Analysis of time of drug use according to needle and syringe program operating hours in Melbourne, Australia: Effects on individual-level needle and syringe coverage

Background: Monitoring emerging trends in the increasingly dynamic European drug market is vital; however, information on change at the individual level is scarce. In the current study, we investigated changes in drug use over 12 months in European nightlife attendees. Method: In this longitudinal online survey, changes in substances used, use frequency in continued users, and relative initiation of use at follow-up were assessed for 20 different substances. To take part, participants had to be aged 18–34 years; be from Belgium, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, or the UK; and have attended at least 6 electronic music events in the past 12 months at baseline. Of 8,045 volunteers at baseline, 2,897 completed the survey at both time points (36% follow-up rate), in 2017 and 2018. Results: The number of people using ketamine increased by 21% (p < 0.001), and logarithmized frequency of use in those continuing use increased by 15% (p < 0.001; 95% CI: 0.07–0.23). 4-Fluoroamphetamine use decreased by 27% (p < 0.001), and logarithmized frequency of use in continuing users decreased by 15% (p < 0.001, 95% CI: −0.48 to −0.23). The drugs with the greatest proportion of relative initiation at follow-up were synthetic cannabinoids (73%, N = 30), mephedrone (44%, N = 18), alkyl nitrites (42%, N = 147), synthetic dissociatives (41%, N = 15), and prescription opioids (40%, N = 48). Conclusions: In this European nightlife sample, ketamine was found to have the biggest increase in the past 12 months, which occurred alongside an increase in frequency of use in continuing users. The patterns of uptake and discontinuation of alkyl nitrates, novel psychoactive substances, and prescription opioids provide new information that has not been captured by existing cross-sectional surveys. These findings demonstrate the importance of longitudinal assessments of drug use and highlight the dynamic nature of the European drug landscape.

Download Full-text

Individual-level needle and syringe coverage in Melbourne, Australia: a longitudinal, descriptive analysis

BMC Health Services Research ◽

10.1186/s12913-016-1668-z ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 16 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Daniel O’Keefe ◽

Nick Scott ◽

Campbell Aitken ◽

Paul Dietze

Keyword(s):

Descriptive Analysis ◽

Individual Level ◽

Syringe Coverage

Download Full-text

Measuring individual-level needle and syringe coverage among people who inject drugs in Myanmar

International Journal of Drug Policy ◽

10.1016/j.drugpo.2018.04.010 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 58 ◽

pp. 22-30 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Daniel O’Keefe ◽

Soe Moe Aung ◽

Naanki Pasricha ◽

Thu Wun ◽

Soe Khaing Linn ◽

...

Keyword(s):

People Who Inject Drugs ◽

Individual Level ◽

Syringe Coverage

Download Full-text

Are there differences in individual-level needle and syringe coverage across Australian jurisdictions related to program policy? A preliminary analysis

Drug and Alcohol Review ◽

10.1111/dar.12821 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 37 (5) ◽

pp. 653-657 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Penelope Hill ◽

Daniel O'Keefe ◽

Paul M. Dietze

Keyword(s):

Preliminary Analysis ◽

Individual Level ◽

Syringe Coverage ◽

Program Policy

Download Full-text

Prospective Associations Among Youth Assets and Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drug Use in a Hispanic Youth Population

Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences ◽

10.1177/0739986320915171 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 42 (2) ◽

pp. 235-247

Author(s):

Lea Moser ◽

Roy F. Oman ◽

Taylor Lensch ◽

Kristen Clements-Nolle

Keyword(s):

Drug Use ◽

Role Models ◽

Educational Aspirations ◽

Community Level ◽

Hispanic Youth ◽

Individual Level ◽

Family Level ◽

Youth Population ◽

The Individual ◽

Youth Assets

This study’s purpose was to determine whether specific youth assets (conceptualized as influencing health behavior at the individual, family, or community level) were prospectively associated with reduced alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use (ATD) in a sample of Hispanic youth. A longitudinal community-based study was conducted with five waves of data collected annually over 4 years. Participants were Hispanic youth (14.1 years old; 53% female) and their parents ( N = 306 youth/parent pairs). Generalized linear mixed models were used to determine the prospective influence of 17 youth assets on ATD over five waves of data. Results indicated that Hispanic youth with three of seven individual-level assets (e.g., educational aspirations), any of four family-level assets (e.g., family communication), or with one of six community-level assets (e.g., positive peer role models) were significantly less likely to engage in ATD. The results suggest that assets protect Hispanic youth from ATD and that family-level assets may be particularly important.

Download Full-text

Hostility, compassion and role reversal in West Virginia’s long opioid overdose emergency

Harm Reduction Journal ◽

10.1186/s12954-020-00416-w ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 17 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Jeff Ondocsin ◽

Sarah G. Mars ◽

Mary Howe ◽

Daniel Ciccarone

Keyword(s):

Drug Use ◽

West Virginia ◽

Harm Reduction ◽

Ethnographic Study ◽

Role Reversal ◽

Opioid Overdose ◽

Snowball Sampling ◽

Risk Environment ◽

Structured Interviews ◽

Needle And Syringe Program

Abstract Background West Virginia is a largely rural state with strong ties of kinship, mutual systems of support and charitable giving. At the same time, wealth inequalities are extreme and the state’s drug overdose fatality rate stands above all others in the USA at 51.5/100,000 in 2018, largely opioid-related. In recent years, harm reduction services have been active in the state but in 2018 Charleston’s needle and syringe program was forced to close. This paper considers the risk environment in which the state’s drug-related loss of life, and those attempting to prevent it, exist. Methods This rapid ethnographic study involved semi-structured interviews (n = 21), observation and video recordings of injection sequences (n = 5), initially recruiting people who inject heroin/fentanyl (PWIH) at the Charleston needle and syringe program. Snowball sampling led the research team to surrounding towns in southern West Virginia. Telephone interviews (n = 2) with individuals involved in service provision were also carried out. Results PWIH in southern West Virginia described an often unsupportive, at times hostile risk environment that may increase the risk of overdose fatalities. Negative experiences, including from some emergency responders, and fears of punitive legal consequences from calling these services may deter PWIH from seeking essential help. Compassion fatigue and burnout may play a part in this, along with resentment regarding high demands placed by the overdose crisis on impoverished state resources. We also found low levels of knowledge about safe injection practices among PWIH. Conclusions Hostility faced by PWIH may increase their risk of overdose fatalities, injection-related injury and the risk of HIV and hepatitis C transmission by deterring help-seeking and limiting the range of harm reduction services provided locally. Greater provision of overdose prevention education and naloxone for peer distribution could help PWIH to reverse overdoses while alleviating the burden on emergency services. Although essential for reducing mortality, measures that address drug use alone are not enough to safeguard longer-term public health. The new wave of psychostimulant-related deaths underline the urgency of addressing the deeper causes that feed high-risk patterns of drug use beyond drugs and drug use.

Download Full-text