DS Daily - 30th September 2011

Report recommends new Belfast-wide approach

A new Scoping report on drugs and alcohol services in Belfast, produced by the Belfast Drug and Alcohol Working Group (BDAWG) for the Public Health Agency (PHA) has recommended that a Belfast-focused approach is adopted to tackling drug and alcohol misuse in the city. Download report | Public Health Agency, Northern Ireland, UK

New insight from changes to waiting times database

Information on waiting times from referral to start of treatment are presented in the data for the first time, as are alcohol treatment waiting times | Scottish Drugs Forum, UK

Oxford's inaugural recovery walk a success

Saturday 17 September saw the inaugural Walk for Recovery, where dozens of people in recovery, their families and friends took to the streets of Oxford | NTA, UK

£4m Fake Drugs Seized In International Op

A crackdown on illegal and counterfeit medicines has led to the seizure of nearly two million doses, worth £4m, more than half of which was confiscated in the UK | Police Oracle, UK

Irresponsible alcohol promos banned from this weekend

On Saturday 1 October, new legislation comes into force in Scotland which will make it mandatory for all licensed premises to have a policy of checking the age of anyone buying alcohol who looks under 25 | Alcohol Focus Scotland, UK

Legislation to curb alcohol abuse won't solve problem

We have frequently argued that the problem of alcohol in Scotland is a complex one. It is societal and cultural and, therefore, it cannot be dealt with simply by a ban on special promotions, or even tax measures | The Scotsman, UK

Stores cutting alcohol prices 'to defy bulk buy ban'

Retailers will defy the Scottish Government by continuing to sell cheap alcohol despite a ban on discounted package deals | The Scotsman, UK

Tesco move to beat new alcohol laws

The company, Britain’s largest alcohol retailer, has emailed thousands of customers north of the Border warning of the change in the law from tomorrow and to offer them an alternative means of purchasing cut-priced alcohol | The Herald, Scotland, UK

Rush to beat ban on cheap alcohol

Supermarkets are bracing themselves for a stampede at the tills today as Scots rush to beat a ban on cut-price alcohol deals | Daily Express, UK

Tobacco control policies 'bring healthcare savings'

Tobacco control policies implemented by national governments not only improve the health of a nation, but are also good for the economy, according to a new report in the Lancet medical journal | Cancer Research UK

Offender scheme in Conwy and Denbighshire 'pays off'

It offers them help in eight areas including Drugs and alcohol | BBC, UK

Crystal meth seizure sparks alarm

Drug experts have expressed alarm at the first major seizure in Ireland of crystal meth, a highly addictive and destructive drug that has laid waste to many US communities | Irish Examiner

Heroin use in Dublin rising - survey

Heroin use in Dublin rose last year despite a drought in the drug for almost four months, it has been reported | Irish Times

Insite supporter reveals personal brush with addiction

As medical staff of the country’s only supervised drug-injection clinic nervously await Friday’s decision on its future by the Supreme Court of Canada, one of its leading supporters revealed that he now knows first hand what addiction is all about | Globe and Mail, Canada

TEDS Report - Length of Time from First Use to Adult Treatment Admission

Among adult first-time treatment admissions, an average of 15.6 years elapsed between first use of the primary substance of abuse and treatment entry | SAMHSA, USA

Recovery: Changing the Conversation - Presentation

Discusses strategic initiatives, recovery principles, and challenges in public perceptions of mental health and substance abuse | ATTC, USA

More Than Two Dozen Boeing Employees Arrested in Drug Sting

DEA and FBI agents today arrested employees and former employees of Boeing’s Ridley Park plant and one non-employee in a coordinated, long-term, undercover effort aimed at prescription drug abuse at the manufacturing plant | DEA, USA

'Magic mushroom' drug may improve personality long-term

In new research that will almost certainly create controversy, scientists working with the hallucinogen psilocybin -- the active ingredient found in "magic mushrooms" -- have found that a single dose of the drug prompted an enduring but positive personality change in almost 60 percent of patients | USA Today