other pharmaceutical drugs. A standard 5 panel drug test will detect PCP, marijuana, cocaine, as well as opium and amphetamine.
As employers decide on a comprehensive drug testing policy, the 5 panel is a standard baseline to cover many common dangerous substances. Even the federal government uses the 5 panel drug test as the standard screening tool for most agencies. Additional panels can be added to test for job-specific substances.
Mobile Health is an occupational health provider focusing on employee screening services such as drug tests, medical exams, and background checks. It owns and operates six medical centers in Manhattan, Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island, and Hempstead Long Island. Clients use Mobile Health’s online portal to schedule appointments as well as retrieve results. To learn more, visit http://www.mobilehealth.net
Rafael Landeiro, Mobile Health, http://www.mobilehealth.net/, 646-625-3008, [email protected]
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