DS Daily - 25th August 2010 |
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Drug poisoning deaths
In England and Wales, the total number of deaths related to drug poisoning (involving both legal and illegal drugs) increased each year from 1993 to a peak in 1999, and then gradually declined until 2006. Numbers then increased for two years but have since stabilised in 2009. Statistical bulletin and Data set [Office for National Statistics, UK]
12% increase in drug-related deaths
Heroin and morphine were involved in more than half (52.9%) of the deaths, up from 45.3% in 2008, and more than four in five were accidental overdoses, the National Programme on Substance Abuse Deaths report showed [Independent, UK]
Drug addicts are not to blame for their plight
To stop the stigmatisation of drug users, there needs to be an attempt to inform the public about the nature of addiction, says Charlie Lloyd [Guardian, UK]
Stigma must be addressed
DrugScope response to UKDPC stigma report [DrugScope, UK]
Not just junkies: the stigmatising of drug addicts
Treatment can help problematic drug users but unless we stop judging them and offer kindness and empathy instead it will fail [Guardian, UK]
Injecting environments
How often do we talk to people about their injecting environment? And the effect this has on both their injecting risks and their perception of drug use [Injecting Advice, UK]
Intervention delivered by school staff successfully lowers drinking rates in ‘at risk’ children
Although the trial is designed to evaluate mental health symptoms, academic achievement, and substance use uptake over a 2 year period, the authors have focused their findings on the six month outcomes of drinking and binge-drinking rates, quantity by frequency of alcohol use, and drinking-related problems [Institute of Psychiatry, UK]
Alcohol related social norm perceptions in university students
A review of effective interventions for change [Alcohol Education and Research Council, UK]
Is it simply British to 'get smashed'?
Should government act to curb a dangerous culture of binge drinking, or is it simply British to get smashed? [Washington Post, USA]
New laws force more head shops to close
A number of head shops around the country shut down yesterday as tough new government legislation came into effect [Independent, Ireland]
Codeine regulations cause a few headaches
On August 1st, guidelines came into force meaning over-the-counter medications containing codeine now have to be stored out of view, and customers looking to purchase them have to talk to the pharmacist about why they need them [Irish Times]
Medication-Assisted Treatment for Opioid Addiction
Facts for Families and Friends [SAMHSA, USA]
Guide to Developing and Managing Syringe Access Programs
This manual offers practice, suggestions and considerations rooted in harm reduction - an approach to drug use that promotes and honors the competence of drug users to protect themselves, their loved ones, and their communities and the belief that drug users have a right to respect, health and life-saving sterile injection equipment [The Harm Reduction Coalition, USA]
Emergency Department Visits Involving Methamphetamine: 2004 to 2008
In 2004, 8.2 percent (or 132,576 visits) of all ED visits involving drug misuse or abuse were related to methamphetamine use; however, by 2008, only 3.3 percent (or 66,308 visits) of such visits involved methamphetamine [SAMHSA, USA]
US drug agency recruits speakers of 'street slang'
DEA seeks people who understand black vernacular English to translate wiretaps and stand up evidence in court [Guardian, UK]
Drug and Alcohol Abuse on Campuses
Drug and Alcohol Abuse on Campuses Hinders Our Ambitious Plan to Lead the World in Higher Education [ONDCP, USA]
E-Cigarettes Spark New Smoking War
E-cigarettes are battery-powered tubes that turn nicotine-laced liquid into a vapor mist. Sellers say they are potentially less harmful than cigarettes because they don't have the toxins of burning tobacco [Wall Street Journal, USA]
The Range and Magnitude of Alcohol’s Harm to Others’
This research provides both a broad overview and detailed insight into the problems the drinking of others has on Australians [Alcohol Education and Rehabilitation Foundation, Australia]
Alcohol
A series of articles from [Alcohol Education and Rehabilitation Foundation, Australia]
'All out war' on drinking culture lacks punch
The Government has picked up 126 of the commission's 153 recommendations in full or in part [New Zealand Herald]
Govt response on alcohol missing best changes
The Public health Association says the government’s proposed changes to alcohol laws are a step in the right direction, but will not impact significantly enough on New Zealand’s harmful drinking [Scoop, New Zealand]
142 of 177 Indonesians facing death penalty in Malaysia are drug offenders
The death penalty for drug offences is a violation of the right to life as enshrined in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights [IHRA]