Another side effect of the Canadian opioid crisis is now affecting neonatal wards around the country, as hospitalization rates for babies born with neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) after being exposed to opioids in the womb have risen significantly over the past...

What is an MRO? The position of Medical Review Officers was first outlined in 1988 within the US Federal Department of Transportation’s drug testing regulations.1 Since then, it has become an integral and necessary part of workplace drug testing procedures across the...

Health Canada has issued a warning regarding the use of commercially produced fentanyl testing strips, which, in an effort to stem the number of opioid related deaths in Canada, are being used across the country to detect opioids in street drugs. The warning comes...

Part II: Interpreting Results What happens once the sample has been tested? While the measurement of compounds found in samples can be a precise science, the interpretation of those results is ultimately decided by clinicians in consult with a laboratory toxicologist....

New results have been published that show the percentage of fatally injured drivers testing positive for marijuana use between 2000 and 2014 has increased (12% to 19%) while fatal injuries sustained by drivers under the influence of alcohol have decreased (35% to...

Part I: Definitions and Uses What is a cut-off? Cut-offs are used in drug testing as a measure to determine a positive or negative result. If the drug being tested is present in amounts above the predetermined cut-off level, it is considered positive, and if below,...

In May of this year, the federal government announced a forthcoming amendment to the Criminal Code for impaired driving offences, which, in the advent of 2018’s legalization of marijuana (Bill C-45), includes a new legal limit for drug offences and mandatory drug...

An online survey done by the Angus Reid Institute November 14th-20th asked a randomized sample of 1510 Canadian adults what they thought about the looming legalization of cannabis set to occur for July 1, 2018. The poll indicated that although two thirds of the...

As Canada prepares to legalize recreational marijuana in July of 2018, employers are exploring how the new legislation will affect the safety and health of their respective workplaces, as well as planning for potential risks or disciplinary action in the event of an...