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Daily news - 14th October 2024 |
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UK news
Researchers urge UK governments to tackle serious mental health illness and substance use
On World Mental Health Day (Oct 10), a study led by Professor of Substance Use Research Elizabeth Hughes, from Glasgow Caledonian University, has been published by the funders, the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The study revealed services across the UK remain ill-equipped to meet the needs of people with co- existing serious mental health and substance use conditions. It said change requires joined-up government policy and local integration of health and social care services, with clinical leads supporting the workforce to come together | GCU, UK
Industry-backed apps designed to cut drinking ‘mislead users’, researchers warn
The use of features which aim to manipulate and influence consumers for their own interests was uncovered | Independent, UK
Smoking: Hospitals
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to strengthen the enforcement of no smoking policies on NHS hospital grounds in England | They work for you, UK
Vaping Demystified - video
Are misconceptions about vaping harming our greatest opportunity to help reduce Yorkshire’s leading cause of early death? This short investigative film provides smokers with the information needed to make an informed decision about using vape products | Yorkshire Cancer Research, UK
Music offers healing at addicts' support group
A project which uses the arts to supports addicts in drugs and alcohol recovery is to mark its 10th year with an anniversary gala. Creative Communities, run by Bristol Drugs Project, has built a reputation for community-based recovery through initiatives like the Bristol Recovery Orchestra and Rising Voices Choir | BBC, UK
EastEnders actor judges show for those in recovery
An EastEnders actor who has had his own recovery issues has returned to a town for a talent show for people who have had addiction and poor mental health problems | BBC, UK
Former drug addict runs 110 miles in 24 hours
Stephen Melling, 45, started from Arnside, Cumbria, before finishing in Whitby, North Yorkshire, on Saturday, to raise money for charity Recovery Runners | BBC, UK
'It's jail, dead, or a future' - series explores addiction
Pete’s successful amateur boxing career is often halted by his cocaine habit. “I will always have that thought in the back of my head, that worry that I’m going to relapse,” Pete tells a new two-part BBC series | BBC, UK
Plea for £4m drug and alcohol support to continue
Cambridgeshire County Council was given three years of funding in 2022 as part of a nationwide government plan to tackle drugs. The authority described the grant as "literally life-saving", but said there was uncertainty on whether it would continue beyond March 2025 | BBC, UK
My battle with Big Tobacco: outgoing Ash CEO Deborah Arnott reflects
Deborah Arnott is stepping down after 21 years. She looks back on her battle with the tobacco lobby… and ahead to the vaping challenge | The Grocer, UK
Join us for our Health and Care Futures webinar series
As part of the programme of activities to mark Turning Point’s 60th year, we are hosting a series of webinars looking at some of the major challenges facing the health and social care sector as we approach the end of the first quarter of the 21st century | Turning Point, UK
Vapes placed near children's sweets sparks concern
A large display of vapes at a supermarket has sparked concern over their close proximity to products aimed at children | BBC, UK
Gang smuggled £200m of cocaine in banana boxes
A gang has been convicted after trying to smuggle cocaine with a street value of about £200m into the UK inside a shipment of bananas from South America | BBC, UK
Trio jailed after dealing cocaine worth £1.3m
Three people have been jailed for their role in an operation that handled more than £1m of cocaine | BBC, UK
Dealer who bought Banksy with cannabis cash jailed
A drug dealer who bought a work by the artist Banksy with "ill-gotten gains" has been sentenced to three years in prison | BBC, UK
International news
A qualitative study of psychological stress and coping among persons using crack cocaine
Research has identified a strong link between stress and drug use behaviours. Also, it has been established that the prolonged use of crack cocaine stimulates emotional, cognitive, neurological and social changes. This paper explores the psychological stressors that occur from crack cocaine use and the coping mechanisms used to mitigate them. This will provide an understanding of the intricate relationship between substance use and psychological well-being | BMC Psychology, UK
Four arrests after cannabis worth €8.5m seized
Four men have been arrested after cannabis with an estimated street value of €8.5m (£7.1m) was seized by gardaí (Irish police) following a search of business premises in Dublin | BBC, UK
Jelly Roll reveals he attended his first Alcoholics Anonymous meeting at 14: ‘I was court-ordered’
Rapper says he’s ‘never been more inspired’ than when leaving an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting | Independent, UK
Medical Council suggests controls needed on widely used prescription drug
A working group of health experts led by the Medical Council has told the government it should consider reclassifying a widely precribed – and misused – anti-anxiety and pain relief medicine as a controlled drug under the Misuse of Drugs Act | Journal, Ireland
2023 Annual Report (PDF)
From a governance perspective 2023 was another big year for Ana Liffey Drug Project with both the publication of our strategic plan Who We Need To Be… and the start of a complete review of how the organisation is structured | Ana Liffey Drug Project, Ireland
Ireland's Aaron Connolly opens up about alcoholism and rehab
Sunderland and Ireland forward Aaron Connolly has revealed he has battled alcoholism for several years, saying he spent a month in rehab this summer after realising the addiction was killing him | Breaking News, Ireland
One in three cases of oral cancer are due to smokeless tobacco, study reveals
A new study by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), with contribution from Karolinska Institutet, has revealed that one in three cases of oral cancer globally is linked to smokeless tobacco and areca nut use | Medical Xpress, USA
New rules should make methadone easier to get, but change is slow in many places
It should be easier to get methadone today than it has been in decades. In April, 2024, the federal government relaxed some of the rules around the treatment for opioid addiction. But many patients are still not benefitting from those changes | NPR, USA
University of Michigan receives grant to study pain management in opioid use disorder
The University of Michigan will use a new $3.6 million federal grant to study how pain and opioids after surgery impact people with opioid use disorder, how guidelines might be adjusted to address post-surgical pain and how to prevent opioid-related harms | News Medical, USA
Blogs, comment and opinion
Understanding the stigma around co-occurring conditions
We recently interviewed Daniel*, Dual Diagnosis Lead, and Marissa*, Social Worker at an NHS APA member trust, to explore more about stigma in the context of co-occurring conditions, as part of our Stigma Kills campaign | NHS APA blog, UK
UNODC Should Stand Against the Use of the Death Penalty for Drug Offenses
Singapore once again executed a person for a drug offense recently. Drug control is driving the use of the death penalty worldwide; one of every three executions carried out over the past decade was of a person convicted of drug offenses. The figure increased to one of every two in 2023. Our record shows at least 280 drug executions took place this year so far | Pass Blue opinion, UK
Does psilocybin really provide long-term relief from depression, as new study suggests?
Psilocybin, the psychedelic substance found in magic mushrooms, is a promising new treatment for psychiatric disorders, especially depression. The beneficial effects on mood and anxiety of psilocybin are rapid and pronounced after just a single treatment. A small study even suggested that these benefits remain after a year | Conversation, Sweden
Vapes are available from online pharmacies in Australia
Despite some initial confusion and misleading messaging, adult Australian vapers can legally purchase nicotine e-liquids from online pharmacies. However, a prescription is needed | Colin Mendelsohn, Australia