Drug and alcohol testing is only the beginning
Sample collection… medical interpretation…psychiatric assessment...an end to end service supporting childcare cases
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Atkinson Lewis is more than a drug and alcohol testing service. We’re a team of Consultant Psychiatrists and Sample Collectors, supporting childcare cases by providing psychiatric assessments and expert medical interpretation.
- We’re not a treatment centre – but we can recommend facilities in your local area
- We’re not Toxicologists – but we liaise with them on all types of cases
- We’re not a drug and alcohol testing laboratory – but we do work hand in hand with UKAS accredited test laboratories
So who are we?
We’re a team of specialists, pooled from the scientific fields that feature in childcare cases. As an organisation, we’ve spent 15 years helping the legal profession to establish patterns of substance abuse among parents and potential carers.
And how do we work?
The short answer to that is, however you need us to work! Every case is different, so we start by mapping out the support you’re going to need, then deliver a tailored mix of our core services:
Drug and alcohol testing
Most cases start with our drug and alcohol testing service. Our Sample Collectors will obtain forensic samples of hair, blood, saliva or urine, then we’ll work with a test laboratory to determine drug or alcohol misuse.
In the UK, we only work with UKAS accredited laboratories, but we've also commented on samples analysed by European laboratories with UKAS-equivalent accreditation.
Medical interpretation
Once samples have been analysed, one of our Consultant Psychiatrists will give you their medical interpretation (also known as a ‘Commentary’). Everything is set out for the layman to understand, and we’ll recommend further medical examination if we believe it’s required.
Psychiatric assessment
Where a parent or guardian’s mental state is called into question, our Psychiatrists can also provide detailed psychiatric reports, based on interviews, medical records and reading of Court Bundles.
Long term monitoring
The results of testing and interpretation will be formally recorded, so we can compare results over time and comment on the changes. Our medical experts will instantly recognise new patterns or unusual results, and work to determine the root causes.
Working with Atkinson Lewis
In public or private law, Atkinson Lewis will support your childcare case from beginning to end. We have the experience, expertise and capacity. And there’s no long term commitment.
In these pages you can find out more about our team of experts and our drug and alcohol testing services. For more information, just drop us a line. Or if you prefer, speak to us directly on 01792 578623.
