Week Five - Lecture Flashcards
Define drug-related harm:
Directly or indirectly affects the health, safety, security, social functioning and productivity of all Australians.
Not all substance use is harmful, but the use of any psychoactive substance has the potential to cause harm, and the likelihood of harm occurring increases with greater level of use.
Define health harms:
> injury;
> chronic conditions and preventable diseases (including lung and other cancers; cardiovascular disease; liver cirrhosis);
mental health problems; and
> road trauma.
Define social harms:
> violence and other crime;
> engagement with the criminal justice system more broadly;
> unhealthy childhood development and trauma;
> intergenerational trauma;
> contribution to domestic and family violence;
> child protection issues; and child/family wellbeing.
Define economic harms:
> healthcare and law enforcement costs;
> decreased productivity;
> associated criminal activity;
> reinforcement of marginalisation and disadvantage.
What is a misconception regarding harms that primarily affect the individual user:
> For every heavy/frequent drinker, at least four others are negatively affected (Rumbold & Hamilton, 1998)
> Contribute to and reinforce social disadvantage
> Major impact on families through neglect, violence, separation, financial and legal problems (Dietze, Laslett & Rumbold, 2004)
> Children are more likely: to develop behavioural & emotional problems, poorer school performance, victim of child maltreatment.
> Work performance via absenteeism, loss of productivity, work accidents (ABS, 1998)
> Up to 70% of crime related to substance use (House of Representatives, 2003)
Define Harm minimisation:
- policy and programs which prioritises the aim of decreasing the negative effects of drug use (Newcombe, 1992)
- Range of options aiming to improve health, social and economic outcomes for individuals and communities.
Define supply reduction strategies:
Supply reduction strategies aim to restrict availability and access to alcohol, tobacco and other drugs in order to prevent or reduce alcohol, tobacco and other drug problems.
Control licit drug and precursor availability
Prevent and reduce illicit drug availability and accessibility
Define harm reduction:
Reduce risk behaviours
Encourage safer behaviour
Reduce preventable risk factors
Safer settings
Can contribute to reduction in health and social inequalities among specific groups
Provide some examples of harm minimisation in AOD practice:
Some more examples of harm minimisation in AOD work practice:
> encourage abstinence and consumption reduction (moderation)
provide accurate and factual information about AOD – impacts, risks, consequences
reducing risks associated with particular context, including creating safer settings;
safe transport and sobering up services;
protecting children from another’s drug use;
protecting the community from infectious disease including blood borne virus prevention;
reducing driving under the influence of alcohol or other drugs; and
availability of opioid treatment programs.
Define demand reduction
Demand reduction: preventing the uptake and/or delaying the onset of use of alcohol, tobacco and other drugs; reducing the misuse of alcohol, tobacco and other drugs in the community; and supporting people to recover from dependence through evidence informed treatment:
Some more examples of harm minimisation in AOD work practice:
encourage abstinence and consumption reduction (moderation)
provide accurate and factual information about AOD – impacts, risks, consequences
reducing risks associated with particular context, including creating safer settings;
safe transport and sobering up services;
protecting children from another’s drug use;
protecting the community from infectious disease including blood borne virus prevention;
reducing driving under the influence of alcohol or other drugs; and
availability of opioid treatment programs.
Define the priority areas of action:
enhance access to evidence-informed, effective and affordable treatment services and support;
develop and share data and research, measure performance and evaluate outcomes;
develop new and innovative responses to prevent uptake, delay first use and reduce alcohol, tobacco and other drug problems;
increase participatory processes;
reduce adverse consequences;
restrict and/or regulate availability; and
improve national coordination.
Define priority areas of populations:
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people;
people with mental health conditions;
young people;
older people;
people in contact with the criminal justice system;
culturally and linguistically diverse populations; and
people identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and/or intersex.
Define priority areas of substances:
> methamphetamines and other stimulants; > alcohol; > tobacco; > cannabis; > non-medical use of pharmaceuticals; > opioids; and > new psychoactive substances.
Identify challenges in NDS
[] Risky drinking, drinking to intoxication and alcohol-related disease, injury and violence
> Alcohol has become more affordable and available. Increases in the density of liquor outlets elevates rates of violence and other alcohol-related harm (Trifonoff et al 2011)
> Drink driving responsible for 28% of the burden due to road traffic injuries.
> 20-30% of drink drivers reoffend and contribute disproportionately to road trauma. Alcohol-attributable road accidents in Australia cost an estimated $3.1 billion in 2004-05.
