Drug education helps create safer workplaces

Many Australians may be unaware of the impact drugs have on their ability to perform their duties at work, according to a leading supplier of workplace drug and alcohol tests.

Principal Scientific Consultant for d:tec Australia, Andrew Leibie said drug use could slow reaction times and severely impair the ability to judge risks.

"There are many misconceptions among employees and employers about the impact of drugs on the body and, in particular, how long drugs remain within a person's system after consumption," he said.

"Many people aren't aware that something as well-intentioned as a sleeping tablet taken to get a good night's rest can impact on their work performance the next day.

"Studies have shown that 60% of alcohol-related work performance problems can be attributed to employees who are not alcohol dependent, but who drink too much the night before work.

"This makes employee education sessions a priority for any business introducing workplace drug testing.

"Workplace drug testing is not about catching people out or pointing the finger at anyone, it's about creating a safe working environment.

"However, in order to create this safe environment, employees need to know why and how drugs and alcohol can impact on their work performance."

Leibie said employers considering the introduction of workplace drug tests should inform and educate their workers at least one month prior to the first round of samples being collected.

"This gives people the opportunity to change their behaviour or seek help from their employer assistance program, if required," he said.

"Employees also need to have an understanding of the company's drug policy and the consequences they face should they return a positive result. Education about the effects of drugs is not enough."

A company's drug policy should have clearly stated objectives, such as minimising risks to health and safety in the workplace that may arise from drug and alcohol use, taking a proactive and reactive approach to drugs and alcohol in the workplace and eliminating the use of drugs and alcohol in the workplace.

"Ideally, the education sessions should take place at the same time as the company's drug policy is introduced," Leibie said.

"If a company introduces a drug policy without employee education sessions to support it, workers who use drugs or alcohol but don't understand the impact on their work performance may not feel compelled to change their ways.

"Conversely, if a company undertakes employee education sessions before presenting its drug policy, employees will invariably ask what the consequences will be if they return a positive test result.

"Introducing both the drug policy and employee education sessions at the same time can help to avoid this."

Leibie said employee education sessions should ideally last for 45 minutes at a time and include handout reading material with contact details for workers who want to speak with somebody anonymously.

"From d:tec's own experience, we have found that after most education sessions, during which we provide workers with d:tec's freecall phone number, we receive around two to three calls per day over a period of around two weeks," he said.

"These anonymous calls are from workers seeking answers to questions they feel uncomfortable asking during the education session.

"This is a positive sign that many employees, when learning about the impact of drugs and alcohol, do in fact want to change their ways."

He said education sessions should also clearly demonstrate to workers how the impact of drugs and alcohol can be applied to their own work performance.

"For example, even in very mild doses, marijuana slows the brain's reaction time by about two to three seconds for complex tasks," he said. "This reaction time can slow even further as the complexity of the task increases. However, many people will be completely unaware of these delays as the effect of time dilation tricks their brain into thinking they have reacted quickly.

"For people who take methamphetamines, or speed, this drug has the opposite effect to marijuana.

"Methamphetamines speed up reaction times, increase a person's confidence in their abilities and make them far more impulsive than they would usually be. This can lead to risky actions being taken in the workplace.

"For long-term users, the longer-term damage caused by speed in their system may also result in unwarranted aggression or violent mood swings that may be taken out on their co-workers."

Leibie said all of these factors were important to consider for companies introducing workplace drug testing.

"With the right education and proper support service - both internal and external - employees can learn about the impact drugs and alcohol have on work performance, and seek assistance if required," he said.

"Ultimately, this can help to create a safer workplace environment for everyone concerned."

Common drugs and their effects on the body

Alcohol reduces concentration and coordination, and slows reflexes. Alcohol can still affect a person's ability to drive or perform work duties the morning after a night of heavy drinking.

Opiates, including codeine and heroin, result in drowsiness and general lack of alertness. Codeine, which is contained in Panadeine, takes up to two days to clear the system. Heroin is an extremely addictive drug; it has a very strong effect on the central nervous system and takes between 12 to 24 hours to be eradicated from the body.

Benzodiazepines, including sleeping tablets and anti-anxiety medication, decrease alertness and reaction time and lead to drowsiness, blurred vision and difficulty in decision making. Depending on the type of drug and its dose, effects can still be experienced up to two to three days after being ingested, and can take several days to clear the system.

Cannabis, when either smoked or ingested, leads to changes in sensory perception, reduced reaction times, impaired thinking, poor concentration and difficulty undertaking complex tasks. Clearance times vary greatly according to the individual and the potency of the dose, but it can take one to four days for casual smokers and up to six weeks for very heavy, long-term users.

Amphetamines, including 'uppers' and designer drugs such as ecstasy, reduce fine motor skills and dexterity, and impair thinking and judgement, leading to greater risk taking. It usually takes between one and two days to be eradicated from the body. Pseudoephedrine, commonly found in cold and flu tablets, also fall into this category. Taken in large doses it may produce a positive drug test.

Cocaine is a powerful nervous system stimulant, which results in hyper-stimulation, a reduction in fine motor skills and coordination, and impaired judgement. It can take between 12 hours and three days to clear the system.