Controlled Substances

The UC Davis Controlled Substance Program provides the special requirements and procedures applicable to the procurement, storage, use, transfer, disposal, and inspections of controlled substances at all locations that are the responsibility of the UC Davis administration. Licensed UC Davis pharmacies are exempt from this policy, unless specifically stated otherwise.

Policy and Procedure Manual Sections Relating to Controlled Substances

• Section 290-70 Controlled Substances

Authorization

The process for Controlled Substance Use Authorization (CSUA) begins when the PI submits a Controlled Substances (Faculty) Personnel Screening Form (download fillable PDF) to Program Manager Philip Barruel and completes the Controlled Substances training.  Upon receipt of the completed Personnel Screening form and confirmation of training, the campus Controlled Substance Administrator will schedule a site visit with the PI to ensure all storage guidelines and security controls have been met. To request a site inspection, email cs-info@ucdavis.edu.

Additional authorized users, such as staff or students, that have access to controlled substances (CS) must complete the Controlled Substance training and clear a background check.  Reach out to your business office, Management Services Officer (MSO), or other financial authority to request a background check.  Your name and email address will be required to place the background check order; all other confidential information will be entered online by you once you receive the background check invitation email.  At this time, there is no charge for a background check for the UC Davis campus, due to the Common Good Assessment (CGA)  There is a charge for UC Davis Health personnel.

HR will notify the employee and the department by email when the background check has cleared. Please forward send this confirmation directly to cs-info@ucdavis.edu, along with the request to be added as a user and the name of the account custodian. Note: There may occasionally be a delay in the background check process. This delay is dependent upon the operations of the county courts related to your previous residence(s), where criminal records are searched and verified. Contact HR for a status check as needed.

The authorized end-user is only added to the CSUA after you forward to cs-info@ucdavis.edu the email from HR indicating that the person's background check clears and the person's CS course completion certificate. Email this same address when a user leaves the lab or no longer needs access to the controlled substance.

Storage Considerations

It is your responsibility to provide effective controls so as to guard against theft, prevent illegal drug use, and protect the public from harm that may result from controlled substances under your care.

Ideal storage for CS is a locked, top drawer of stationary drawer set.

When storing a CS, you MUST do the following:

• Consult with EH&S for CS storage options appropriate to your needs and local DEA requirements.
• All storage locations and storage area changes must be approved by EH&S prior to use.  Do not change locations without consulting EH&S, even within the same room. Also please note that orders placed to a different location than that in the CSUA will be flagged by Purchasing and will not be placed.
• Store only CS and the Log Book in the CS storage area that is secure, controlled by the PI, and only accessible by Authorized Personnel.
• It should be convenient to use and in an area where security breaches can be prevented and noticed, should they occur.
• Each researcher must maintain their own, separate, storage units.

CS storage must be labeled at all times with the original information from the manufacturer.

Ordering Controlled Substances

Please see the Supply Chain Management procurement page for information about ordering controlled substances. Please note: in almost all circumstances the "Custodian" is the PI. The Custodian must be referenced in the order or it will be flagged and delayed. The location must match the location that EH&S has in their database for the order to proceed as well. If you have any questions regarding these issues, please contact
cs-info@ucdavis.edu. 

Online Usage Log System

All Authorized Custodians must use the Online Controlled Substance Usage Log System and ensure that all of the logs are kept up-to-date. Entries should be completed by the end of the business day that substances are used.

Disposal Requests for Controlled Substances