Urine Drug Testing: Service Models and Laboratory Practices to Meet Clinical Care Needs

Urine drug testing (UDT) is an important laboratory tool utilized in various healthcare settings to identify drug or toxic exposures. It has wide clinical applications, including but not limited to detecting substance misuse, monitoring treatment effectiveness and compliance, and identifying substances in affected patients. Depending on the clinical care setting and patient population, the UDT service model and practice are important decisions by the clinical laboratory to meet the needs of the healthcare providers. In addition, clinical laboratories must appreciate the testing process and unique aspects of this toxicology test, from specimen collection and integrity, testing methods, to the result reporting and interpretation. Each phase has specific quality requirements to ensure the accuracy and appropriate interpretation of results. This review aims to summarize the preanalytical, analytical, and postanalytical considerations of clinical laboratories when implementing the test or providing support to clinicians in point-of-care settings. To bring awareness of the limitations inherent to different analytical methodologies, this review discusses important considerations and presents the current gaps, opportunities, and recommendations for quality improvement and standardization. This article may serve as a framework for clinical laboratory directors and other laboratory professionals to review their current provision of UDT and provide recommendations on various important aspects when considering changes to the test service models to meet their local clinical needs, including when introducing new test methods. It may also help physicians and healthcare providers appreciate the complexities of UDT and recognize the challenges in clinical interpretation.