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Opioid Substitution Treatment in Custodial Settings - A Practical Guide

The guide, recently published by BIS-Verlag with the support from WHO and UNODC, aims at providing a reference document supporting prison doctors, prison health care workers, prison administration, NGOs and others in delivering or supporting substitution treatment to opioid dependent prisoners. 

The full document can be downloaded at http://www.archido.de/index.php?lang=en

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Disrupting the supply of illicit drugs into prisons. A report from NOMS in the UK

As part of the UK Government's reforming penal policy announcement, a review into disrupting the supply of illicit drugs into prisons was commissioned by the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) and completed by David Blakey in May 2008.

Read more: Disrupting the supply of illicit drugs into prisons. A report from NOMS in the UK

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International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking – 26 June 2008 – the position of the EU

"Fighting the drug problem effectively requires strategies that are based on facts and that can be adapted to respond to new situations; this is not about ideology or political dogma, but rather choosing actions that work in practice" said Vice-President Barrot, in charge of justice, freedom and security at the European Commission in the occasion of the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking. 

Find out more about the EU policy in the drugs field at: http://ec.europa.eu/health/ph_determinants/life_style/drug/press_drug_en.htm

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Heuni publishes a comparative study on service provision for detainees with problematic drug and alcohol use in police detention.

The roles of healthcare professionals and the police in addressing drugs and harm reduction have been discussed in several research studies raising issues about who is responsible for harm reduction and the conflicts for the police whether law enforcement and harm reduction can comfortably co-exist 

Read more: Heuni publishes a comparative study on service provision for detainees with problematic drug and alcohol use in police detention.

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Reducing Drug Use, Reducing Reoffending

Are programmes for problem drug-using offenders in the UK supported by the evidence? 

Over the past ten years, UK drug strategies have increasingly focused on providing treatment and support services for drug-dependent offenders – who commit a disproportionate number of acquisitive crimes (e.g. shoplifting and burglary) – as a way of reducing overall crime levels. This criminal justice focus has been reinforced in the recent 2008 UK drug strategy. The UK Drug Policy Commission (UKDPC) publishes a report which analyses the evidence for the effectiveness of these interventions for reducing drug use and re-offending and of the wider impact of this more prominent criminal justice approach. 

Major findings from the report include:

-          The principle of using CJS-based interventions to encourage engagement with treatment is supported by the evidence.
-          Following a period of expansion and a focus on quantity, attention should now focus on quality.
-          Community punishments are likely to be more appropriate than imprisonment for most problem drug-using offenders.
-          Prison drug services frequently fall short of even minimum standards.
-          Given the sizeable investment in CJS interventions for drug-dependent offenders, we know remarkably little about what works and for whom. 

The report can be downloaded from http://www.ukdpc.org.uk/reports.shtml
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UNODC anticipates another large opium crop in Afghanistan in 2008

According to a report issued on 6 February 2008 by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), opium cultivation in Afghanistan in 2008 will be broadly similar to, or only slightly lower than last year's record harvest of 192,000 hectares.
More at http://www.unodc.org
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The CONNECTIONS project kicks off!

The European Institute of Social Services (EISS) of the University of Kent and the project partners are proud to announce the launch of the CONNECTIONS project - Integrated responses to drugs and related infections across the European criminal justice systems. The project, which has received co-funding from the European Commission Public Health Programme, started officially on the 1st September 2007, for a three years duration. It aims at facilitating the introduction and promotion – at national and European level – of more effective, comprehensive, evidence-based policies and services to respond to drugs and infections in prison and within the wider context of the criminal justice system. Read through the newly launched web site to find out more…..

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