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Daily news - 14th October 2022 |
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UK news
New Met Commissioner Mark Rowley ‘very enthusiastic’ about drug diversion in London
[Free registration may be required] Drug diversion schemes allow police to deal quickly and proportionately with low-level offending without the need for criminal prosecution | Evening Standard, UK
'It's about harm reduction': Newcastle universities explain how drugs policies have changed since Jeni Larmour's death
Newcastle's universities have expanded and revamped drug and alcohol policies in response to Jeni Larmour's death in 2020 | Chronicle, UK
Working together – The Ley Community and Phoenix Futures
We are delighted to announce that The Ley Community and Phoenix Futures will be working together to develop a new residential treatment service on the grounds of The Ley Community in Oxford | DDN, UK
Alcohol and late night refreshment licensing England and Wales 31 March 2022
Includes statistics on premises licences, club premises certificates, personal licences, late night refreshment and 24-hour alcohol licences | Home Office, UK
Drugs: Organised Crime
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to New support for victims of county lines exploitation, published on 24 September 2022, how much funding will be allocated to support services in London, for each of the next three years | They work for you, UK
Drug problems rife in our towns and cities - powerful testimonies from addicts and families who lost loved ones - audio
How worried are you at the level of drug use on our streets? | BBC Radio Ulster, UK
SPIRITUAL DATA 852Hz
Thu, 27 October 2022, 19:00 – 21:30 BST. Bristol. SPIRITUAL DATA 852Hz is a benefit concert for the amazing work carried out by The Bristol Drugs Project | Maverick Creators for Social Change, UK
Street Drug Discussions: Nitrous Oxide (laughing gas)
Fri, 28 October 2022, 14:00 – 16:00 BST. This webinar looks at effects of nitrous on brain and body, medical and recreational patterns of use and the risks | Drug Science, UK
Faculty of Health Lecture - Professor Harry Sumnall
Wed, 16 November 2022, 17:00 – 19:00 GMT. Liverpool. This talk will provide an overview of a recent programme of research undertaken by Harry and colleagues, that has investigated the ways in which PWUD are stigmatised and how this could be reversed. There will be a particular focus on how we can ‘rehumanise’ otherwise dehumanised people with complex needs. Although the focus is on PWUD, the talk will also be of relevant for those who work or do research with other stigmatised groups | LJMU, UK
Highland Family Recovery Initiative Fund
The Highland Family Recovery Initiative Fund (HFRIF) can offer one-off grants of up to £1000 to groups or projects that support families affected by alcohol and drugs in the Scottish Highlands. The deadline for applications to this fund is Friday 25th November 2022 | SFAD, UK
South Yorkshire: Drugs and weapons seized in county lines raids
More than £650,000 worth of drugs have been seized by police following a week of action tackling county lines gangs | BBC, UK
Drugs seized and 19 arrested in Lincolnshire county lines crackdown
Nineteen people have been arrested in a police operation targeting county lines gangs in Lincolnshire | BBC, UK
Weapons and drugs seized in Northumbria county lines crackdown
Weapons and drugs have been seized and more than 90 people arrested in a major crackdown on county lines gangs | BBC, UK
International news
New York seeks former cannabis convicts to run first legal weed dispensaries
[Possible paywall] Former convicts jailed on marijuana-related offences in New York are being offered the chance to run the state’s first legal weed dispensaries, as it looks to “atone” for the damage from the US’s decades-long "war on drugs" | Telegraph, UK
Government looking to ban disposable vapes in Ireland due to littering
"I've no problem with vaping, but what's emerged in the last year is this idea of a single-use vape" | Irish Mirror, Ireland
Allergy meds in street opioids make overdoses more deadly
The prime drug in question is diphenhydramine, found commonly in over-the-counter allergy meds such as Benadryl | Medical Xpress, USA
Survey shows majority of physicians favor allowing telehealth to treat opioid-use disorder
A survey of more than 1,000 registered physicians who used telehealth services to treat patients with opioid-use disorder during COVID-19 found that an overwhelming majority favor making telehealth a permanent part of their practice | Medical Xpress, USA
Impact of Vaping Prevention Advertisements on US Adolescents
In this randomized clinical trial that included 1514 adolescents, Real Cost vaping prevention advertisements reduced susceptibility to vaping compared with control videos. Real Cost advertisements also reduced susceptibility to smoking cigarettes compared with control videos | JAMA Network Open, USA
Current FDA oversight of vaping industry is likely to have minimal impact
Current Food and Drug Administration (FDA) oversight of the vaping industry in the U.S. is likely to have minimal impact, suggests an analysis of the regulator's warning letters for marketing violations, published online in the journal Tobacco Control | Medical Xpress, USA
The DRAM, Vol. 18(11) - Stretch goals: The impact of exercise on alcohol consumption
Sadly, about 1 in 20 adults worldwide are living with an alcohol use disorder (AUD). Equally discouraging is the fact that only about 1 in 6 adults receive treatment for their AUD | BASIS, USA
Proposed menthol ban in U.S. would cut littering by 3.8 billion cigarettes butts annually
Cigarette butts contain plastic and leach toxic chemicals into soil and water | University of Waterloo, Canada
The power of connection: collaboration and co-design in clinical services
The challenge of successfully implementing integrated care in mental health (MH) and alcohol and other drug (AOD) services is well established. Whilst the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on clinical practice continues to unfold, the concerning effects of increased isolation on people and services is clear. Now more than ever, a pragmatic approach to service collaboration is critical | NDARC, Australia
Blogs, comment and opinion
RADAR – An early-warning drugs surveillance system for Scotland
In this blog post, Vicki Craik, Public Health Intelligence Adviser and lead of the RADAR initiative at Public Health Scotland, explains how the system works, the impact it seeks to have and how to get involved to make a difference | Public Health Scotland blog, UK
UK drug policy: how seizing passports will not stop illicit dug use
In an attempt to clamp down on recreational drug use, the British government recently set out a three-tier system for dealing with people caught in possession of illegal substances | Conversation, UK
What does the cost-of-living crisis mean for the medical cannabis industry?
The current cost of living crisis has impacted individuals and businesses alike, and it appears that the medical cannabis industry is not exempt from the injurious effects of inflation, soaring energy prices, and the current economic climate | Volteface, UK
What does hope look like? A blog written for the Lantern Initiative
This blog and poems are written by Paul Good, who was asked to write and read a poem for a service in the Cathedral for the 2022 UK Recovery Walk | Newcastle Cathedral, UK
American Drug Policy Advocates Weigh in on Biden’s Cannabis Federal Reform
The world woke up to an early Christmas present from American President Joe Biden as he announced a move to pardon all federal offences for simple cannabis possession, as well as calling on state governors to do the same. Interestingly, this executive order included a request for the Department of Health and the country’s Attorney General to review how cannabis is scheduled under federal law. This is particularly welcome as cannabis remains as a schedule 1 substance in the US, supposedly used for drugs with no recognised medical benefits and high potential for abuse | Talking Drugs, UK
The Insubordination of Private Miller
Because I have started watching many Seth Rogan films but have finished none of them, it’s lucky for me that the one historical scene of Pineapple Express (2008), which I will analyze below, is also the opening scene. I would hate to have missed it | Points blog, USA
Legalizing cannabis led to increased cannabis poisonings in Canadian children. It could get a whole lot worse
When Canada legalized non-medical cannabis four years ago, there was enormous uncertainty about how legalization could impact the health of Canadians. Since then, there has been increasing evidence that legalization has resulted in some negative health effects. The clearest of these is a large increase in accidental cannabis poisonings in young children | Conversation, Canada
From e-cigarettes to hookah pipes, South Africa aims to tighten tobacco laws
In 2018 South Africa published a tobacco control bill that sought to better regulate the sale of cigarettes and other tobacco products. It’s been revised as the Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Control Bill 2021 and has been approved for submission to parliament. Ina Skosana speaks to Catherine Egbe, a lead researcher on South Africa’s Global Adult Smoking Survey, about the latest developments | Conversation, South Africa