Basic HTML Version
More people are injecting new psychoactive
drugs, amphetamine-type substances and
anabolic steroids, according to a report from
Public Health England (PHE).
In England and Wales, HIV infection levels among
people who inject image and performance-enhancing
drugs (IPED), such as steroids or melanotan, is similar
to that among people who inject heroin, warns
Shooting Up: Infections among people who inject
drugs in the UK 2012
.
While needle and syringe sharing overall is lower
than a decade ago, one in seven injecting drug users
continue to share injecting equipment, says the report.
The number of people injecting amphetamines or
amphetamine-like substances such as mephedrone,
however, almost tripled in the decade to 2012, with
this using population less likely to have been tested
for HIV or hepatitis C and more likely to report sharing.
While heroin remains the most commonly injected
drug – either on its own or in combination with crack
– changes in patterns of use ‘that increase infection
risk need to be detected and responded to promptly’
in order to minimise harm, the document states. In
many areas, IPED users are the largest group
accessing needle exchange services, with one in ten
having been exposed to one or more of HIV, hepatitis
C or hepatitis B.
‘Viruses don’t discriminate,’ said PHE’s lead on
injecting drug use, Dr Fortune Ncube. ‘We must
maintain and strengthen public health interventions
focused on reducing injection-related risk behaviours
to prevent HIV and hepatitis infections among all drug
users. This includes ensuring easy access for those
who inject image and performance enhancing drugs
to voluntary confidential testing services for HIV and
hepatitis, as well as to appropriate sterile injecting
equipment through needle and syringe programmes.’
Meanwhile, the overall number of people in drug
treatment has continued to fall, according to PHE’s
most recent statistics. The total number in treatment in
2012-13 was 193,575, down from 197,110 the previous
year and a peak of almost 211,000 in 2008-09. People
over 40 now constitute the largest group entering
treatment, with 13,233 over 40s entering treatment for
heroin or crack, up from 12,535 the previous year.
‘Drug misuse is by its nature a highly challenging
issue to address and the indications are that the
going is getting even tougher for services in meeting
the needs of an evolving and increasingly complex
treatment population,’ said PHE’s director of drugs
and alcohol, Rosanna O’Connor.
Shooting up: infections among people who inject
drugs in the UK 2012. An update: November 2013,
and Drug treatment in England 2012-13 at
www.gov.uk/government/organisations/public-health-
england
Marcus Roberts has been named as
the new chief executive of
DrugScope, taking over from
Martin Barnes who steps down at
the end of this month (
DDN
,
October, page 4).
DDN
columnist Roberts is
currently DrugScope’s director of
policy and has worked in the
voluntary and community sector
since the late 1990s, including
senior policy roles at mental health
organisation Mind and crime
reduction charity Nacro.
‘It is a great privilege and
responsibility to be taking over as
chief executive at what is such a
critical time for the drug and
alcohol sector – and DrugScope
itself – with significant
opportunities but also
uncertainties,’ he said.
Much of the sector’s work is
about ensuring the ‘right kinds of
support are available at the right
time for marginalised and
stigmatised people and
communities’, he said, with
‘significant’ progress made over the
last decade. ‘We now face the
challenge of taking this legacy
forward and building on it at a
time of radical policy change and
with significant financial pressures.
I believe that DrugScope has a
critical role to play – informing,
supporting, offering a focus for
discussion and debate and
providing effective voice,
representation and leadership on
key issues.
‘I am also excited by the
potential to reach out across the
health and social policy spectrum
to highlight the pervasive
relevance of drug and alcohol
issues across society, with the
opportunities to initiate new
dialogues and develop new kinds
of intervention and support.’
See page 12 for a full report on
DrugScope’s annual conference
HIV ACTION
A new three-year HIV prevention programme has
been backed by the leaders of all 33 London
boroughs, with more than £3m allocated to run
the project until 2017. Eighteen of the 20 local
authorities with the highest diagnosed HIV
prevalence are in the capital, which saw its first
increase in new cases for a decade – 8 per cent
– in 2012. ‘It is alarming to see such a sharp
increase in HIV diagnoses, but London boroughs
have been quick to act,’ said London Councils
executive member for health, Theresa O’Neill.
Earlier this year the National Aids Trust warned
that London’s councils were failing to respond
appropriately to increasing levels of high-risk
drug use in parts of the gay community (
DDN
,
April, page 6).
WHAT’S ALL THIS THEN?
The Home Affairs Committee has announced an
enquiry into the effectiveness of police and crime
commissioners (PCCs). Despite being a ‘key part’
of the new policing landscape, their work ‘has not
been without controversy,’ said committee chair
Keith Vaz, while the Independent Police
Commission’s
Policing for a better Britain
report
stated that the ‘experiment’ with elected PCCs
had been ‘riddled with failings’. A separate report
has been issued by the Revolving Doors Agency,
focusing on PCC responses to groups such as
young adults and people with complex needs.
Meanwhile, seizures of class A drugs fell by 3 per
cent in 2012/13, according to the Home Office,
while class B seizures fell by 10 per cent.
Policing for a better Britain at
independentpolicecommission.org.uk, First
generation: one year on at www.revolving-
doors.org.uk, Seizures of drugs in England and
Wales, 2012/13 at www.gov.uk
PHOENIX FINALISTS
Welsh band CoverUp from Bridgend have been
named winners of Phoenix Futures’ Re:Cover
music project (
DDN
, September, page 5). Other
finalists were Common Ground from Glasgow,
Leeds rapper Nate, singer/songwriter Adam Norrie
from Sheffield, Essex-based Rob the Liar, London
solo artist MJ Lines, Leicester band Maya and
Phoenix Voices, a choir featuring community
members from Phoenix’s Wirral residential
service.
Hear them all at www.phoenix-
futures.org.uk/recover
OLDER OPTIONS
A pocket guide on preventing alcohol-related
harm to older people has been published by the
British Association of Social Workers (BASW).
The guide contains a section of dos and don’ts
as well as effective approaches for interventions.
Alcohol and older people available at
www.skillsconsortium.org.uk
4 |
drinkanddrugsnews
| December 2013
www.drinkanddrugsnews.com
News |
Round-up
NEWS IN BRIEF
Marcus Roberts takes the helm at DrugScope
New injecting patterns
fuel HIV risks
‘DrugScope has
a critical role to
play...’
Marcus Roberts