Last updated : November 11, 2024
The National Drug & Alcohol Screening Association (NDASA) hosts an annual conference and trade show every year, and the 2022 event was a huge success. USA Mobile Drug Testing of Northeast Ohio’s owner, Karen Kitchen, a member of NDASA, helped plan this year’s event and we’re looking forward to sharing a recap with you here!
This year’s conference was held in Indianapolis, Indiana, and Ken, Karen, and Chelsea were in attendance from the USAMDT team. With the Indy 500 being held in May, this year’s theme was all about starting your engines and leading the race for tomorrow. This is a great reflection of NDASA as they are the voice of the nation’s drug and alcohol testing industry.
With the largest number of attendees in NDASA’ s conference history, the member-owned NDASA organization’s engines were revving and provided an amazing conference with top-notch training programs, relevant drug and alcohol testing content, and valuable industry networking opportunities. Keep reading to learn more about the conference highlights!
KEYNOTE SPEAKER HIGHLIGHT: GENERAL BARRY McCAFFREY USA (RET.)
It was an honor to have General Barry McCaffrey as NDASA’s Keynote Speaker. While his CV is much too long to repeat here, the “short” version is that he is a retired United States Army general and current news commentator, professor, and business consultant who served in President Bill Clinton’s Cabinet as the Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy. He received three Purple Heart medals for injuries sustained during his service in the Vietnam War, two Silver Stars, and two Distinguished Service Crosses — the second-highest United States Army award for valor.
During his talk, McCaffrey gave an overview of his experiences in each of his roles and how drug use impacts the American society and workplaces. He also emphasized the importance of addiction treatment, and the effectiveness of drug testing, especially in the military. Since the military has implemented a formal drug testing program, it has helped to overcome an increase in substance use issues after the Vietnam War and has now made the military a nearly drug-free workplace.
General McCaffrey is well versed in what goes on in the world of drugs and relates to – and appreciates – NDASA’s mission and objectives in the drug testing industry. He received rave reviews from the conference attendees and it was an honor for the USAMDT team to meet him and have the opportunity to hear him speak.
KEYNOTE SPEAKER HIGHLIGHTS: THE “PHARMACIST” DAN SCHNEIDER & PATRICE KELLY (ODAPC)
The “Pharmacist,” Dan Schneider was another amazing keynote speaker and is known for his personal story which is famously depicted in the NETFLIX docuseries “The Pharmacist.” He shared his personal story of loss and activism to combat the opioid epidemic, which is always compelling to hear and reinforces the importance of drug free workplaces.
The NDASA conference also had an appearance from an all-time favorite, Patrice Kelly from the Office of Drug and Alcohol Policy Compliance. She shared the latest and greatest ODAPC updates which are always informative for our industry.
CONFERENCE SESSION RECAPS:
Other outstanding general sessions covered a hybrid of topics, including:
- Dan Hanlon’s presentation of “When Bad Things Happen,” focused on the preparation for and prevention of incidents of workplace violence.
- “Ask the Lab Experts” was an informative panel discussion with representatives from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) labs across the country.
TRADESHOW & BREAKOUT SESSION HIGHLIGHTS
Last but not least, there were multiple breakout sessions, including:
- The SOBRsafe touch-based alcohol detection device that was unveiled at the opening reception.
- Breakout sessions on marijuana impairment, substance use and addiction, regulatory updates, and job/role-specific issues were rated as the most beneficial (based on attendee survey responses).
- Tradeshow exhibitors’ shared their products and education to help attendees stay informed of the most up-to-date innovations, trends, and tools within the industry.
NDASA CONFERENCE RECAP
As you can see, the 2022 NDASA Conference was a huge success thanks to everyone that attended in-person and virtually. Karen was honored to help plan an industry-leading event and be in attendance alongside Ken and Chelsea from USA Mobile Drug Testing of Northeast Ohio. We also wanted to thank additional NDASA members who helped plan the event, including Cathleen Drew, Mel Sabus, Leah Sasis, Ramona Bell, TOMO Drug Testing and the NDASA staff including Jo McGuire and Sarah Davis. We’re also thankful for our NDASA sponsors because without their support the quality of NDASA conferences would not be what they are today. We look forward to reaching new heights during the 2023 NDASA conference being held in Bellevue, Washington!
If you want to learn more about implementing drug and alcohol testing with USA Mobile Drug Testing of Northeast Ohio, please contact us here.
