We have results for the provider via the online web portal in as little as 24 hours from the time we receive the specimen.

You may want to submit it for more complex testing. There is good reason for your concern about the accuracy of the results: POC devices are designed to test a limited number of drugs. Our comprehensive test panel includes over 50 commonly prescribed and abused drugs—drugs which are not tested in POC devices. In addition, because the cup is not as sensitive as our laboratory testing methods, you could see a large number of false negatives when comparing your results from the cup to our confirmatory results. Relying on the in-office test cup should be considered a preliminary step. For that reason, we recommend testing urine specimens at a high-complexity laboratory with a comprehensive test panel.

We generally rely on ACOEM (American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine) Guidelines when advising physicians on frequency of testing. The ACOEM Guidelines state:
Screening is recommended at baseline, randomly at least twice and up to 4 times a year and at termination. Screening should also be performed (e.g., provider suspicion of substance misuse including over-sedating, drug intoxication, motor vehicle crash, other accidents and injuries, driving while intoxicated, premature prescription renewals, self-directed dose changes, lost or stolen prescriptions, using more than one provider for prescriptions, non-pain use of medication, using alcohol for pain treatment or excessive alcohol use, missed appointments, hoarding of medications and selling medications). Standard urine drug/toxicology screening processes should be followed (consult a qualified medical review officer).
http://www.cga.ct.gov/2014/rpt/pdf/2014-R-0236.pdf

TEN Healthcare toxicology tests cannot indicate
- Dosage of any drug
- Frequency or exact timeframe of drug ingestion
- Impairment or pharmacological implications from the drug
Our toxicology testing can provide data about concurrent medication use, possible diversion or misuse of prescribed drugs, or even chronic use of medications, making it a valuable tool for physicians striving to ensure patient medication and treatment compliance.

While the in-office cup provides a qualitative, positive/negative screen, this type of test has high cut-off levels, which makes it highly susceptible to false positives and false negatives. T.E.N. Healthcare provides a qualitative confirmation test result using LCMS/MS instruments, which greatly reduces the risk of false positives and false negatives.

We recommend that specimens be sent to the lab as soon as possible, but in special circumstances they can sit for up to a week at room temperature and up to a month at refrigerated temperatures.
While the length of time a drug remains stable in a specimen depends upon the drug, most drugs are stable in urine for a week at room temperature and for at least a month at refrigerated temperatures. Frozen samples can remain stable for longer periods.

In-office tests are, by design, a low-sensitivity, low-specificity test and may not be able to detect drugs below a cutoff level that’s much higher than confirmation testing. In addition, the preliminary screens may not be able to detect all drugs within the drug class, as not all members of that class will react equally to the methodology.

T.E.N. Healthcare has an extensive catalog of drugs and their metabolites for effective compliance monitoring that include those most commonly encountered in medication therapy, pain management, and abuse situations. (No laboratory can test for every drug. Additionally, a patient’s insurance company may be determining which drugs are approved and/or medically necessary.) Please click here for our drug catalog.

You will receive results by secure fax, mail, phone, email, or through our results management software.

The laboratory will bill your patient's insurer directly for its services. Then, your insurance company will send you an Explanation of Benefits (EOB). The EOB is not a bill. It is simply a statement that shows how your insurer processed the claim for the test. Depending on your insurance carrier, you may receive a statement for a co-payment or a deductible.