What Is the Typical Drug Screen Used by Hospitals for Employment?

Hospitals use several drug-screening methods for job applicants, but the most common tool used is urinalysis. It is the preferred method by major hospitals due to its accuracy in detecting the presence of illegal substances in a person's body.

Method

• To ensure that every workplace is free from drug abusers, hospitals implement urinalysis tests for job applicants. It is done by collecting a urine sample from applicants in a specimen container. Prospective employees are required to provide a urine sample of about 30 to 60 milliliters. This small amount is generally sufficient to allow laboratory technicians to perform a urinanalysis.

Cost

• Urinalysis cost is insignificant for companies that are strictly in compliance with labor laws.

  The typical price range for a urinalysis test ranges from $25 to $35, as of 2010, but it can reach up to $300 when several other tests also are run on the urine sample. The sampling is usually performed in urgent care facilities and hospitals, but the actual analysis of urine samples is done in clinical laboratories, which also are referred to as reference laboratories.

Uses

• Urinalysis has many uses, such as screening job candidates for illegal drug usage and assessing specific symptoms like flank pain, painful urination and abdominal pain. Urinalysis also can be used to evaluate or screen people with diabetes, kidney disease, liver disease, hypertension and high blood pressure. Results can be attained within two to three days of evaluation for samples with low bacterial count, but samples from applicants with health issues take longer to process.