AlcoSense: Companies could switch to disposable breathalysers

UK-based breathalyser manufacturer AlcoSense has issued advice to help employers reduce risk when carrying out alcohol testing for safety-critical staff during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Where re-usable, electronic devices are being used, the person in charge of the tests should wear an FFP-3 or better face mask and surgical gloves, clean the instrument after each use with a disinfectant wipe, and wash their hands regularly.

Further advice stipulates that a new, sealed mouthpiece must be used for every test. The employee should remove the mouthpiece from its packaging themselves and all testing should take place outdoors.

Disposable gloves must be worn and thrown away after each test, the advice continues, and the user should practice safe distancing and hygiene measures, as well as stand perpendicular to any wind, i.e. any wind should blow across them from the side so exhaled breath from one person does not blow in the direction of another.

To minimise still further the risk of virus transmission, companies could switch to disposable breathalysers that are discarded after use. With a single-use breathalyser the test can be completed by the employee under supervision.

Hunter Abbott, Managing Director of AlcoSense Laboratories, said: “There is no evidence of COVID-19 being transmitted through alcohol breath testing, but disposable kits provide a sound alternative to add a further layer of protection.”

Workplace testing is primarily carried out in industries such as construction, food processing, aviation, road and rail transport, logistics and warehousing – particularly where machinery or electrical equipment is being operated - but also in any situation where alcohol is not compatible with a safe working environment. 

A recent study by UK Addiction Treatment revealed that 40 per cent of industrial accidents are linked to substance abuse.