Trimega Laboratories Sponsors National Children and Adult Services Conference

LONDON, August 11, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --

Trimega Laboratories is proud to announce that it will be the main sponsor of the 2011 National Children and Adult Services Conference (NCASC), which takes place from 19-21 October in London. The 2011 NCASC is entitled 'Tough Times, Good Decisions' and will be a vital event for  councillors, directors, senior officers, policymakers and service managers with responsibilities for education, children's services and adult care in the statutory, voluntary and private sectors.

In addition to sponsoring the NCASC, Trimega's CEO Avi Lasarow will deliver a welcome address at the conference opening, and the company will host a fringe event on October 20^th. The fringe event, entitled "Hair testing for drug and alcohol abuse - the science of child protection" will highlight the role hair testing can play in helping to safeguard children and give conference attendees the opportunity to learn more about the science and application of hair testing for substance abuse.

The three-day conference features speeches from senior government and opposition MPs, including Andrew Lansley MP, Michael Gove MP and Andy Burnham MP, as well as a range of other keynote speeches, plenary sessions and networking events.

Trimega is the leading European provider of hair testing technology services and has pioneered the use of dual-marker hair testing that has significantly increased the accuracy of hair tests. In April this year, the Society of Hair Testing (SoHT) confirmed that dual testing on hair for alcohol misuse provides accuracy rates of over 94%, with less than 1% risk of a false positive, and just 5.75% risk of a false negative.

Avi Lasarow commented: "We are delighted to support an event of key importance to all those involved in children's welfare and look forward to sharing and discussing with attendees the science behind hair testing and how it will help alleviate fears that children may be left in abusive households."    

About Trimega Laboratories (http://www.trimegalabs.co.uk)

Established in London in 2005, Trimega Laboratories is well recognised for being a leader in the development of innovative techniques for testing for substances of abuse. Its core business is laboratory-based analysis of hair samples that provide accurate historical records of alcohol or drugs dependency over a one to 12 month period. In the UK, Trimega's core clients include: family law specialists, law courts, and social services.

Trimega was the first to market with dual-marker hair alcohol testing (FAEE and EtG). Dual hair testing provides very accurate results: at its annual conference in March 2011, the Society of Hair Testing (SoHT) confirmed that dual testing on hair for alcohol misuse provides accuracy rates of over 94%, with less that 1% risk of a false positive, and 5.75% risk of a false negative.  The SoHT's consensus was based on analysis of Trimega's data set of approximately 2,000 dual hair testing samples, the largest of its kind in the world.

Other services offered by Trimega include: Roadside Drugalyzer Testing for law enforcement, Hair Steroid Testing for athletes, and Hair Benzodiazepines Testing.

Trimega won the title of Best Use of Technology in the 2008 Barclays-sponsored Startups Awards, and has been on the shortlist for the National Business Awards three years running. Trimega is also one of 25 companies to represent the UK in the 2011 European Business Awards.

Trimega conducts its hair alcohol analysis in laboratories in Germany which are accredited with international standard ISO 17025 by DAkkS, the German issuing authority, equivalent to UKAS in the UK. The technology for hair alcohol testing originated in Germany.

The UK Ministry of Justice does not require hair testing laboratories to be accredited. However, Trimega's UK laboratory in Manchester, which carries out drug tests, operates to ISO 17025 standards, and has applied for ISO 17025 accreditation from UKAS. Trimega's Manchester laboratory already has ISO 9001:2008 certification from Lloyd's Register Group, itself accredited by UKAS, for the 'provision of clinical collecting, testing, analysis and interpretation services for substances of abuse'.  In addition, the Manchester laboratory is the only UK laboratory in the industry to have ISO 14001 certification from QMS International, the environmental management system standard for internal quality management. Trimega is an Investor in People.

Trimega was responsible for the creation of a Hair Strand Scientific Advisory Board. Its purpose is to analyse the fast growing database of information created from the 10,000 hair alcohol tests and 7,000 hair drug tests carried out on UK samples each year, of which Trimega is responsible for around 40%. The findings of the Board are shared with the Society of Hair Testing which will assist it in future decisions, particularly those relating to the setting of universal standards/guidelines.

About the NCASC

The National Children and Adult Services Conference and exhibition will take place at the International Convention Centre (ICC) London ExCel on 19 to 21 October 2011.

Organised by the Local Government Group (LG Group), Association of Directors of Social Services (ADASS) and Association of Directors of Children's Services (ADCS), this event is entitled 'Tough Times, Good Decisions' and is vital to councillors, directors, senior officers, policymakers and service managers with responsibilities for education, children's services and adult care in the statutory, voluntary and private sectors.

It is also an important opportunity for partners working in health, schools and related fields as well as MPs with an interest in social care, children's services and education.

The programme will give many opportunities to hear keynote ministerial addresses and take part in plenary sessions. There will be a variety of participatory breakouts and networking sessions.

http://www.ncasc.local.gov.uk/

SOURCE Trimega Laboratories