PARENTS ASK DOCTOR TO RUN A DRUG TEST ON THEIR TEEN -- WITHOUT HIS KNOWLEDGE

Q. How do you respond to parents when they tell you they think their
teen-ager is using drugs and then ask you to secretly run a urine drug test
at the next doctor's visit?

A. There are better ways to diagnose substance abuse in a teen-ager than
secretly running a urine drug test. A good interview by a trained
professional will often determine whether drugs are involved. Equally
important, a therapeutic relationship will be established allowing
treatment to take place.

Urine drug testing has many useful purposes. Sometimes teens want to use a
urine drug test to prove to their parents that they are not using drugs.
Random urine drug testing is often used to monitor teens with a history of
substance abuse. To be effective, there must be an understanding between
the teen-ager and his or her parents, agency or court counselors that
random urine drug tests will be performed. Consequences for a positive (a
drug is found in the urine) urine drug test need to be clearly understood
by the teen before drug testing begins.

A large majority of our teen-agers will use alcohol or marijuana at some
time before completing high school, and a not-so-small minority will use
drugs that are potentially more dangerous. Therefore, all physicians caring
for adolescents need to question and counsel them regarding the risks and
dangers of drugs. Many adolescents with mild drug use or abuse can be
managed by their physician if the physician has some expertise in this
area. Those adolescents found to be experiencing more severe problems with
drug abuse or suspected drug abuse can be referred to a specialist for a
substance abuse assessment. The assessment is often free. In Charlotte,
substance abuse assessments for teens are performed at Amethyst, Chemical
Dependency Center of Charlotte-Mecklenburg, and McLeod Addictive Disease
Center.

Have A Brief Question?

Write to Ask the Doctor, Mecklenburg County Medical Society, 1112 Harding
Place, Suite 200, Charlotte, NC 28204. Doctors will not make individual
diagnoses.

Checked-by: Richard Lake