Weekly news - 1st March 2013 |
 |
If you only want a summary of the week's news, you can sign up just for that service here.
Urgent drug warning after teenager dies at Surrey party
Police have issued a warning to recreational drug users following the sudden death of a teenage boy at a party.The 18-year-old is thought to have inhaled an unknown illegal substance at the gathering on Chobham Common in Surrey | London Evening Standard, UK
Grampian warning over 'tranquiliser deaths rate'
Police and health officials are warning of the dangers of tranquilisers implicated in 80% of drug-related deaths in the north east of Scotland | BBC, UK
Seminal and thought-provoking studies from the training research archive
These new additions to the Effectiveness Bank were added as part of a project identify seminal and key workforce development studies. Still challenging and thought-provoking, they have stood the test of time and remain major landmarks in the relatively scarce substance use treatment training literature | Drug and Alcohol Findings, UK
Ministry of Justice: ‘Transforming rehabilitation’ consultation – DrugScope response (PDF)
Extract: ‘…While the focus on improving resettlement for short-term prisoners is welcome, it is important that the role of community sentences as an alternative to short custodial sentences continues to be developed… If drug and alcohol services are commissioned through 16 Contract Package areas this will be one piece in a complex planning and commissioning ‘jigsaw’ .…We would welcome further work to consider the challenges of integrated commissioning with so many structural changes occurring simultaneously.’ | DrugScope, UK
Life-saving drug not administered by two NI health trusts
Two of NI's health trusts have not distributed a potentially life-saving drug, despite it being available to them since July 2012 | BBC, UK
Did you take drugs, Dad? Just say no
Parents who discuss their own drug-use risk encouraging their children to experiment, researchers have warned | Telegraph, UK
Brighton and Hove considers anti-child drinking contracts
Contracts to be signed by parents pledging not to give their children alcohol are being considered by authorities in Brighton and Hove | BBC, UK
Heroin Warning February 2013
Release has received reports of dangerously adulterated heroin circulating in the Hackney area | Release, UK
Is it time for global alcohol consumption guidelines?
A comparison of drinking guidelines around the world shows there is little consensus between countries on what constitutes 'safe' or lower risk alcohol consumption. In this guest post, Dr Richard de Visser, a Senior Lecturer in Psychology at the University of Sussex explores the study conducted with Doctoral student Ms Nina Furtwængler. It was published this month in Drug and Alcohol Review | Alcohol Policy Net, UK
Reckitt Benckiser faces inquiry over move to block heroin substitutes
Company's exclusive right to market cheaper Suboxone tablets in the US has expired and it expects a substantial hit to profits | Guardian, UK
Mexxy, Black Mamba and other 'legal highs' become Class B drugs
Following advice from the government's independent drug experts, the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD), new synthetic cannabinoids (such as those contained in Black Mamba and Annihilation), O-desmethyltramadol, methoxetamine (sold as Mexxy) and similar compounds have been classified under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 | Home Office, UK
Recovery Festival 2013 – March 12th & 13th: delegate places
Places are available to attend the Recovery Festival at the QEII Centre, Westminster, London on 12th and 13th March. The delegate rate is £25 for one day and £40 for both days. To register a place and for information about the speakers, workshops and exhibition opportunities visit the Recovery Festival website | Recovery Partnership, UK
The Anonymous People – documentary video
The Anonymous People is a documentary film about the 23.5 million Americans living in long-term recovery from alcohol and other drug addiction. The vacuum created by silence has been filled by sensational mass media depictions of addiction. This recovery movement is fueling a changing conversation that aims to transform public opinion, and shift problematic policy toward lasting recovery solutions | Kickstarter.com, USA
Parental substance use through the eyes of the worker
Based on interviews with social workers, treatment providers and other support workers across the country, the report (PDF) assesses what has changed over the last 10 years since Hidden Harm was first published and highlights further areas for improvement | Adfam, UK
Effectiveness Bank hot topics for March/April 2013
This latest set examines major themes in contemporary UK treatment provision: what makes one service better than another and how to provide the range of services seen as underpinning reintegration and recovery objectives | Drug and Alcohol Findings, UK
Excess drinking: How much alcohol is too much? - video
National guidelines say women should drink no more than 14 units a week, and men no more than 21 - but how much do we really drink? | BBC, UK
Drug related deaths in the UK (PDF)
Drug-related deaths reported by Coroners in England, Wales, Northern Ireland, Guernsey, Jersey and the Isle of Man; Police forces in Scotland; & the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency | np SAD, UK
Barriers and facilitators to hepatitis C treatment for people who inject drugs. A qualitative study
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a significant global public health problem. The burden of HCV infection is concentrated among people who inject drugs (PWID), with an estimated five million PWID living with chronic HCV in the European Region. Download the report here (PDF) | WHO, Switzerland
Health first: an evidence based drug strategy for the UK (PDF)
This report has been produced by an independent group of experts with no involvement from the alcohol industry. It has been written for everyone with an interest in promoting public health and community safety, at both national and local levels | Univ Stirling, UK