PARENTS FACE DRUG TESTING DILEMMA

Few Alternatives Exist For Parents Who Want Their Children Tested

PORTAGE -- Barbara Francisco thought she was just trying to be a
responsible parent.

Her 16-year-old son wanted to drive and she was willing to let him, but
there was one condition. He had to be drug tested first. Her son had gotten
into trouble the summer before, so Francisco wanted to make sure he was
drug free.

She took him to Portage Community Hospital's lab to request a test, but was
refused because she didn't have a doctor's order.

She called some drug testing facilities she knew about through her job, but
they refused, too.

She even went to a local pharmacy and located an at-home test, but it
didn't quite suit her needs.

"I wanted to have him tested and I wanted to do it on the spur of the
moment, but what are you to do? I feel like I should have the right. I'm
financially responsible, so I want to make sure," she said.

"I have a truck to give to my son, but it costs $340 a month for insurance.
If he were in an accident and on drugs, I would be liable, so I said he
couldn't drive without a drug test," she said.

"We go to jobs and have to be drug tested before we can start working. I
truly believe that there would be less teen-age accidents if the teens were
required to be drug tested," Francisco said. "Nobody starts using drugs in
their 20s. They start in their teens."

What's a parent to do?

Francisco's dilemma isn't all that unusual.

Sharon Cawood of the Porter County Substance Abuse Council remembers going
to a conference three or four years ago where parents were discussing the
same matter.

Where could they go to have their children drug tested, without going
through a doctor?

Andrew Snyder, vice president of corporate, community and media relations
for Porter Memorial Health Systems, said federal guidelines and hospital
policy do not allow testing without the order of a physician or licensed
health practitioner.

"Lab testing is based on the need of diagnosis or monitoring of a
condition," said Snyder.

Cawood said the parents at that conference were so concerned they came up
with an at-home drug test.

The Personal Drug Test Service is a kit available at some local pharmacies.
However, the kit requires the mailing of a snippet of hair for testing. It
could take two weeks to get results and the results would tell if drugs,
including marijuana and cocaine among others, were used any time within the
last 90 days.

That wasn't what Francisco wanted. She said she wanted to know if he was
using drugs now, not three months previous to the test and she wanted a
quicker turnaround for results.

Porter-Starke Services offers a rapid results urine drug test, said Rocky
Schiralli, vice president of chemical dependency and additions for the agency.

"We have tests that we can give that are very rapid with results in five
minutes," he said. However, it isn't a "drop-in" type service. Appointments
are encouraged.

Schiralli added that while his agency, which has offices in Valparaiso and
Portage, offers that service, they encourage counseling along with the drug
testing.

"The actual drug test is just a part of it," he said, adding that both the
family and child should seek evaluation to determine problems or concerns
behind the need for drug testing.

One local agency does offer walk-in drug testing.

Kathy Cuevas of Care Counseling Services in South Haven said walk-in
clients aren't their primary business, that most of their clients are
referred by the courts or probation departments.

"We take people off the street for a urine drug test. Maybe once a month we
have someone walk in off the street," said Cuevas, adding there is no
physician order required to have the test done.

The outpatient substance abuse center is certified by the Indiana
Department of Mental Health. Owned by Victor Joseph, it has been located on
Juniper Road in South Haven for six years. They have a second office in
Highland.

Being a pro-active parent

Francisco eventually took her son to a doctor who gave her an order for a
drug test. However, she said, she hasn't taken him in for the lab work yet.

Both Cawood and Schiralli complemented Francisco for her pro-active
approach of requiring her son to be drug tested.

"How wonderful that she is being a responsible parent. If she's suspicious
that her child has been using drugs, how irresponsible of her would it be
to let that child drive," said Cawood, adding she views Francisco's
dilemma, and those of other parents in the same situation, as safety issues.

While Schiralli also said he believed it was responsible parenting, he
added that if parents believe their child may be using drugs, a test is
only a portion of what needs to be done.

"You have to look more at the bigger picture than a drug test," he said.
There are signs with which parents must be attuned, including a drop in
grades or mood swings. A drug test could eliminate drug usage as a reason
for those symptoms.

"It (drug test) helps at least to rule that (drug usage) out. But if
parents are seeing trouble or difficulty in those areas, they are points
for concern," he said.