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Weekly news - 24th February 2023

 

In date order, Monday to Friday

Revealed: UK’s missing child refugees put to work for Manchester gangs

Police focus search for asylum seekers abducted from hotels run by the Home Office on an organised crime area dubbed ‘counterfeit alley’ | Guardian, UK

Colourful taxonomies of drugs

Mark Adley and Guy Jones discuss three ways of visually representing drugs and their effects, and the strengths and limitations of these colourful taxonomies for education, treatment, and harm reduction | SSA, UK

‘I’m not going to leave someone to die’: carriage of naloxone by police in Scotland within a public health framework: a qualitative study of acceptability and experiences

[Open access] In efforts to tackle escalating DRDs in many countries, naloxone is increasingly being provided to people who are likely first responders in overdose situations. This includes non-healthcare professionals, such as police officers. A pilot exercise to test the carriage and administration of naloxone by police officers was conducted in selected areas of Scotland between March and October 2021. The aim of the study was to explore the acceptability and experiences of naloxone carriage and administration by police in Scotland | Harm Reduction Journal, UK

Alcohol treatment services

The safe level of alcohol consumption continues to be the subject of research and policy debate worldwide, but it is clear that excessive drinking can have costs for both society and individuals. This briefing sets out the background of alcohol consumption and associated harm. It considers current access to, and outcomes from, treatment services, before outlining the current levels of spending, use of, and outcomes from, alcohol treatment services | NAO, UK

Taking the initiative: how England is eliminating hepatitis C (PDF)

This report explores how the elimination programme has developed between NHS England, three pharmaceutical industry providers, and voluntary sector organisations since 2019, and profiles twelve ‘elimination initiatives’ that have been developed in different parts of the country and the wider health and care system as a result. These include efforts to find, test and treat people in community settings, the criminal justice system, primary care, drug services, Emergency Departments and other services. The report gives a first-of-its-kind picture of what these initiatives involved and next steps to build on them in the final period of the programme, due to expire in 2024 | HCV Action, UK

NHS Stop Smoking Services Scotland

In 2021/22, the number of attempts to stop smoking made with the help of NHS Stop Smoking Services fell for the tenth consecutive year to 31,359. This is a 0.9% reduction from 2020/21 and a 74.2% reduction from when the number of quit attempts were at their peak in 2011/12. The statistics being reported in this release correspond to the period when Scotland was facing the COVID-19 pandemic and should therefore be interpreted with caution | Public Health Scotland, UK

Professor Sir Chris Whitty attacks 'appalling' marketing of vapes to children

England’s chief medical officer has attacked the “appalling” marketing of vapes to children – saying it is clear some products are intended to appeal to underage kids | ITV, UK

Research raises concerns over relationship between major US alcohol research institution and the alcohol industry

A new study has uncovered extensive interactions between one of the world’s leading funders of alcohol research and alcohol industry groups, sparking concern about the industry’s influence on science and public health policy | University of York, UK

Nitrous oxide: Laughing gas users risk spine damage, say doctors

Doctors at an east London hospital say they are seeing so many risky cases of laughing gas misuse that they have drawn up treatment guidelines for colleagues in the UK | BBC, UK

Nitrous oxide-induced subacute combined degeneration of the cord: diagnosis and treatment

Recreational use of nitrous oxide (N2O) has increased rapidly in recent years and is now the second most commonly used recreational drug among young people in the UK. There has been a corresponding rise in cases of nitrous oxide-induced subacute combined degeneration of the cord (N2O-SACD), a pattern of myeloneuropathy usually associated with severe vitamin B12 deficiency. This can cause serious and permanent disability in young people but, if recognised early, may be effectively treated. All neurologists should be aware of N2O-SACD and its treatment; however, there are currently no agreed guidelines. Based on our experience in East London, an area of high N2O use, we provide practical advice on its recognition, investigation and treatment | BMJ Practical Neurology, UK

Scotland’s drug-death epidemic may have peaked, data suggests

Reason could be shrinking pool of most vulnerable, say experts as report shows first fall in deaths since 2013 | Guardian, UK

Reporting of Substance Media Toolkit

The Reporting of Substance Toolkit is a resource for journalists and editors looking to report on alcohol and drugs with dignity and respect. The toolkit contains 5 Key Recommendations to follow when reporting and also has interviews with family members and people in recovery, information about support services across the UK, photography advice and resources for further information | SFAD, Adfam, UK

Call for more support after drop in numbers trying to quit smoking

The number of people trying to give up smoking in Scotland has fallen, prompting demands to improve support for those wanting to stub out cigarettes for good | The National, UK

Experts call on Chancellor to ‘save lives and reduce pressure on NHS’ ahead of Spring Budget

Ahead of the Spring Budget, 46 leading health experts including members of the Alcohol Health Alliance (AHA), academics and parliamentarians are urging the Chancellor of the Exchequer to increase alcohol duty when the current freeze ends later this year. If actioned, it will save lives, reduce pressure on the NHS and generate much needed public funds | AHA, UK

Medics: Zero-alcohol drinks 'encourage consumption and harm'

Alcohol-free products should be included under proposals to restrict alcohol marketing in Scotland, campaigners have said. It comes amid fears that zero per cent beers and spirits have been used as “trojan horses” to continue promoting brands to consumers in Ireland, where stricter rules are already in place | Herald, UK

Civil society monitoring of harm reduction in Europe, 2022. Data report

Together with more than one hundred organizations and individuals from thirty-four European countries, C-EHRN set up for itself the task to provide an in-depth look at Harm Reduction in Europe. To this end, the annual 2022 Data Report focused on three main themes: harm reduction essential services, Hepatitis C, and new drug trends. In addition to the data collected, this year C-EHRN conducted in-depth interviews with all its Focal Points, allowing for a richer picture of the developments from last year | C-EHRN, The Netherlands

Could this be the first UK city to ban disposable vapes?

The Scottish city of Dundee could be the first in the UK to place a ban on the purchasing of disposable vapes after one environmental campaigner highlighted their growing problem | ITV, UK