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Daily news - 6th December 2022 |
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UK news
DDN December 2022 out now
Speakers at Hit Hot Topics talked of dilemmas, frustrations and being on the wrong side of the law (p6). But what shone from their talks was the bravery, resilience, determination and clear purpose in making life (a lot) better for their peers. Our review of the year (p17) reminds us of the struggles at home and abroad, and the pressures we all face. One big positive that seems to have come out of it all is a renewed appetite to work in partnership – particularly the culture of more informed commissioning (p14 and p21) and a harnessing of the collective energy to tackle stigma (p18). We’re also fully involved in helping to skill up the workforce, so please keep participating in our careers series (p22) | DDN, UK
Improving the care and management of patients with alcohol dependency in the emergency department
A nurse led Alcohol Care Team has reduced emergency hospital admissions for patients presenting with acute alcohol withdrawal at an emergency department | Nursing Times, UK
Clearing the smoke: the evidence behind vaping
E-cigarettes (vaping products) offer a substantially less harmful alternative [to smoking], but there has been a heated debate about their use and wide variation in approaches to regulation. Against a backdrop of controversy and disparate knowledge, the Nicotine Research Group at King’s has provided a much-needed body of research to enable an evidence-based approach to policy-making in this area | KCL, UK
Exclusive: Prescriptions rising for anxiety drug linked to 1 in 10 drug deaths in England - video
Pregabalin is a prescription drug used to treat epilepsy, chronic pain and anxiety. It’s regarded as an effective treatment, but it can also cause dependency, addiction, and puts people at higher risk of overdosing on other substances – the reasons why it became more tightly regulated in 2019. Yet figures obtained by Channel 4 News show that the number of patients being prescribed Pregabalin has risen significantly, and so too has the number of fatalities it’s linked to | Channel 4, UK
Evidence and practice briefing: Best practice in pre-court disposals for possession of drugs (PDF)
This briefing sets out a best practice framework for police forces to guide their use of pre-court disposals in drug possession cases for children and adults. It is based on existing good practice in police forces. We have written it in anticipation of significant changes that police forces are making to their use of pre-court disposals more generally, due to the changes to the adult formal, statutory out of court disposal framework as outlined in the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 | Centre for Justice Innovation, UK
Webinar Launch: Implementing buprenorphine long-acting (LA) injection in Heath and Justice
19th January 2023 13:00 - 15:00. Online. NHS England Health and Justice has been working closely with OHID to review the implementation of this injectable treatment in the Health and Justice setting, with the aim to support successful implementation of the service through shared learning and development of a suite of practical tools, consistent across all care systems. This webinar is for providers, commissioners and policy makers interested in finding out about: 1) buprenorphine LA injection - OHID support and the evidence-base; 2) findings from a recent survey across all regions; 3) perspective and experience from GPs and pharmacist on key barriers and how these can be overcome; 4) what are the outcomes on service users and their feedback | DHSC, UK
Life in Cornwall alcohol and drugs rehab: 'The Chy saved my life'
CornwallLive visited With You Chy in Truro - one of the few residential rehabs in the UK | Cornwall Live, UK
Our "Proud To Say" campaign celebrates Turning Point UK
Our annual "Proud To Say" campaign at Turning Point is an opportunity for us to share some of the stories of pride and accomplishment that we have seen throughout the year. We ask the people we support, colleagues, peer mentors and volunteers to reflect on the last twelve months and tell us what they are #ProudToSay. | Turning Point, UK
Addictions Counselling Inverness receives £13k from Scotch Whisky Action Fund to tackle alcohol misuse
An addiction support charity in Inverness is among three projects in the north of Scotland to receive funding from the Scotch Whisky Action Fund (SWAF) | Inverness Courier, UK
Adfam's Festive Celebration 2022
Fri, 9 December 2022, 13:00 – 14:00 GMT. Join us for Adfam's online Festive Celebration 2022. Join us for a virtual Festive Celebration and awards presentation | Adfam, UK
Workers at hazardous nuclear waste site test positive for drugs
[Possible paywall] Random testing has been carried out on 741 workers over the past year | Telegraph, UK
England’s World Cup run gives West's pubs 'big boost'
Emma McClarkin, chief executive of the British Beer and Pub Association, said the trade had endured a tough year and it was a welcome relief | BBC, UK
South West police target drug use in night-time economy
Recreational drugs are a problem in the South West's night-time economy, the assistant chief constable for Devon and Cornwall Police has said. On Saturday a 16-year-old girl died after taking an "unknown substance" at an Exeter nightclub | BBC, UK
Guns drugs and cash seized in Coventry police raids
Five people have been arrested and about £1m in cash and drugs were seized in a crackdown on organised crime | BBC, UK
International news
Alcohol: No Ordinary Commodity (PDF)
[Free book download] This book is about alcohol policy: why it is needed, how it is made, and the impact it has on health and well-being. It is written for both policymakers and alcohol scientists, as well as for many other people interested in bridging the gap between research and policy. It begins by examining the premise that alcohol is not an ordinary commodity, and it ends with the conclusion that alcohol policies implemented within a public health agenda are capable of reducing the harm caused by ethyl alcohol... | OUP, UK
Kylian Mbappe offers to pay FIFA fine for France media no-shows at the World Cup
FIFA are now in a position to fine the French Football Federation (FFF) for Mbappe’s repeated no-shows but the forward, who has also been hiding Budweiser’s name when posing for photos with his Player of the Match trophy because he does not want to promote alcohol, is offering to pick up the tab | Metro, UK
American teens are ‘swapping alcohol for drugs’
Cannabis among teens increased 245 per cent between 2000 and 2020, with the largest rise coming since 2017 as many states decriminalised the drug | Independent, UK
Highly processed foods and addiction with Ashley Gearhardt - podcast
In this episode of Addiction Audio, Rob Talks to Dr Ashley Gearhardt from the University of Michigan about whether highly processed foods can be considered to be addictive substances | SSA, UK
'I'm still pinching myself': Aimee becomes first endometriosis sufferer to get legal cannabis
A woman living with endometriosis in Tipperary is believed to be the first to receive a ministerial licence for cannabis prescription to treat pain associated with this condition | Irish Examiner, Ireland
Owners of Dublin pub ordered to pay €15k to customer accused of doing cocaine in toilet
The owners of a well-known pub in Dublin have been hit with a €15,000 damages award as a result of their manager having told a customer he had been using cocaine in the toilet | Belfast Telegraph, UK
Spain cannabis: Police arrest 30 accused of disguising drugs as Ukraine aid
Ukrainians, Spaniards, Germans and Moroccans were among those held in the Andalusia region | BBC, UK
Healthy Ireland survey 2022: summary report (PDF)
The Healthy Ireland Survey is an annual survey conducted with a representative sample of the population aged 15 and older living in Ireland. The sample size is typically in the region of over 7.500 people. Fieldwork to date has been conducted by Ipsos MRBI | Government of Ireland, Ireland
Decline in frequency of alcohol consumption among 35 to 44-year-olds
A new national survey has found that there has been a decline in drinking frequency among 35 to 44-year-olds | RTe, Ireland
Children are Ditching Alcohol for Marijuana, as 20-Year National US Study Shows a 245% Increase
Findings, published today in the peer-reviewed journal Clinical Toxicology, find over 338,000 instances of intentional abuse or misuse amongst American children aged 6-18 | Taylor & Francis, USA
The Opioid Epidemic Is Surging among Black People because of Unequal Access to Treatment
Clinics and the most effective types of therapy are harder to find in communities where people of color live | Scientific American, USA
Association of Recreational Cannabis Legalization With Cannabis Possession Arrest Rates in the US
In this cross-sectional study using difference-in-differences analysis for data from 31 states, recreational cannabis legalization (RCL), was associated with a 40% reduction in cannabis possession arrest rates among adults in the 5 states that had already decriminalized cannabis between 2010 and 2019 | JAMA Network, USA
Study shows addiction potential and health risks of alternatives to menthol cigarettes
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) should extend the ban on menthol flavored cigarettes and cigars to include potential substitutes like menthol pipe tobacco and cigarette tubes, say researchers at Rutgers Center for Tobacco Studies and The Ohio State University | News Medical, USA
Tobacco and Vape Companies Ask Supreme Court to Stop CA Flavor Ban
On November 29, R.J. Reynolds and other tobacco and vapor companies filed an emergency application for writ of injunction with the United States Supreme Court, requesting that enforcement of California’s nicotine flavor ban be halted | Filter Magazine, USA
Small Vape Shops Save Lives. Many Communities Are Losing Them
There’s an oversimplified notion that only Big Tobacco supports vaping. On the contrary, thousands of small businesses, selling vapor products manufactured by small companies, are the backbone of tobacco harm reduction in the United States. Until recently, I ran one of them | Filter Magazine, USA
Blogs, comment and opinion
A New Framework For Drug Possession
Last week (30 November 2022), the Centre for Justice Innovation launched a new framework for the use of pre-court disposals for possession of drug cases. The framework, which is based on existing best practice was written in anticipation of significant changes that police forces are making to their use of pre-court disposals more generally, due to the changes to the adult formal, statutory out of court disposal framework as outlined in the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 | Russell Webster, UK
The Benzo Blogs
Accompanying the launch of their new report, we've got 2 new blogs from the Benzo Research Team | Volteface, UK