Glen Dobson: Drug Detection Agency CEO on an uptick of opioid use in the workplace

Concern about the uptick of opioid use in the workplace. 

The Drug Detection Agency released its drug testing findings in the three months to December. 

Cannabis continues to be the most prevalent substance detected in workplace drug tests, accounting for 59 per cent of cases. 

But CEO Glen Dobson told Andrew Dickens 12 percent involved opioids, which is the most high-risk drug in the workplace. 

He says we're starting to see the trends we see internationally, like the widespread Fentanyl issue in the US. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
The Drug Detection Agency has just to release the latest
workplace drug detection data and it's taken a different trend
in the last quarter. Cannabis use is down four point
seven percent and phetamines are up and opioids are on
the rise. Opioid use up twelve percent. So Drug Detection
Agency CEO Glenn Dobson is with me now, hullo, Glenn,

(00:21):
want Andrew, So our opioid use it's up. Is this
because we're sicker or are we more addicted?

Speaker 2 (00:29):
Yeah? Good question, and look at these stats probably don't
tell us exactly the reason why it That's why we
track it quarterly, seeing it's concerned. One of the big
questions that we've got and we'll continue to trackers. Are
we starting to follow the US and global trends? Hearing
Zealand in ration to the big increase in the problems
that synthetic opioids can cause, both in the community and

(00:50):
from our perspective in work based safety.

Speaker 1 (00:52):
Because of course, as prescription medications have the opioids in it,
so can you correlate the use of prescriptions and the
actual use of opioids in the waste water and figure
out if there's an excess which proves the addiction.

Speaker 2 (01:05):
Yeah, look, you certainly can, and obviously the health side
of New Zealands can comment on prescription usage and so forth.
You know, University of Auckland Faculty of Medical and Health
Sciences only a couple of years ago released to papers
they were concerned about the potential over prescription of tremadol,
which is obviously a synthetic OPUWOD as well, so that

(01:25):
there's ways to track that. But there's also a huge
issue globally around the illicit use of opioids as well.
From the criminal gangs perspective, they're cheap to make, they're
easy to make in the labs, and because they're very powerful,
you don't need as much and so they're easy to
move around globally.

Speaker 1 (01:41):
Meanwhile, with other drugs, we're not smoking as much weed.

Speaker 2 (01:45):
Yeah, I mean, if there's a positive cannabis uses down,
that's really good from a safety perspective. Cannabis will is
always one of our higher drugs. And the other concern
I guess is that methanephenamine is up as well. And
obviously we know how the base about drugs.

Speaker 1 (02:01):
Yeah, that's up to twenty four point four percent. That's
up from eighteen point eight percent in the previous quarter
or the quarter in twenty twenty three. So we're not
winning that battle, aren't we.

Speaker 2 (02:12):
No, Look, we're not. You know, I know you mentioned
before the wastewater stance. We know that that we've seen
a real increase in wastewater stance as well. Now from
our statistics, we know they're looking at a slightly different
population base. We're looking at workplaces as opposed to the
entire population from a wastework perspective. From our issue, it's
all around safety, and it's a real concern.

Speaker 1 (02:31):
Well, looking at the workplace, what sort of industries are
you testing the most and who's using the most drugs?

Speaker 2 (02:38):
But it's right across the board. Predominantly workplace drug testing
is traditionally than what you consider blue collar workplaces, but
now it's right across the boards. Obviously, safety is the
main reason around drug testing and the workplace, but also
a lot of companies are doing it from a reputational
risk perspective, making sure they've got no issues within the
workplace that will affect their reputation. You know, we've seen

(03:01):
recently over the years issues around drugs in our cool
and workplaces and white color industries like the legal fraternity,
and from the issues that they cause.

Speaker 1 (03:10):
And when you show employers this sort of data, what
do they say.

Speaker 2 (03:14):
Well, first and foremost, it's really interesting. It's good to
be aware of what trends we're seeing at see if
it increases. They are very keen to understand what it
may mean for them in the workplace and also to
hold really good, strong conversations with their employees. It's around
create a culture of openness, the culture of understanding what
the issues are and discussing them openly so that everyone's

(03:35):
aware and ultimately irregue's own safe to their families.

Speaker 1 (03:38):
At the end of the day, Absolutely, the drugs don't work,
and they really don't work at work. Glenn Dobson, you're
doing great work and I thank you for your time today.
Glenn is the CEO of the Drug Detection Agency.

Speaker 2 (03:49):
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