Wokers’ awareness of alcohol breathalyser test in the workplace and their alcohol consumption patterns

Orientation: An alcohol breathalyser test is one of various methods of assessing alcohol consumption behaviour of workers in the workplace. Its awareness can yield insights on behavioural change of alcohol-consuming individuals in safety-sensitive settings when being aware of alcohol breathalyser testing.Research purpose: A breathalyser test provides an efficient means of measuring blood alcohol concentration within seconds of an employee blowing into the device. The purpose of this research was to examine awareness of breathalyser testing to capture meaning that can offer insights on behaviour under research.Motivation for research: The research was prompted by a quest to gain understanding of thought processes (motivation to control behaviour) when alcohol is involved. By focusing on awareness, it was possible to interpret behaviour. The research is a basis for future studies and can contribute to discussions related to alcohol testing in the workplace.Research approach/design and method: A qualitative approach was followed to gain insights into the topic under research. Eight alcohol-consuming individuals who performed jobs considered high-risk consented to participate in semi-structured, face-to-face interviews. The data were analysed through interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA).Main findings: The findings revealed excessive alcohol consumption and intoxication in spite of awareness of breathalyser testing. Individuals prone to external inducements were more likely to abuse alcohol. Behaviour therefore tends to be unstable and impulsive when alcohol is involved.Practical implications: Reporting for work after excessive drinking of alcohol is not an indication of total soberness. Individuals may physically be present in the workplace without making any contribution to work processes because of effects of alcohol.Contribution/value-add: The research highlights behavioural insights that can contribute to studies related to locus of control and control over alcohol in relation to testing to workplace testing.

Methods for the Preparation of Blood Serum Samples in the Assessment of the Pharmacokinetics of Protein Drugs by the Example of Viscumin

A comparative evaluation of methods for preparing blood serum samples for determination of the lectin content of the mistletoe Viscum Album, viscumin, by high-performance liquid chromatography in combination with high-resolution mass-spectrometry detection has been carried out. Based on the results of the analysis of the lectin hydrolyzate, a specific peptide fragment with m/z 791.388 suitable for subsequent quantitative determination was selected. Isolation of viscumin from serum components was carried out without the use of specific antibodies. The study used methods employing various spin columns and the method of protein precipitation with 1% TCA (trichloroacetic acid) in IPA (isopropyl alcohol). Testing the methods of depletion of blood serum proteins was based on the determination of the degree of extraction of lectin from model serum samples. As a result of our research, we have developed a technique for the quantitative analysis of viscumin in blood serum by the most efficient method of sample preparation using the ProteoMiner spin columns. The technique allows to determine the protein concentration up to 5·10-4 mg/ml with the extraction degree (2.7 ± 0.6) %.

Blood and breath alcohol test results: Uncertainty at the interface of science and law

Alcohol is well known for its ability to impair human faculties, which creates risks when driving a vehicle or when performing safety- and risk-sensitive tasks in workplaces. The article aims to highlight some shortcomings in the legal-scientific approach for alcohol testing in South Africa. In particular, we investigate the measurement uncertainty of blood alcohol test results, which is critical in adjudicating over-the-limit cases. The South African regulatory framework for alcohol testing in the criminal- and private-law environments is examined from an analytical due-process perspective, considering measurement uncertainty and other well-established scientific principles which are essential at the interface of science and law. Special attention is paid to the National Road Traffic Amendment Bill, which aims to decrease the alcohol limit to zero. We found that the measurement uncertainty concept has not yet been received into the South African legal system, even though it is a well-established scientific principle. We suggest changes to the current alcohol legislation to accommodate the measurement uncertainty principle and the related likelihood ratio, which we believe could assist in quantifying the odds of compliance. In particular, we believe that our suggestions regarding quantification and reporting of measurement uncertainty can assist the courts and tribunals to avoid false-positive errors that may have a devastating effect on innocent subjects.

Electronically Monitored Home Confinement

As a tactic of control and punishment, “house arrest’’ has been used for millennia to sequester individuals such as deposed leaders, government officials, and political dissidents in a residence. Since the late 1980s, various forms of house arrest—typically involving some kind of electronic monitoring (EM) and therefore broadly referred to as electronically monitored home confinement (EMHC)—have come to play a role in both the criminal and juvenile justice systems of the United States and in other countries. Unfortunately, the US Department of Justice does not collect data on the numbers of persons under EM. According to a 2015 survey conducted by the Pew Charitable Trusts, more than 125,000 people were supervised by electronic means, up from 53,000 in 2005. The survey also found that all fifty states, the District of Columbia, and the federal government use electronic devices to monitor people at various stages of the justice system including pretrial defendants, immigrants awaiting deportation hearings, and convicted offenders. EMHC is considered an intermediate sanction that permits an individual to live at home except when authorized to attend school, treatment programs, and go to work, or meet with program officials. Participants must agree to an extensive list of conditions of their participation and they are often required to pay for their EMHC (typically $10–15 a day). Violators are commonly jailed for non-compliance. A variety of monitoring systems are used, the original and most common being some form of a continuous radio frequency (RF) signal between a receiver-dialer that is attached to a telephone line in the home and a transmitter that is worn by the offender on the ankle or wrist. With these “tagging” systems, individuals cannot stray further than 150 feet or so from the monitoring box without triggering a violation. More sophisticated designs are based on the Global Positioning System (GPS) that can track the whereabouts of individuals at all times, even if they have absconded from the home. Other systems have added biometric measurements such as transdermal alcohol testing to the anklet to determine a person’s blood alcohol content. Yet another version dispenses with the anklet monitor and a digital device is installed in the home and random phone calls from the program’s computer system must be answered by the offender when they are required to be in the home. To verify compliance, the system uses voice and facial recognition capabilities and collects a breath sample to test for alcohol.

Hospital admissions for alcohol-related problems in concomitance with weekends, New Year’s Eve and Christmas Eve: Myth or reality?

This retrospective observational study was carried out by searching the database of the laboratory information system for identifying all requests for alcohol testing placed from emergency departments and intensive care units of the University Hospital of Verona between June 29th, 2012 and December 31st, 2018. The study population consisted of 7488 patients. The number of alcohol tests was more than double in concomitance with New Year’s Eve than in the rest of the year (7.6±6.1 vs 3.1±2.8 requests/day; P<0.001), whereas blood alcohol concentration was similar (1.55 vs 1.12 g/L; P=0.308). The risk of measuring alcohol concentrations >0.1 g/L and >1.0 g/L was 1.9-fold and 1.6-fold higher in concomitance with New Year’s Eve. In multivariate analysis, younger age, female sex and alcohol testing during New Year’s Eve remained significant predictors of alcohol concentrations >0.1 g/L and >1.0 g/L. The requests for alcohol testing were similar in concomitance with Christmas Eve and in other periods of the year, whilst number of requests (4.0±3.2 vs 2.8±2.5 requests/day; P<0.001) and concentration (1.37 vs 0.77 g/L; P<0.001) were higher during weekends than in other weekdays.

Recent Judicial Decisions of Interest to Energy Lawyers

This article summarizes a number of recent judicial decisions of interest to energy lawyers. The authors review and comment on the past year’s case law in several areas including contractual interpretation, employment and labour law, Aboriginal law, constitutional law, intellectual property, bankruptcy and insolvency, and selected developments relating to summary judgments. Specific topics addressed include the appropriate standard of review, workplace drug and alcohol testing policies, appellate intervention in commercial arbitration, the appropriateness of granting summary judgments, valuation of dissenting shareholders’ shares, a duty to consult, the applicability of municipal bylaws when they conflict with federal legislation, and the rights and obligations of oil and gas companies placed into receivership. For each case, some background information is given, followed by a brief explanation of the facts, a summary of the decision, and commentary on the outcome.

Retrospective analysis of alcohol testing in trauma team activation patients at a Canadian tertiary trauma centre

ObjectivesAlthough alcohol screening is an essential requirement of level I trauma centre accreditation, actual rates of compliance with mandatory alcohol testing in trauma patients are seldom reported. Our objective was to determine the prevalence of blood alcohol concentration (BAC) testing in patients requiring trauma team activation (TTA) for whom blood alcohol testing was mandatory, and to elucidate patient-level, injury-level and system-level factors associated with BAC testing.DesignRetrospective cohort study.SettingTertiary trauma centre in Halifax, Canada.Participants2306 trauma patients who required activation of the trauma team.Primary outcome measureThe primary outcome was the rate of BAC testing among TTA patients. Trends in BAC testing over time and across patient and injury characteristics were described. Multivariable logistic regression examined patient-level, injury-level and system-level factors associated with testing.ResultsOverall, 61% of TTA patients received BAC testing despite existence of a mandatory testing protocol. Rates of BAC testing rose steadily over the study period from 33% in 2000 to 85% in 2010. Testing varied considerably across patient-level, injury-level and system-level characteristics. Key factors associated with testing were male gender, younger age, lower Injury Severity Score, scene Glasgow Coma Scale score <9, direct transport to hospital and presentation between midnight and 09:00 hours, or on the weekend.ConclusionsAt this tertiary trauma centre with a policy of empirical alcohol testing for TTA patients, BAC testing rates varied significantly over the 11-year study period and distinct factors were associated with alcohol testing in TTA patients.