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Daily news - 24th April 2025 |
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UK news
Supplying take home naloxone without a prescription
A guide to the legislation enabling drug services and others to supply take home naloxone without a prescription to save a life in an emergency | Department of Health and Social Care, UK
Capability framework for the drug and alcohol treatment and recovery workforce
This capability framework is for the drug and alcohol treatment and recovery workforce. It should be read alongside the 10-year strategic plan for the drug and alcohol treatment and recovery workforce (2024–2034). This framework underpins the national drug and alcohol treatment and recovery workforce transformation programme, developed following the Independent review of drugs by Professor Dame Carol Black. The independent review found that the Drug and Alcohol National Occupational Standards (DANOS) no longer reflect the current needs of the sector. This capability framework provides new guidance on the knowledge and skills required for core roles within the sector | NHS England, UK
The long game
In 2018, a new long-acting buprenorphine injection was licensed in the UK for the treatment of opioid use disorder (OUD) and it became available for clinical use in early 2019. Via was the first state-funded treatment provider to offer long-acting injectable buprenorphine (LAIB) in England and Wales. Here we hear from key stakeholders at Via and Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU) about their latest research into the predictors and outcomes of LAIB vs oral medication, and the life-changing impact LAIB can have on the people it’s prescribed to | DDN, UK
North Wales nurse who lost her brother runs London Marathon this weekend for drug and alcohol charity
Alex Jones, 34, is set to take on the ultimate challenge of running the London Marathon to raise money and awareness for WithYou, a national charity supporting more than 100,000 people with problems with drugs, alcohol or their mental health across England and Scotland | DDN, UK
Father who recovered from alcoholism to open gym
Ben Larson, from Sydenham, Somerset, has spoken about how fitness helped him overcome the chronic alcoholism that troubled his early adulthood | BBC, UK
Cluster headaches are ‘the most painful condition on the planet’. Sufferers are going to extreme – and secretive – measures for relief
Alone in his flat, Peter turned to the internet. He soon came across r/clusterheads, and with some shock, realized that these people were experiencing the same thing as him. What’s more, there was a sense of optimism there: multiple clusterheads were happily reporting that they had “busted” their cluster cycles using magic mushrooms | Guardian, UK
Smoking: Health Services
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much funding for local stop smoking services was allocated to swap to stop schemes in (a) 2023 and (b) 2024; and how much funding for local stop smoking services his Department plans to allocate to swap to stop schemes in (i) 2025 and (ii) 2026 | They work for you, UK
Nitazenes: A Deep Dive
Tuesday, May 6 · 6 - 9:30pm GMT+1. Online. This training will explore the emergence and growing concerns of Nitazenes - reflecting on their position in the drug market & relevant harm | The Loop, UK
Alcohol Occasional 1: Court-enforced Alcohol Abstinence and Reoffending
Mon, 12 May 2025 12:45 - 14:00 BST. In Scotland there is a keen interest in alcohol problems in the justice system and how best to improve the justice journey of individuals with alcohol use disorder. Whilst Scotland has not yet adopted alcohol tagging technology in criminal justice settings, England and Wales has. Criminal courts in this jurisdiction may make use of alcohol treatment or abstinence requirements as part of a community sentence in cases where alcohol consumption has played a role in a defendant’s offending. This study examined whether these court orders reduce reoffending | SHAAP, UK
Minimum Unit Pricing: Lessons for England
Thursday, May 29 · 12 - 1:30pm GMT+1. Join our webinar to learn everything you need to know about Minimum Unit Pricing (MUP) of alcohol. Leading experts will explore the theory behind the policy, its impact in Scotland and Wales, and crucially, what England can learn from their experiences | IAS, UK
Exploring the effects of attachment and care experience on intergenerational substance use - survey
We are conducting research to understand patterns of substance use within families, and the effects of parent-child relationships and care experience on these patterns. This could help improve support for families affected by drug or alcohol use, especially in situations where children have gone into care | University of Edinburgh, UK
Fear alfresco smoking ban 'could hit trade'
Darlington Borough Council is considering introducing smoke-free zones outside pubs, bars and restaurants throughout the town centre | BBC, UK
Millions of vapes seized in illegal trade crackdown
More than six million illegal vaping products have been seized by Trading Standards officers across England in the past three years, new analysis by the BBC has found. We joined one of the teams responsible for tracking down the illicit goods as they prepare for a ban on the sale of single-use disposable vapes | BBC, UK
Men who secured homes for cannabis farms jailed
Mirel Neatu, Marius Nedelcu and Seyan Debnath secured homes from legitimate landlords under the guise of managing the properties, before allowing organised crime groups to set up cannabis farms, Leeds Crown Court heard | BBC, UK
International news
Routes of Marijuana Use — Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 22 U.S. States and Two Territories, 2022
In 2022, 15.3% of adults reported current cannabis use, approximately 80% of whom reported smoking. Eating, vaping, and dabbing (inhaling heated concentrated cannabis) were also common, and approximately one half of respondents reported multiple routes of use. Vaping and dabbing were most prevalent among adults aged 18–24 years | CDC, USA
Alcohol marketing ushered in a golden age of drinking in America
The term “wine grower” is so common that we never think about how little sense it makes. Vintners aren’t “growing” wine. They are growing grapes, then producing wine from those grapes. So why do we use that odd phrasing? It turns out there’s a story behind it, according to cultural historian Lisa Jacobson, an associate professor at UC Santa Barbara | UCSB, USA
Smoking cessation drug varenicline helps young adults quit vaping, clinical trial reveals
A new study by investigators from Mass General Brigham showed that teens and young adults who took varenicline—an FDA-approved, twice-daily smoking cessation pill for adults—are more than three times as likely to successfully quit vaping compared to those who received only behavioral counseling | Medical Xpress, USA
A Methadone Pioneer Who Freed People From the Cruel Clinic System
Dr. Edwin Salsitz is a methadone OG. He was one of a coterie of New York City doctors who pioneered its use to treat opioid use disorder back in the 1980s, including Drs. Vincent Dole, Marie Nyswander and Mary Jeanne Kreek—physicians who researched methadone at Rockefeller University | Filter Magazine, USA
How people in recovery are pulling together amidst a drug crisis in Sheshatshiu
Stephen Penashue's office at the Mary May Healing Centre in Sheshatshiu is barely larger than a supply closet, but the 31-year-old support worker takes pride in the fact he has an outsize impact from within those four walls | CBC News, USA
Tracing the Impact of Media, Cultural Narratives, and Social Perceptions on Australia's Anabolic-Androgenic Steroid Communities
[Open access] Anabolic-androgenic steroids (AAS) are used for performance and image enhancement, yet their non-medical use in Australia is heavily criminalized and framed by sociocultural narratives that emphasize risk, deviance and harm. This study aimed to critically examine how people who use AAS experience these narratives, focusing on challenging their role in perpetuating stigma and reinforcing punitive responses | CDP, USA
Blogs, comment and opinion
Improving research career opportunities in the field of substance use treatment
If we want effective, efficient and equitable treatment services for people who have issues with their use of alcohol or other drugs, then we need good research to generate evidence on what works, and how we can improve. That’s why the Government has developed a programme – the Addiction Healthcare Goals – to fund specific research projects and develop the ‘ecosystem’ for research related to addiction | Collective Voice blog, UK
Anabolic Steroids and Hepatitis C Risk: What You Should Know
Anabolic steroids are synthetic versions of the hormone testosterone, often used to increase muscle mass and enhance athletic performance. However, their use carries serious health risks, one of which may be the increased risk of contracting hepatitis C | Hep CU Later blog, UK