Weekly news - 10th May 2013 |
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Drugs Recovery Adviser appointed by Public Health England
Internationally recognised addiction expert Dr A Thomas McLellan will provide independent advice on PHE’s work to tackle the problem of drug misuse | PHE, UK
Launch of an Alcohol and Crime Commission
The drug and alcohol treatment charity Addaction, supported by Heineken, has launched an Alcohol and Crime Commission to examine how support can be given to prisoners suffering from alcohol abuse - especially after release | InsideTime, UK [ See more from Addaction on this here]
Royal colleges join forces with Australian counterparts in call for standard packs
The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) has joined the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health and Australian counterparts, the Royal Australasian College of Physicians, to call on the government to push ahead with plans for standardised packaging of tobacco products | RCP, UK
Inside Denmark's 'fixing rooms', where nurses watch as addicts inject in safety
Away from public view, this safe haven for drug users has 1,000 regulars. Crime is down, the streets are safer. Could it work in Britain? | Guardian, uk
Loophole lets drug dealers sell deadly slimming pills openly over the web
British dealers are exploiting a loophole in the law to sell dangerous weight-loss drugs that have led to the deaths of several young people, a Sunday Telegraph investigation has found | Telegraph, UK
How bad is drug consumption? Well, it depends on your class
How does socio-economic status affect perceptions about the seriousness of drug consumption? | Guardian, UK
Minimum pricing: Challenge to Scottish alcohol legislation fails
A legal challenge to the Scottish government's plans to introduce minimum pricing per unit of alcohol has failed | BBC, UK
Martindale Pharma® launches Prenoxad® Injection for the emergency treatment of opioid overdose
World’s first licensed naloxone product for use by non-healthcare profession individuals in a community setting. Prenoxad Injection is a pre-filled syringe containing 1mg/ml naloxone hydrochloride solution for injection | Martindale Pharma, UK
Prenoxad injection [product site]
[Information on the Naloxone product for helathcare professionals, drus workers and those with a prescription for the product or their friends] | Prenoxad, UK
Jab for heroin addiction could offer hope to 10m
Heroin addiction and the misery it inflicts could soon be a thing of the past – thanks to a simple injection | Metro, UK
DDN magazine (PDF)
In this month’s cover story, Kevin Flemen offers a reassuring guide to staying ahead of novel psychoactive compounds, using existing skills to respond calmly and effectively. There’s a varied alcohol theme running through this issue, as minimum pricing arguments continue to rage | DDN, UK
Press Release 7th May – European Research Network on Illicit Drugs (ERANID) launched
Today ERANID, the European Research Area Network on Illicit Drugs, a project funded by the European Union, has been launched. ERANID can be considered as a first fundamental step towards long-term co-operation in the field of scientific research on illicit drugs | ERANID, UK
Chapter 1; Preventing Alcohol Use Disorders Among Children and Adolescents in the EU (PDF)
This paper will present empirical evidence clearly pointing to basic changes that need to be made in alcohol policy across the EU in order to prevent further alcohol use disorders and the resultant high levels of morbidity and mortality | ECSWE, UK
Under-18s should be banned from having ANY alcohol: Warning that attempts to introduce children to drinking risks turning them into an alcoholic in later life
Parents who give their children small amounts of alcohol in the belief they are instilling a sensible attitude to drinking may unwittingly be giving them a taste for booze, a psychologist has warned | Mail Online, UK
Effectiveness Bank Bulletin 8 May 2013
Latest documents added to the Effectiveness Bank asks what ‘recovery’ is and evaluate a key way to get there - extending remission in substance use via extended treatment. Another entry confirms the reality of peer influence on which much drug prevention is based | Drug and Alcohol Findings, UK
Addict parents are 'not all bad' says Tam Baillie
Drug and alcohol abusers do not always make bad parents, a child expert said | BBC, UK
Jersey drug users warned of 'strong heroin' batch
Drug users in Jersey have been warned of a "batch of strong heroin" that increases the chance of overdose | BBC, UK
Queen's speech: alcohol and cigarettes curbs 'not abandoned'
Jeremy Hunt insists no final decisions have been made despite absence of measures to introduce minimum alcohol pricing and plain cigarette packaging | Guardian, UK
Queen's Speech: Policies once championed by the Coalition conspicuously missing from the list of new laws
Government accused of betraying key causes as policies mystery left out of speech | Independent, UK
CRI creates two divisions to address needs of communities
CRI is to create two clear divisions – ‘Social Care and Health Initiatives’ and ‘Criminal Justice’ | CRI, UK
ACMD is holding an open meeting on 16 May 2013 invites members of the public to attend at its offices in central London
The Advisory Council for the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) invites members of the public to its open meeting on Thursday 16th May 2013. There will be an opportunity for attendees to provide feedback to the ACMD and participate in a question and answer session | Gov.uk, UK
Helping service users to engage with treatment and stay the course
The second in a series of briefings to support commissioners and providers who want to improve the recovery orientation of their services as recommended by ‘Medications in recovery: re-orientating drug dependence treatment’, the final report of the John Strang-chaired Recovery Orientated Drug Treatment expert group | PHE, UK
The War on Drugs: Join us for a debate on Thursday 23 May
Join David Simon, writer of The Wire, documentary maker Eugene Jarecki and other panel members at the Royal Institution of Great Britain. The debate will be chaired by Observer editor John Mulholland | Guardian, UK
Legal highs: international drugs gangs 'expanding into growing market'
Head of US overseas drug enforcement bureau says officials lack tools needed to keep up with rapidly expanding market | Guardian, UK
From Chinese factory to UK households – realities of the trade in legal highs
Attempts to control synthetic drug trade resemble futile efforts made by record labels to control digital piracy decade ago | Guardian, UK
Transforming Rehabilitation - a revolution in the way we manage offenders
‘Transforming Rehabilitation – a revolution in the way we manage offenders’ describes the Government’s proposals for reforming the delivery of offender services in the community to reduce reoffending rates whilst delivering improved value for money for the tax payer | MoJ, UK