Home | Archive | Weekly | ReportsWeekly news - 14th October 2022 |
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In date order, Monday to Friday
North-South divide in opioid and painkiller prescribing with high use in England's most deprived areas
A North-South divide over the prescription of high dose opioids and other painkillers has been revealed by Sky News research | Sky News, UK
No plans to change law on cannabis, No 10 says
There are no plans to change the law on cannabis, Downing Street has said, after reports the home secretary was considering making it a Class A drug | BBC, UK
Temporary pharmacy closures: Addiction charities warn of ‘massive’ user impact
Temporary pharmacy closures can “disproportionately” affect supervised consumption service users, placing these vulnerable people at “even greater risk”, two charities have told C+D | Chemist and Druggist, UK
Thérèse Coffey to drop smoking action plan, insiders say
Officials say health secretary will not publish plan, as campaigners warn ‘smoke-free’ UK is seven years behind target | Guardian, UK
Join the RADAR Network flyer
You can help reduce drugs harm in Scotland. Find out more about the RADAR Network | Public Health Scotland, UK
Health disparities and health inequalities: applying All Our Health
The main behavioural risk factors for poor health – smoking, poor diet or excess weight, physical inactivity and high alcohol consumption – follow the same pattern of uneven distribution as the wider determinants of health, indicating that there is a relationship between an individual’s likelihood of smoking, eating healthily, physical inactivity, and their social and environmental circumstances | OHID, UK
£50 million to tackle health inequalities through research - press release
People are set to benefit from a £50 million research boost to tackle health inequalities in local areas and improve health outcomes across the country.This will enable new high-quality research into the local challenges affecting people’s health - such as facilitating research to better understand and introduce interventions to help with childhood obesity, COVID recovery, mental wellbeing and drug use | DHSC, UK
Scotland’s early warning surveillance system provides snapshot of drug use and trends
The newly operational Rapid Action Drug Alerts and Response (RADAR) programme, led by Public Health Scotland (PHS), has published its first report, providing a snapshot of drug use and trends across Scotland. The publication presents a range of indicators from a variety of sources, which monitor changes in drug trends, testing and the use of services to inform actions that reduce drug-related harm. These include data on drug-related hospitalisations, suspected drug-related deaths, treatment referrals, toxicology results and more | Public Health Scotland, UK
Tackling risk factors for non-communicable diseases: the pros and cons of a more integrated approach
This small study, supported by SPECTRUM and led by the Smokefree Action Coalition, Obesity Health Alliance and Alcohol Health Alliance, explores the scope for government, public health professionals and health advocates to take a more integrated approach to tackling the main risk factors for NCDs | Spectrum Consortium, UK
Drug Consumption Rooms – What Are They & Why Are Drugs Workers Fighting For Change?
An innovative public health policy used across the world could be the answer to Wales’ spiralling drug death count, with latest figures up 40% on the previous year | Voice Wales, UK
The Warehouse Project warn attendees of "Blue Punisher" MDMA pills
The Warehouse Project has urged its attendees to be cautious of extra strength "Blue Punisher" pills that are currently in circulation around Manchester | MixMag, UK
Manchester Nightclub Warehouse Project launches app to keep clubbers safe and help find friends
A nightclub in Manchester has introduced an app to help keep clubbers safe. The Warehouse Project (WHP), which can accommodate up to 10,000 people, created the app which includes a map of the venue, and a way to contact security if you feel in danger, or if you get separated from your friends | ITV, UK
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