This report contains the results from the Scottish part of the ROSITA evaluation of urine and saliva test devices. The approach adopted in this study involved two principal aims: (a) to test the reliability of the test devices, (b) to test their roadside practicality. Since UK law does not permit roadside testing for drugs, an approach was made to the Scottish Prison Service to obtain volunteers from within the prison inmate population as donors of matched saliva, urine and blood samples. The prisoner population is known to exhibit a significant incidence of drug use, as indicated by the results of the UK Mandatory Drug Testing scheme, and satisfies the requirements of sub-project (a). Once ethical approval for the project protocol had been obtained, consent for the project was given. Access to the prison was however significantly delayed as a result of industrial action. Access was gained late November 1999, enabling matched samples to be obtained from then until February 2000. A limited panel of tests was performed on site by the research team to allay the anxiety of the volunteers lest the prison staff have access to their results. (Author/publisher) For more information see http://www.rosita.org/
Abstract