Instant or rapid drug testing sometimes called point of collection testing (POCT) is drug testing where negative results are available in minutes. Rapid drug testing is available at facilities through the United States or employers can administer in 5 to 10 minutes.
Scroll down to the bottom of the page to watch our short video on Immediate vs Instant Drug Testing.
Our rapid testing products can be ordered online or call 866-843-4545. Instant or rapid drug testing is available with urine or oral fluid specimens.
Let’s learn more about instant, rapid or POCT drug testing:
Instant Drug Testing Overview
Get fast turnaround time on your drug testing program with instant drug testing from National Drug Screening.
Time is critical when making employment decisions. Test today and get a result today. Call 866-843-4545 to schedule your drug test or order a drug test online.
Instant drug testing or sometimes called point of care testing (POCT) provides instant negative results in minutes. National Drug Screening provides instant drug testing or POCT testing at over 5000 locations throughout the United States. These locations are part of our e-Screen, Quest Diagnostics and LabCorp collection site networks. The initial screening test is done on site at the e-Screen, Quest or LabCorp facility sometimes called a patient service center (PSC). Negative results will be transmitted back to the employer or individual taking the test within one hour of the specimen collection.
Instant or rapid drug tests can be with urine or oral fluid specimens. Employers also have the option of administering these tests in house with non-negative results requiring confirmation and specimen shipped to the lab. Our programs include training for the in house administration of instant or rapid drug tests.
With instant testing, or POCT, the negative result is available online in our web based system within one hour of collection time. This a great benefit for pre-employment drug testing when you want to get the individual to work as soon as possible. When the results of the instant test are non-negative, they must be sent to the laboratory for confirmation testing and then review by a Medical Review Officer. These results may take 2-3 business days additional. Fortunately, only about 5% of the time do we see non-negative results that must go to the laboratory.
If you need a POCT urine test in any area of the United States, National Drug Screening can be of assistance. Many times, we get calls asking do you have a drug test facility near me, and the answer is always yes.
Some Non-DOT employers may elect to do both lab based drug testing and POCT testing. Can urine from same specimen collection cup be used for both tests? This is ok as long as 30mL of urine is available for the lab drug test.
Training for testing using instant drug testing products is available from National Drug Screening, call 866-843-4545.
Benefits of Instant Testing for Employers
Instant drug tests are often needed for pre-employment so that you can get folks working right away. Employers using POCT or instant testing have access to:
- In house collection and testing available – this saves the employer money
- Immediate testing after interview and job offer
- Large collection network throughout the United States
- Electronic ordering of tests, eCCF
- Fast accurate same day negative results
- Results delivered by web and/or e-mail
- Web based online storage of results
Place the order from your desktop, send the order via e-mail to your candidate and the pre-employment test is now immediately in process with negative results to be reported same day your candidate goes for testing. From order to result, the process is simple and completed entirely online.
All non-negative results from instant drug testing must go to the laboratory for confirmation testing. The testing methodology for all confirmation testing is gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Utilizing a gas chromatograph coupled to a mass spectrometer, GC/MS provides identification of the molecule(s) based on characteristic fragmentation patterns at specific retention times. This process identifies the exact metabolite of the drug that has been detected with quantitative levels.
Positive results confirmed at the laboratory must be review by our Medical Review Officer (MRO). The donor is called by the MRO to discuss any legal prescriptions that may have caused the positive results. If the MRO verifies a legitimate prescription, the result is reported back to the employer as negative. If there is no medical explanation for the non-negative results, the Medical Review Officer will report as positive listing the drug or drugs that were detected. There are no false positive results after MRO review, these are final results.
When considering instant or POCT testing, please consult with your company policy, state laws and/or attorney for drug free workplace policy review and compliance with State drug testing laws. Some State laws prohibit instant or POCT testing. Also, remember that for federally regulated testing and DOT regulated testing; instant or POCT testing is prohibited. National Drug Screening can assist with questions and consultation regarding the legality of instant, rapid or POCT drug testing.
Urine Instant Drug Testing
Instant drug testing is often called rapid drug testing or point of collection testing (POCT) and can deliver same day negative drug test results.
Instant drug testing with urine has been around 20+ years. Employers can administer instant urine drug testing in house or utilize our network of -Screen, Quest Diagnostics and LabCorp collection site networks about 5000 facilities across the United States.
With rapid testing, if the test shows positive we call it inconclusive or presumptive positive, and the specimen needs to be shipped to the lab for confirmation testing and then Medical Review Officer (MRO) review of the lab result.
There are hundreds of instant or rapid test products on the market. Some are cup products, dip products and some are cassette products. Most often you will see a cup product which is the collection cup and build in testing device. Visit our Nexscreen line of instant urine drug tests for our recommended products.
Almost any configuration of drugs is available for up to a 12 panel rapid drug test. Some of our common POCT or instant drug testing cups we offer include:
- NexScreen Cup – 6 Panel – ND-60610N, Lab Panel – Quest 32824N Cocaine, Marijuana (THC, cannabinoids), Phencyclidine (PCP), Amphetamines, Methamphetamines, Opiates
- NexScreen Cup – 10 Panel – ND-61012N, Quest Lab Panel – 32826N Cocaine, Marijuana (THC, cannabinoids), Amphetamines, Methamphetamines, MDMA (Ecstasy or Molly), Opiates, Oxycodone, Benzodiazepines, Barbiturates, Methadone
Oral Fluid Instant Drug Testing
Over the last few years, we have seen the popularity of oral fluid instant drug testing. Employers can self-collect oral fluid specimens for these tests and also many LabCorp Patient Service Centers (PSC) stock these oral fluid rapid test kits for walk in testing. Walk in testing is only available with pre-registration by calling 866-843-4545.
With oral fluid instant drug testing there some significant advantages:
- cheating is very difficult
- no gender issues, all collections are direct observed
- when you have a shy bladder for a urine drug test, you can switch over to rapid oral fluid drug test
- short window of detection, recent use of drug is detected with instant oral fluid drug testing
- same day negative results available with the instant oral fluid POCT test
Conclusion
When done right, instant drug testing programs can help companies achieve their drug testing objectives in a fast and cost-effective manner. The legal viability of instant testing depends on compliance with all applicable state laws and following best practices that can ensure the accuracy and integrity of a drug-testing program. However, it isn’t always a given that instant testing will fit into every employer’s drug testing program. A thoughtful review of your testing program along with the pros and cons of instant testing will help you determine just how practical it will really be for your workplace.
It is important to note that with any instant drug testing, a non-negative results must be confirmed at a laboratory with result reviewed and verified by a medical review officer. The benefit to instant drug testing is the immediate negative result enabling the employer to get the applicant to work ASAP. The use of instant drug testing is not approved for DOT drug testing programs.