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New data released today by the Global Drugs Survey has found that Australians reported getting drunk 27 times during 2020, compared with the global average of 14.6. Data gathered from over 32,000 people across 22 countries shows that Australian’s top the list in heavy drinking, with Denmark, Finland, and the US following behind. Aussies actually … Continued

World AIDS Day is held on 1 December each year. It raises awareness across the world and in the community about the issues surrounding HIV and AIDS. It is a day for people to show their support for people living with HIV and to commemorate people who have died. The AIDS Memorial Quilt, which was … Continued

New South Wales Greens MP Cate Faehrmann is bringing two cannabis reform bills to the state’s Upper House in the next two weeks. On Wednesday November 17, Faehrmann introduced the Road Transport Amendment Bill (Medicinal Cannabis — Exemptions from Offences) Bill 2021 to the Legislative Council. The bill, due for debate in 2022, provides an … Continued

A Melbourne doctor who is fighting for permission to treat a severely unwell patient with the drug MDMA has taken his battle to court, in what is believed to be the first case of its kind in Australia. Consultant psychiatrist Eli Kotler launched legal action after the Victorian Department of Health knocked back an application … Continued

The New Zealand government will fund recreational drug checks at festivals and concerts, giving NZ$800,000 to a service that previously operated in a legal grey zone. While pill testing has operated to some extent for years, it did so in an uncertain area that stopped it getting into major music festivals. Even when the Government … Continued

Canadian drug users are sick of being forced to purchase their drugs from a poisoned drug supply run by the criminal underground.   A non-profit organisation, consisting of drug policy reform advocates and people who use drugs (PWUD’s), calling themselves the Canadian Association of People Who Use Drugs (CAPUD), are suing the Canadian Government for … Continued

Stigma of Overdose and Why Awareness is Important Stigma – There is a stigma around substance use and overdoses caused by substances. This can create a barrier to seeking treatment and in having support from family and friends because of a lack of understanding around how substances can affect a person. The notion that the … Continued

People released from prison are more likely to overdose & die in the weeks immediately following release For those who use opioids, overdose is common, both for those who use and those around then (family and friends) and is the lead causation of death for this population (Degenhardt et al., 2011). Worldwide opioid overdoses are … Continued

Victoria. The Dark Ages in Drug Reform. Victoria is in lockdown. Not just due to Covid. Due to its Government refusing to look at the facts about drugs. As Science PUSHES to heard, by perpetually demonstrating the soundness of their studies that SHOW the value of many illegal drugs in treating depression and anxiety, that … Continued

Victoria ALMOST legalised the growing of a small number of cannabis plants at home for personal use. ALMOST! And almost removed small cannabis convictions from people’s criminal records and almost saved Young People from becoming involved in the criminal system for possession of small amounts of cannabis.   After a two-year State Parliament enquiry, looking … Continued

WA to Introduces New Drug and Drink Driving Penalties from 1 July 2021  As of 1 July 2021, the WA State Government’s new Road Traffic Amendment (Impaired Driving and Penalties) Act 2019 has come into effect. The new “polydrug” offence separates the offence of driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs from the offence … Continued

This week in psychedelic news! Links to articles below. California Activists File Psilocybin Legalization Ballot Measure As Legislature Advances Broader Psychedelics Bill Red Light Holland CEO on Moving Past Stigma Around Psychedelics LSD and Nicotine Could be More Important to Healthcare Than We Think Treating Addiction With Psychedelics: An Interview With Professor David Nutt and … Continued

Today is Support Don’t Punish Day.   Support Don’t Punish is a global advocacy campaign that calls for drug policies based on health and human rights, rather than punishing people who use drugs.   Support Don’t Punish recognises that the ‘war on drugs’ approach leads to punishment, exclusion and stigma.   Lets work towards alternative … Continued

The ACT Greens have secured a commitment from ACT Labor to explore a drug checking/pill-testing site in the ACT this Summer – an Australian-first that will build on the success of earlier trials at music festivals. “The ACT Greens are pleased today to have secured a commitment from our Government colleagues to extend pill-testing from … Continued

The Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet Alcohol and Other Drugs Knowledge Centre recently hosted a webinar with NDARC academics Dr Sara Farnbach. Dr Farnbach’s webinar titled, ‘The experiences of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in primary healthcare when speaking about substance use and depression’ aims to provide information for healthcare workers who work with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, … Continued

What is a normal dose of GHB? ONE – Prepare your own G. Always premeasure G carefully using a syringe or pipette that is measured in millilitres. Never swig G from the bottle.   TWO – Always dose yourself so you are in control of what you are taking and how much – don’t let … Continued

QuIHN is a Non-Government organisation (NGO) and part of the services delivered by QuIHN involves providing a needle and syringe program (NSP) in various regions across Queensland. We love doing this!  Even though we are not government, most of our funding is from government, so we still have to comply with the guidelines provided by QNSP (Queensland Needle and Syringe Programs) which sits in Queensland Health’s … Continued

As of May 2020, two new long acting opioid replacement options became available for the wider public in Queensland these being Sublocade and Buvidal. These medications are long acting subcutaneous (SC) injections of buprenorphine; this means they are injected into the layer of fat between your skin and muscle and unlike conventional opioid replacement options … Continued

Psychedelics  Australians have never been so medicated, or so unhappy. Almost one in ten adult Australians take antidepressants daily – one of the highest rates of use in the world, and one which has doubled since 2000. At the same time, the effectiveness of the drugs has dropped. It seems the most commonly prescribed medications are hardly more effective … Continued

If Stolen Generations survivors don’t have the opportunity to heal from trauma, they’re likely to live in a state of distress, which can lead to a range of negative outcomes for themselves and their descendants. Their children may experience difficulties with attachment, disconnection from their extended families and culture and high levels of stress from … Continued

It’s been recognised that people over 65 are at a higher risk of developing serious complications from the flu compared with younger adults because our immune defences become weaker with age. Deaths in the aging populations are usually due to complications from the virus, like heart attacks, pneumonia or strokes. The flu vaccination is an … Continued

What’s the current data around consumption habits of Australians? The National Drug Strategy Household Survey 2019 recently released the following consumption trends:   The key findings of consumption habits in 2019 compared to 2016 are: Marijuana/cannabis use up to 11.6 per cent from 10.4 per cent Ecstasy use up to 3.0 per cent from 2.2 per cent Cocaine use … Continued

The latest finding regarding illicit drugs and Australians Harms from illicit drugs affect all Australian communities, families and individuals, either directly or indirectly. These include illnesses and injuries, mental health and trauma, and health care and other financial costs (DoH 2017). In 2015, illicit drug use contributed to 2.7% of the total burden of disease … Continued