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Weekly news - 16th February 2024 |
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In date order, Monday to Friday
Public health body ‘decimated’ in DHSC restructure
Ministers have “effectively dismantled” England’s national public health unit less than three years after creating it, sparking criticism from a former Tory health minister and sector leaders, HSJ has reported. The Department of Health and Social Care has made big staff reductions at the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) as part of an internal restructuring, including the loss of several senior and experienced officials, according to multiple sources | LGC, UK
Investing in the public health grant
The public health grant has been cut by 27% on a real-terms per person basis since 2015/16. Additional but time-limited funding for drug and alcohol treatment and smoking services and support has been allocated to local authorities. Taking account of this additional spend leaves broader public health funding 20% lower on a real-terms per person basis since 2015/16. We estimate that some of the largest reductions in spend over this period will be for sexual health services (39%), public health advice (34%) and drug and alcohol services for young people (31%) | The Health Foundation, UK
Suicide by people in contact with drug and alcohol services: a national study 2021 to 2022
This report describes findings from a study linking national databases to examine the factors related to suicide by people under the care of drug and alcohol services. We linked mortality data on people who died by suicide (including probable suicide) to drug and alcohol treatment databases in England and Wales to establish the number of people who died by suicide within recent (12 month) contact with drug and alcohol services. We compared this group to people who had been in contact with drug and alcohol services in the previous year but did not die, to establish risk factors for suicide | University of Manchester, UK
Christina McKelvie has been announced as the Minister for Drugs and Alcohol Policy
Christina McKelvie has been announced as the Minister for Drugs and Alcohol Policy after the resignation of Elena Whitham | SDF, UK
Everything you need to know about nitazenes
Experts are warning that nitazenes — a type of synthetic opioid — could lead to an increase in drug-related deaths as they flood the UK market | Pharmaceutical Journal, UK
The UK's drug problem: How can we stop people dying from drugs?
Some think overdose prevention centres are the answer - but the UK government is strongly opposed and has funded a trial into delivering anti-overdose drug naloxone instead | Sky News, UK
Charting a new course: EMCDDA work programme 2024–2026
I am delighted to announce today the publication of the latest EMCDDA work programme, which outlines our activities for 2024–2026. This programme represents a milestone in our history, being the very last to be launched by the agency in its current form. On 2 July, the EMCDDA will be replaced by the European Union Drugs Agency (EUDA). It is therefore a special moment for me to present our activities for what is, undoubtedly, the most transformative period in the life of the agency to date | EMCDDA, Portugal
Needs assessment and feasibility study for a safer drug consumption facility in Edinburgh (PDF)
[Recently made available online.] In January 2023 the Edinburgh Alcohol and Drug Partnership commissioned an independent needs assessment and feasibility study for a safer drug consumption facility (SDCF) in Edinburgh. This report presents the findings from these four work packages, with recommendation for next steps. See also Executive Summary here | City of Edinburgh Council, UK
Assessing the need for, and views on, drug checking services in Edinburgh (PDF)
[Recently made available online.] Previous research has been conducted on the feasibility, acceptability, and barriers and facilitators to implementation of Drug Checking Services (DCS) in Aberdeen, Dundee, and Glasgow, highlighting a range of important considerations. The current study, commissioned by the Edinburgh ADP, aims to assess the need for, and views on the potential of, DCS in Edinburgh, as part of a wider study on safer drug consumption facilities (SDCF). See also Executive Summary here | City of Edinburgh Council, UK
Scotland’s drug harms early warning system highlighted in new video
Scotland’s drug harms early warning system has been showcased in a new video produced by Public Health Scotland (PHS). The Rapid Action Drug Alerts and Response (RADAR) programme, led by PHS, uses innovative data collection methods to gather, assess and share information to reduce the risk of drug-related harms | PHS, UK
Funding certainty vital to achieving drug strategy ambitions, says PAC
Progress towards achieving the government’s drug strategy objectives risks being wasted without funding certainty for local authorities, warns a report from the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) | DDN, UK
Eltham teens treated in hospital after using spiked vape
Five teenagers required hospital treatment after they were thought to have used a vape spiked with the illegal drug Spice, the Met has said | BBC, UK
#COAWeek2024 - 11-17 February 2024
COA Week is a campaign to raise awareness of children affected by parental alcohol problems, celebrated internationally each year during the week in which Valentine’s Day falls. In the UK, COA Week is led by the charity Nacoa UK who provide year-round support. Please join us in our 15th year in the UK. Together we can increase awareness of this hidden problem and the support available. Find out how you can help children of all ages know they are not alone | NACOA, UK
First evaluation report of residential rehab in Scotland published
The first report of Public Health Scotland’s (PHS) evaluation of a Scottish Government programme relating to residential rehabilitation provision for people with substance use problems in Scotland has been published. The release presents findings from a baseline phase of the evaluation of the Scottish Government Residential Rehabilitation programme, a five-year programme launched in 2021 to help improve access to residential rehab for individuals who use alcohol or drugs | Public Health Scotland, UK
Perceptions of residential rehabilitation among referrers (PDF)
The National Drug Deaths Mission was launched in January 2021 to reduce drug-related deaths and harms. One aspect of this is the increased capacity and use of residential rehabilitation to ensure this is available for everyone who wants it and for whom it is deemed to be clinically appropriate | Public Health Scotland, UK
Drug and alcohol treatment services for women: A guide to commissioning
This briefing offers guidance to commissioners for developing drug and alcohol treatment services for women. It intends to help commissioners utilise much-needed additional funding under the Government’s 10-year drugs strategy, From Harm to Hope, to create a legacy of partnership working that supports knowledge sharing and lived experience involvement within drug and alcohol treatment to ensure that treatment services can meet women’s gendered needs | Centre for Justice Innovation, UK
Naloxone: Legal Challenges and Opportunities for Life Saving Intervention (PDF)
Emerging reports indicate that the UK’s illicit opioid supply is increasingly being contaminated with highly potent synthetic opioids such as fentanyl and nitazenes which have been linked to clusters of overdoses. Naloxone is a life-saving medication, administered to reverse an opioid overdose. The benefits of naloxone administration strongly outweigh the risks, it is used to treat a readily identifiable condition, it has no potential for misuse and its administration is straightforward and safe following a brief training | Centre for Evidence Based Drug Policy, UK
Correspondence: ACMD work programme 2024
Letter to the Home Secretary from the Chair of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD), to provide reflections on some of the Council’s advice over the last year and to set out the ACMD’s current work programme for 2024 | ACMD, UK
Alcohol-Specific Deaths registered in Northern Ireland 2012-2022
NISRA has published figures for alcohol-specific deaths registered in Northern Ireland, 2012-2022. The definition of alcohol-specific deaths includes conditions known to be exclusively caused by alcohol and excludes conditions which may only be partially attributed to alcohol use | NISRA, UK
Update: Drug and Alcohol Treatment and Recovery Services National Workforce Census December 2023_V2 (PDF)
Following the completion of individual local authority reports by NHS Benchmarking Network (NHSBN), some minor discrepancies were identified in the local data which has therefore required changes to the main national report to ensure its accuracy and reliability. These changes do not impact the executive summary or messaging of the report | NHS England, UK
Using ‘trip killers’ to cut short bad drug trips is potentially dangerous
As interest in psychedelics has grown, so has interest in ways to end a bad trip. Recent research reveals that people are giving potentially dangerous advice on social media on how to stop a trip that is less than pleasurable | Conversation, UK
Spice: the ‘zombie drug’ being found in some vape liquids
Five teenagers in London were hospitalised recently after smoking vapes containing the drug known as spice. This incident is only the latest in what appears to be a growing problem in the UK with unregulated vape liquids, especially those marketed as containing THC or cannabis | Conversation, UK