The availability and use of drugs in prisons cannot be separated from wider drug policy. The criminalisation of drugs and the people who use or sell them fuels mass incarceration in many countries, and in doing so creates large profitable markets for drugs behind bars (Gdpo)
Archives for June 2020
Bibliography: All Publications
Philippines: New report reveals deliberate killings of children during “war on drugs”
A new report, published today, documents 122 killings of children, from 1 to 17 years old, throughout the Philippines, between July 2016 and December 2019 (OMCT)
Drugs, Prisons and ‘Unintended Consequences’ – Does drug interdiction drive drug-related harms?
If governments are truly serious about addressing drug use and reducing drug-related harm, they must move away from enforcement-focussed responses, and instead implement laws and policies that reduce the number of people in prison for drug-related offences, and to provide comprehensive harm reduction programmes for people in detention (Global Drug Policy Observatory)
Impacts of COVID-19 and associated restrictions on people who use illicit stimulants in Australia
Preliminary findings from the Ecstasy and Related Drugs Reporting System 2020 (NDARC)
Alcohol and other drug treatment services in Australia, 2018–19
In 2018–19, 1,283 publicly funded alcohol and other drug (AOD) treatment services provided just under 220,000 treatment episodes to an estimated 137,000 clients (AIHW)
World Drug Report 2020
Presented in six separate booklets, the World Drug Report 2020 provides a wealth of information and analysis to support the international community in implementing operational recommendations on a number of commitments made by Member States, including the recommendations contained in the outcome document of the special session of the General Assembly on the world drug problem, held in 2016 (UNODC)
EMCDDA Trendspotter briefing: impact of COVID-19 on patterns of drug use and drug-related harms in Europe
This briefing provides a snapshot of the state of play with respect to the impact of COVID-19 on drug consumption patterns and drug-related harms during the early stages of the pandemic (EMCDDA)
Public Health and Safety Consequences of Liberalizing Drug Laws
Insights from Cannabis Legalization (RAND)
Original quantitative research – Setting the baseline
A description of cannabis poisonings at a Canadian pediatric hospital prior to the legalization of recreational cannabis (Public Health Agency of Canada)
Drug Decriminalization Policy (PDF)
Literature Review: Models, Implementation and Outcomes (Finnish institute for health and welfare)
Changes Related to COVID-19 in the Illegal Drug Supply and Access to Services, and Resulting Health Harms (PDF)
This alert is based on information collected by the Canadian Community Epidemiology Network on Drug Use (CCENDU) between March 31 and May 10, 2020. It focuses on the impact of containment efforts related to COVID-19 on the illegal drug supply and access to services, and the associated health harms
Prevalence of problem drug use in Scotland: 2015/16 Estimates
This release by Public Health Scotland (PHS) provides a follow-up to previously published estimates of the prevalence of Problem Drug Use (PDU) in Scotland between April 2015 and March 2016
Hepatitis C in England and the UK
Latest PHE hepatitis C virus (HCV) reports and supporting documents, for England and the UK
The Changing Nature of the Benzodiazepine Market
The Changing Nature of the Benzodiazepine Market: New Combinations Emerging in Ireland (Drugs.ie)
Medical use of cannabis
This briefing provides an overview on the recent change in the law and debate on medicinal cannabis products (House of Commons Library UK)