DS Daily - 22nd February 2010 |
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Heroin on NHS takes a step closer
Aberdeen City Council’s top social worker has recommended councillors discuss prescribing heroin through NHS Grampian with the health board [The Press and Journal, UK]
Scotland 'worst in world for drug crime'
Calls for action as crime hits six times worldwide average [stv, UK]
'Mephedrone bigger than ecstasy in Scottish pubs'
Deadly party drug mephedrone is becoming bigger than ecstasy in pubs and clubs across Scotland, experts warn [The Publican, UK]
Born behind bars
Four new mothers tell their inside stories [Observer, UK]
So much for Labour crackdown on cannabis as 5 out of 6 people caught with drug escape court
Five out of every six people caught with cannabis escaped prosecution last year - despite the fact Labour has reclassified it as a more serious drug [Daily Mail, UK]
Inquiry call after Caernarfon mother fed baby methadone
The family of a mother who added the heroin substitute methadone to her baby's bottle say they believe Gwynedd social services could have done more [BBC, UK]
Can traditional herbal remedies or acupuncture help treat addiction?
This China-North America collaboration found some promising studies. Best established is their role in relieving opiate withdrawal. Other applications are generally at the potential stage only [Drug and Alcohol Findings, UK]
Baroness Massey Launches Stoke Drug Services
Baroness Doreen Massey, Chair of the Board of the National Treatment Agency, formally launched CRI’s Stoke-on-Trent community drug service for adults and young people on 3 February [CRI, UK]
Not all syringes are the same
This article will compare some of the main equipment you can get [Injecting Advice, UK]
How Meow Meow nearly destroyed me
A clubber hooked on party drug Meow Meow has warned fellow users: It will ruin your life [The Sun, UK]
The intention to cause harm
The war on drugs came up with another daft idea this week, from Scotland this time. The problem is the failure of the drug war to keep pace with the never ending succession of new drugs which have to be made illegal before they can be banned or, as the government would have it, “controlled” [UKCIA]
Walking proof that methadone is failing after 20 years in treatment
If further proof were needed of the government's failed 'methadone prescribing to reduce re offending' strategy then it was given in a Scottish Court last week [Centre for Policy Studies, UK]
An evaluation of the provision of mental health services for looked after young people over the age of 16 accommodated in residential setting
This report draws on visits to 27 children’s homes in eight local authorities. It identifies how the mental health needs of young people in care aged 16 and over are met [Ofsted, UK]
Universities told to consider dope tests as student use of 'smart drugs' soars
Cambridge scientist calls for ethical debate on drugs bought on internet that boost alertness and attention [Observer, UK]
Let athletes take drugs, says expert
A Scots professor and world expert on “artificial enhancement” in sport has caused a storm in the middle of the Winter Olympics by calling for athletes to be allowed to use banned drugs in their quest for medals [The Herald, Scotland, UK]
Draft global strategy to reduce the harmfui use of alcohol
Revised version based on the outcomes of WHO Executive Board 126th Session, Geneva, 18–23 January 2010 [WHO]
Ministers consider higher taxes to curb youth drinking problem
Celebrity booze culture came under fire from the Government yesterday as a Home Office minister gave the clearest signal yet that tax on alcohol will be raised to curb drinking problems among young people [Independent, UK]
Sir Menzies fights for BP against LibDem drink law
Sir Menzies has so far earned more than £10,000 for helping BP fight Glasgow and Edinburgh’s licensing boards, which want to stop the multinational selling alcohol from its garages [The Herald, Scotland, UK]
Don't heed the prohibitionists – we should teach our children to drink
We are quick to damn teenage binge drinking, but still reluctant to address the culture that produces it [Observer, UK]
Should the drinking age be raised and alcohol banned in public places?
Questions and answers [Independent, UK]
Invitation to join the new European Society for Prevention Research
Membership of the organization is open to scientists, practitioners, advocates, administrators, and policy makers from all European Countries, who are concerned with the modification of psychosocial and behavioural barriers to health, safety, and well-being [European Society for Prevention Research]
Gamma-hydroxybutyrate (GHB) for treatment of alcohol withdrawal and prevention of relapses
GHB 50mg is effective compared to placebo in the treatment of AWS, and in preventing relapses in previously detoxified alcoholics at 3 months follow-up, but the results of this review do not provide sufficient evidence in favour of GHB compared to benzodiazepines and Chlormethiazole for AWS prevention [Cochrane Reviews]
Increase in head shop users seeking help
A Dublin psychiatrist has said there is a “marked and definite” increase in the numbers of young people presenting with problems at his clinic after using head shop products [Irish Times]
Flood of Afghan heroin fuels drug plague in Russia
Drugs have become yet another scourge of post-communist Russia, with millions addicted to heroin and an annual death toll reportedly in the tens of thousands from overdoses and other drug-related causes [The Olympian, USA]
Medical marijuana in D.C.: The council gets it right
It's been 10 years now, so some history is in order: [Washington Post, USA]
Craving: When the brain remembers drug use
What are cravings and how should one cope? [Psychology Today, USA]
The GOP Should Look in the Mirror When Talking About Obama's Drug Use
What about Dubya's alleged cocaine consumption as a younger man? Or Rush Limbaugh's painkiller addiction? [Alternet, USA]
The 10p cocaine byproduct turning Argentina's slum children into the living dead
A generation of parents in Buenos Aires can only watch in despair as their sons and daughters are consumed by paco, a lethally cheap drug [Observer, UK]
Plan to lock up drunks, drug users
New laws to forcibly detain alcoholics and drug addicts in detox centres could be abused to get young binge drinkers off the streets, legal groups have warned [The Age, Australia]
Youth views on drugs sought for survey
Australians aged 16 to 24 are invited to add their views to the online survey, which is an initiative of the University of NSW's National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre (NDARC) [The Age, Australia]
Tackling opium is key to successful operation in Marjah, analysts say
Nato’s mandate does not include counter-narcotics operations unless there is a clear link to the insurgency. In Marjah those links are all around them [Times, UK]