Tag: research

Let’s talk about drugs – the final event, the film and the guide

Posted on by Milutin

On 26 May, our member organisation Re Generacija organized the Closing Event of the project “LEt’s Talk about drugs – new MEthods of communication with youth” (LET ME) at the Palace of Serbia, in Belgrade.

The event was attended by representatives of the Office for Combating Drugs of the Government of the Republic of Serbia, representatives of ministries, civil society organizations, young people directly affected by drug education and policies and high school teachers.

The aim of the project was to support youth workers, educators (peer educators), street workers, harm reduction specialists working directly with youth who can potentially start using drugs or already use them with the innovative approaches and methods on drug education. The main target group of the project were youth workers, youth educators, peer educators and outreach workers who will be able to influence the young people who use drugs, directly within the outputs of the project.

According to the data of the research in which 124 young people participated in Serbia, they most often have a lecture on drugs at school (85.8%) in the form of a one-time formal lecture (83%), which was mostly focused on the effects and risks of use (89.36%) as well as drug treatment (43.62%). As many as 78% of the respondents who participated in this research believe that drug education should be conducted by specialised drug counselors, psychologists, youth workers, peer consultants and health experts. Respondents assessed the acquired formal education on drugs as unsatisfactory. They stated that they mostly turn to the Internet, friends and the media in search of information.

During the final event, the activities and results of the project, research results, as well as the Manual on “How to communicate with young people about drugs” were presented. The guide is divided into three modules, and is a comprehensive resource for all who work with young people. The first module is dedicated to basic concepts and policies towards drugs, harm reduction and prevention; while the second contains information on peer work, theoretical frameworks but also program planning as well as skills that educators need to develop. The third module is fully dedicated to the ways in which young people could be informed about the risks of drug use through the production of short and interesting video content and offered the necessary information in an easier and more understandable way.

The manuals in English and in the languages of the partner organizations can be found on the project website.

In addition to these project results, the film “Teach Me“, made during the project, was presented. Young people participated in preparing the film.

 

Community Matters

Posted on by Milutin

The International Network of People who Use Drugs (INPUD), Mainline, King’s College London, AFEW International, the South African Network of People who Use Drugs, AFEW Kyrgystan and Rumah Cemarah shared the results of a three year research programme exploring how community involvement impacts the quality and accessibility of harm reduction services for people who use drugs. The research Community Matters: Lessons from a Bridging the Gaps research programme, supported through the Bridging the Gaps II programme, was completed from 2018 through 2020 as part of a community-academic partnership across Indonesia, Kyrgyzstan and South Africa which were linked to a ‘rapid review’ of the literature on low and middle-income countries.

Evidence from the report shows how difference forms of community involvement across these three countries impact harm reduction access and quality, especially in low and middle income settings. This evidence base can guide the scaling-up of community involvement efforts globally in support of harm reduction targets.

The report has four core messages:

  1. More ambitious support is needed for expanded community involvement in harm reduction services
  2. Community involvement can support increased access and quality of harm reduction services
  3. Community leadership delivers research with impact
  4. Research agendas need to expand and methodologies need to adapt

To read the report, follow this link>>>.

 

Legal needs and access to justice for people who inject drugs and sex workers in Macedonia

Posted on by Milutin

Our member organisation HOPS published the Research report: Legal needs and access to justice for people who inject drugs and sex workers in Macedonia.

This research represents the first effort to assess the legal needs and paths to justice for people who inject drugs and sex workers in Macedonia. It was conducted at the end of 2016 and the beginning of 2017 using a mixed-methods research approach. The quantitative phase included 250 respondents chosen through stratified random sampling, out of which 169 inject/injected drugs, and 107 are/were engaged in sex work over the last three and a half years. The qualitative research phase, on the other hand, was comprised of focus group discussions with 69 respondents from both communities, as well as individual or group interviews with 7 representatives from competent institutions.

The research results showed that people who inject drugs and sex workers in Macedonia experience ten times more non-trivial justiciable problems in comparison to the general population in the country. In addition, low level of legal literacy, lack of trust in institutions and systemic discrimination, among other factors, prevent citizens from these communities to seek protection of their rights and delivery of justice through institutional mechanisms. Such circumstances confirm the communities’ high vulnerability and underline the need for advancement of their access to information, legal advice and protection.

The findings pinpoint the necessity to educate people who inject drugs and sex workers on existing institutional mechanisms for protection of rights and delivery of justice, and motivate them to take actions towards legal resolution. Since citizens from these groups trust civil society organizations the most, CSOs are the first instance where they seek free legal advice and aid. Hence, services offered to these communities by civil society organizations need to be developed further, while also advancing the cooperation between the organizations and the competent institutions, including introduction of functional referral mechanisms.

Recommendations of the report also include that overcoming prejudices against people who inject drugs and sex workers in institutions responsible for ensuring the legal order, such as the police, Legal Needs and Access to Justice for People Who Inject Drugs and Sex Workers in Macedonia prosecutors, courts and prisons is crucial. This could be achieved with temporary measures, such as trainings, field and study visits, but also through more sustainable systemic changes in the process of professional training of employees in the aforementioned institutions. Similar measures could be useful for health and social workers

To read full report follow this link>>>>. Version of the report in Macedonian is available following this link >>>>.

Potency and price of cannabis in Europe doubled in last 11 years

Posted on by Milutin

The first study to investigate changes in cannabis across Europe showed that cannabis resin and herbal cannabis have significantly increased in potency and in price. The study was published on 30 December 2018 in the journal Addiction by researchers from the University of Bath and King’s College London. It draws on data collected from across 28 EU Member states, as well as Norway and Turkey by the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction.

The findings show that for herbal cannabis, concentrations of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (‘THC’ – the main psychoactive constituent of cannabis) increased by a similar amount each year, from 5% in 2006 to 10% in 2016.

For cannabis resin, THC concentrations were relatively stable from 2006 to 2011 (from 8% to 10%) but then increased rapidly from 2011 to 2016 (from 10% to 17%). The price of cannabis resin also increased, but to a lesser extent than for herbal cannabis.

Cannabis resin typically contains cannabidiol (CBD) in addition to THC. CBD has recently attracted considerable interest due to its potential to treat several medical conditions including childhood epilepsy syndromes, psychosis and anxiety. But, when present in cannabis, CBD may offset some of the harmful effects of THC such as paranoia and memory impairment.

Cannabis-containing higher levels of THC and/or lower levels of CBD has been linked to greater long-term harms such as the development of cannabis dependence, and an increased risk of psychotic illness. New resin production techniques in Morocco and Europe have increased levels of THC, but not CBD.

Leader of the research team Dr Tom Freeman indicates that “CBD has the potential to make cannabis safer, without limiting the positive effects users seek. What we are seeing in Europe is an increase in THC and either stable or decreasing levels of CBD, potentially making cannabis more harmful. These changes in the illicit market are largely hidden from scientific investigation and are difficult to target by policy-makers. An alternative option could be to attempt to control THC and CBD content through regulation.”

The research is available following this link>>>>