addiction
Clinical tips: substance abuse disorder
Substance abuse disorder isn’t just about opioids or illicit drugs, writes Karalyn Huxhagen When we think of substances that are abused we mainly consider illicit drugs and medications such as …
Safescript only the first step
Victoria has added codeine to its Safescript real-time monitoring program in a move welcomed by the PSA State Minister for Health Jill Hennessy said that laws coming into effect on …
Drug policy reform: the Portuguese decriminalisation model
Net harm from drug use has plummeted since Portugal changed the way it tackles the problem, writes Angelo Pricolo On a rainy night in Sydney this week one man representing …
‘Urgency’ to implement real-time script monitoring: coroner
An inquest into four deaths related to opioid prescribing and doctor shopping has highlighted the urgent need for real-time monitoring A joint inquest into four recent deaths was recently held …
Barriers to seeking help to come down
PSA president Shane Jackson has welcomed the unanimous agreement by the health ministers to change mandatory reporting requirements At Friday’s COAG Health Council meeting, the state and territory health ministers …
‘Most widely misused’: benzos, opioid analgesics
A new report tabled in Victorian Parliament has highlighted misuse of pharmaceuticals as the leading cause of drug-induced deaths in Australia The Victorian Parliament’s Law Reform, Road and Community Safety …
Current drug laws create harms: stakeholders
Health and social service providers and policy leaders have urged Federal, State and Territory Governments to treat drug use as a health issue The stakeholders met for a national summit …
Responding to codeine effects
Under-reporting of codeine dependence is highly likely and interventions are needed, say Australian researchers in new systematic review A systematic review published this week in the Medical Journal of Australia …
Fixing pain management could help us solve the opioid crisis
Fixing pain management could help us solve the opioid crisis Meredith Craigie, Flinders University Australia is facing a critical public health issue of poorly managed pain. The combination of poor …
Codeine: ‘I’ve never seen such angry texts’.
The OTC codeine ban could save 100 lives a year, the Health Minister says, as ABC journalist reveals consumer fury And ahead of the upschedule of low-dose codeine products, mainstream …
Research into non-opioid analgesics
Australian researchers are set to investigate the development of non-addictive analgesics The University of Queensland announced that it will be looking into alternatives to addictive opioid drugs such as codeine, …
Booze risk for pain sufferers
People who have been overusing codeine may switch to alcohol misuse after Thursday’s upschedule, one expert warns And it’s likely to be those overusing codeine only a little—to treat pain …