Online International Master of Science in Addiction Studies
“The University of Adelaide, King’s College London, and Virginia Commonwealth University have created the International Programme in Addiction Studies, an online, 12-month intensive graduate program available to students from all countries. No campus attendance is required; online lectures, assignments, and correspondence will be in English only.
The program is designed to develop professionals who are fully prepared to assume leadership roles in the addictions field throughout the world. Students will study the scientific basis of addiction, comparative epidemiology, evidence-based interventions (including pharmacological, psychosocial, and public health approaches), research methodology, and addictions policy. Lecturers will be selected from among the world’s leading authorities in each of these subject areas, while program directors will be faculty members of the three participating universities. The firm scientific grounding of the program, covering a range of areas from treatment to policy, and its unique international perspective make it appropriate for recent graduates and professionals working in a range of fields such as health, law enforcement, policy, and education.
Graduates of the program will be able to:
· Translate research on addiction into more effective treatment and prevention practices.
· Translate research into more effective policies at the local, state, national, and/or international level to address public health issues.
· Become specialists in addiction by integrating program material into their profession/practice.
The International Programme in Addiction Studies begins in August 2008, and online applications are now being accepted until August 1. For more information about the program, including admission requirements, curriculum outline, and tuition fees, please contact Femke Pijlman, Ph.D., University of Adelaide, femke.buisman-pijlman@adelaide.edu.au .”
News of substance - drugs in the worldwide news
1. WebMD (USA) - Narcotics Sold Online, No Rx Needed. “Scores of web sites do not require a prescription to buy narcotics, stimulants, and other controlled substances — and none of those sites has controls to prevent children from making such purchases, a study shows. A report released today by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University reveals that 85% of web sites selling potent prescription drugs such as OxyContin, Valium, and Ritalin do not ask Internet users for a proper prescription from a doctor. Many explicitly state that no prescription is needed.”
2. Washington City Paper (USA) - “I’m a Professional Informant”. “The informant arrives through a side door, and his handler, a cop with many years of experience, greets him warmly. The informant takes a seat, fishes out a pack of menthols, and slides them on the desktop. Last week, it was a couple of dealers selling crack in broad daylight. All the police had to do was show up, he said, and snatch them. He sneered in contempt. He insisted to the police—often loudly—that these cases were can’t-miss. The cop took his tips seriously.”
3. Reason Magazine - How Do You Keep the Magic? “I’m a little late in noting this, but last week the Journal of Psychopharmacology published a follow-up to the 2006 study in which Johns Hopkins researchers found that psilocybin triggered “mystical-type experiences” in experimental subjects who had never used psychedelics before. The first report described the 36 subjects’ impressions two months after the experiment, when a large majority reported meaningful, generally positive experiences of lasting significance.”
4. The Gulf Times (Qatar) - Book on laws against use of narcotics. “A BOOK explaining the laws that are in force in Qatar against the use of narcotics and drugs, has been published in Arabic by prominent Qatari lawyer Yusuf Ahmed al-Zaman, according to a report published in a local Arabic daily.”
5. The Tech Herald - Mothers’ reaction to own baby smile likened to drug addiction. “A mother watching her own baby smile has been found to experience the lighting up of reward centres, a natural high which mimics drug addiction, according to a U.S. team of researchers. Dr. Lane Strathearn, assistant professor of pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine (BCM) and Texas Children’s Hospital and a research associate in BCM’s Human Neuroimaging Laboratory, said the relationship between mother and baby is crucial and the research gives an understanding of this and what goes wrong if that relationship is damaged.”
6. The Post (Pakistan) - Smugglers using Pak soil for narco-traffic. “There is not a single laboratory in Pakistan for synthesis of heroin, however, international smugglers are using Pakistani soil for narco-traffic from Afghanistan to the entire world, Anti-Narcotics Force, Rawalpindi, force commander Brig Muhammad Asif Alvi, said while talking to The Post Wednesday. He said fencing of Pakistan-Afghanistan border could help in controlling drug trafficking in the region and the Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) had requested the federal government in written to consider that option.”
7. TwinCities.com (USA) - They’re young. They drink. Too many die. “On the morning after the house party on Johnson Street, Winona State University student Jenna Foellmi and several other twenty-somethings lay sprawled on beds and couches. When a friend reached over to wake her, Foellmi was cold to the touch. The friend’s screams woke the others in the house.”
8. The Punch (Nigeria) - Anxiety, shyness may be long-lasting traits. “The brains of people who suffer from anxiety and severe shyness may respond more strongly to stress and show signs of being anxious even in situations considered safe by others, say researchers at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. They studied brain activity, anxious behavior and stress hormones in adolescent rhesus monkeys.”
9. The Northern Territory News (Australia) - Exasperated cops blast young revellers. “OLICE have called on young revellers to “grow up and act your age”. The call comes as more and more police time is spent wrangling drunks in Darwin city. And the majority of them are partygoers under 25. This picture (right) shows a group of young women arguing with police about having to tip out their alcohol on a Darwin city street about 5.30am.”
A changing of the guard at the MSIC
For more than ten years the Medically Supervised Injecting Centre (MSIC) has been a sometimes controversial addition to the Sydney landscape. The conservative aspects of the ATOD sector have at best been uneasy about its existence and the more rabid groups like DFA would love it to disappear tomorrow.
The stats provided by Dr van Beek are compelling and aside from straw man arguments around their statistical veracity, it’s hard to understand why anyone would argue anything other than its retention and expansion.
There’s a discussion on the MSIC at independent news outlet Crikey.com.au
The full media release on Dr van Beek’s departure from the MSIC:
“Media Release
Groundbreaking founder says goodbye
It’s been a long and arduous journey for Dr Ingrid van Beek who as the medical director of Australia’s first Medically Supervised Injecting Centre (MSIC) has put her heart and soul into this ground-breaking public health initiative over the past eight years. Today, in an historic announcement, Dr van Beek announces her resignation as its inaugural Medical Director.
“It’s been a great privilege to work in a field that I have such a strong commitment and passion for. My only disappointment is that the MSIC continues to operate on a trial basis,” says Dr van Beek.
The Kings Cross service received a four-year trial extension by the NSW Government in June last year, making it a ten and a half year scientific trial.
“It’s important the MSIC is judged on its health outcomes and it is now well-established the MSIC has been effective in reducing the various drug-related harms associated with street-based injecting to both individual drug users and the greater community,” says Dr van Beek.
The statistics speak for themselves -
80 per cent of long term local Kings Cross residents and 68 per cent of local business managers support the MSIC
Over 10,000 injecting drug users have registered to use the MSIC to date
More than 200 injecting episodes occur at MSIC every day i.e. in a clinical setting where in the event of a medical emergency eg overdose, specially trained registered nurses provide prompt and effective resuscitation. These injecting episodes would have otherwise occurred in unsupervised, often public and squalid circumstances in the local environs where timely help is in the lap of the gods.
2,458 drug overdoses have been successfully treated onsite in the past seven years
Ambulance callouts to heroin overdoses in the area have decreased by 80 percent thereby freeing Ambulance services to attend other medical emergencies in the area
MSIC staff have referred drug users to other services including drug treatment and rehabilitation programs on more than 7,000 occasions to date
“One of the highlights of my time spent at the MSIC is seeing first hand staff helping drug dependent users who are often in desperate personal circumstances and leading socially isolated lives. I am humbled to know we have helped these people get their lives back on track.” says Dr van Beek.
“My one hope is that the MSIC’s trial status is revisited prior to the next State election. The MSIC’s apparently endless trial status is a barrier to its integration with the rest of the public health system affecting continuity of care, workforce development and staff morale, especially as the end of each trial period draws near. It also ensures that the service remains politicised; the work we do is too important to be subject to partisan politics,” says Dr van Beek.
Rev. Harry Herbert, Executive Director, UnitingCare NSW says without the insight, personal dedication, political acumen, tenacity and determination of Dr van Beek, the MSIC would not have succeeded as it has.
“Ingrid made the dream a reality. She played an integral part in establishing the MSIC. She has been an inspiration to the staff, clients, businesses and community members associated with the MSIC.”
“Ingrid is congratulated and should be recognised and admired for her work in preventing and reducing drug-related harm and communicable diseases amongst one of society’s most marginalised groups - injecting drug users,” says Rev Herbert.
Dr van Beek was recently inducted into the National Drug and Alcohol Awards Honour Roll for her tireless and significant contribution to the drug and alcohol field over many years. The Awards are a collaborative effort of the Ted Noffs Foundation, The Australian Drug Foundation, The Alcohol and Other Drugs Council of Australia and the Australian National Council on Drugs.
Dr van Beek is returning to her original post as the full time Director of the Kirketon Road Centre in Kings Cross. Dr Marianne Jauncey, a public health physician, will take over as the Medical Director of the MSIC in the coming weeks. Dr Jauncey started her public health career working at the clinical coalface at the nearby Kirketon Road Centre, so she is well placed to take on this important role.”
Abstracts closing soon for BOSCAR symposium
“On 18-19 February 2009 the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOCSAR) is hosting a two-day symposium in Sydney to celebrate our 40th anniversary.
The symposium will focus on the contribution that research can make to criminal justice administration and law and order policy.
A limited number of speaker slots are available in concurrent sessions. We would like to invite any Australian researcher currently conducting research into crime, criminal justice or any allied field to submit an abstract.
Those interested in presenting at the symposium should email the title of their paper, the name(s) of the presenters, a contact phone number and an abstract of no more than 200 words to BOCSAR no later than 11 July 2008. The email address to which this material should be sent is bocsar_symposium@agd.nsw.gov.au
Full details and registration information is available on the website: www.bocsar.nsw.gov.au/bocsar_symposium
Please direct inquiries to bocsar_symposium@agd.nsw.gov.au or phone 02 9231 9190. “
Comorbidity Professional Development Scholarships
“COMORBIDITY PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT SCHOLARSHIPS: FOR ALCOHOL AND OTHER DRUG (AOD) AND MENTAL HEALTH (MH) WORKERS

The National Centre for Education and Training on Addiction (NCETA) is pleased to announce the third round of Comorbidity Professional Development Scholarships.
The Australian Government has allocated approximately $3.6 million per annum to 2011-12 for the National Comorbidity Initiative (NCI).
The Alcohol and Other Drugs (AOD) and Mental Health (MH) Comorbidity Professional Development Scholarships program has been developed as part of this initiative. The program has been allocated $2.1 million and is coordinated by NCETA on behalf of the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing.
The Comorbidity Professional Development Scholarships are open to Alcohol and Other Drug and Mental Health workers employed in non-government organisations. The initiative aims to enhance workers professional skills and knowledge across the comorbidities of AOD and Mental Health by providing funding to support eligible workers to undertake relevant professional development and/or training.
Round 3 Scholarships for 2008 are scheduled as follows:
Round Opens
Application Closing Date
Announcement of Awards
Monday 28 July 2008
Monday 25 August 2008
Monday 27 October 2008
Please refer to the enclosed flyer.
Application details, guidelines and related information can be found at: http://www.nceta.flinders.edu.au/projects/comorbidity.html“
News of substance - drugs in the worldwide news
1. New York Times - Iran Fights Scourge of Addiction in Plain View, Stressing Treatment. “Ali blew out a candle on a small round cake. More than 200 people cheered, celebrating the first anniversary of his becoming drug-free. “I was in an awful condition,” said Ali, describing 12 years of addiction to opium and alcohol. “I reached a state that I smashed our furniture and threw our television out of the window.” Ali, 31, who has a wife and child and identified himself by only his first name to avoid possible embarrassment to his family, is among more than 800 addicts struggling to overcome their habits at a free treatment center in central Tehran.”
2. The New Nation (Bangladesh) - Factors inducing drug addiction.”Drug abuse directly influences the economic and social aspects of a country. In Bangladesh it is a growing national concern. There are millions of drug-addicted people in Bangladesh and most of them are young, between the ages of 18 and 30. And they are from all strata of the society. In Bangladesh, sources of drug information quite limited and drug companies are the vital sources of information here. As with other countries in the world, Bangladesh is victimized for drug addiction in its young generation for mainly following reasons.”
3. The Daily Star (Bangladesh) - Call for social movement to fight drug abuse, trafficking. “Home Adviser Maj Gen (retd) MA Matin yesterday said drug abuse and its illicit trafficking is a major problem which cannot be resolved only by enforcing laws and issuing threat of punishment. Side by side applying laws, the home adviser underscored the need for waging a massive social movement and creating awareness against drug abuse to root out the menace from the personal life, family and the society. “Awareness should be created in every individual, while the head of every family must have to be alert in order to fight the problem effectively,” he told a function organised by the Department of Narcotics Control at the Jatiya Natyashala auditorium in the city to mark the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking. Drug abuse is not an internal problem of Bangladesh rather it is a transnational one where developed countries are unable to keep them above the problem, he added.”
4. The Daily Express - Sabah detects less drug addicts. “Sabah registered fewer drug addicts between January and April this year compared to between January and June last year. Community Development and Consumer Affairs Minister Datuk Azizah Mohd Dun said 86 addicts were detected during the said period this year, which comprised 71 new addicts and 15 repeat addicts, while last year there were 217 addicts, namely, 161 new addicts and 56 repeat addicts. She said this corresponded with the decreasing number of addicts throughout the country.”
5. The Calgary Sun (Canada) - Manhole victim battled drug addiction. “Mitchell David Forsyth’s family encouraged him to pursue his talent as a glass blower, a dream that will never be realized. Forsyth, 25, was found dead inside a manhole this week, a shocking end to the life of a man his mother described as “wonderful” but one who had been ravaged by a drug addiction. “He had his demons,” Nancy Creagh said yesterday of her son, who was without a permanent job or a residence and battled his addiction for several years.”
6. The Catholic News Agency - Don’t abandon drug addicts, says president of Chilean Bishops’ Conference. “The president of the Bishop’s Conference of Chile, Bishop Alejandro Goic, called on Catholics and society in general this week not to abandon drug addicts and to combat the plague of drugs. This plague, he said, affects not only those with low incomes “but also those who are well-off and are often burdened by the lack of meaning in their lives.”
7. The Guardian (UK) - We are enslaving heroin addicts in a state-run chemical gulag. “There is an important battle of ideas going on around Britain’s extensive use of methadone in the treatment of heroin addicts. Your interview with Paul Hayes, head of the National Treatment Agency, reports that he was recently “forced to defend his record against criticism that the current strategy of treatment management” - using, for example, methadone for heroin addicts rather than “curing” their addiction - “was failing and wrong-headed” (Keep taking the medicine, June 18). We are told that Hayes apparently dismisses his critics as “a few academics, politicians and ‘ideologues’ stoked up by the media”. He says: “Any notion that investment in treatment programmes has been a failure is wrong.”
8. USA Today - Understanding the Netherlands’ marijuana policy. “Cannabis is technically an illegal substance in the Netherlands, although you won’t get arrested for buying or smoking it in a coffee shop. The Dutch have adopted a policy of “gedogen,” or blind eye, to its sale and use since 1976. The government distinguished between so-called “soft” cannabis drugs and “hard” drugs such as heroin or cocaine. That’s when coffee houses sprang up to sell and let people smoke.”
9. Thaiindian.com (Thailand) - Tihar inmates paint stark images against drug abuse. “rugs as the mythological demon Ravan, alcohol as poisonous snakes, a funeral pyre made of cigarette butts…Such stark illustrations have come out of the minds of prisoners at Delhi’s Tihar Jail, especially drug addicts. Many of the prisoners revisited their hellish past to paint their thoughts on tobacco, drug and alcohol abuse - in a way succeeding where Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss failed to do on cigarette packs.”
10. news.com.au - Australia trafficking hub, UN World Drug Report shows. “AUSTRALIA is one of the world’s fastest growing international trafficking hubs for illegal drugs including cocaine, ice and speed, a key United Nations report has found. Trafficking in these drugs has tripled in Australia in the past 12 months, figures from the UN’s Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) World Drug Report 2008 show.”
Online survey: young adult drinking behaviour
I received today the following message from Sara Allen at Swinburne University:
Hi, we are researchers at Swinburne University inviting young adults to participate in this online survey relating to young adult drinking behaviour. The purpose of this study is to obtain a deeper understanding of the motives behind young adults’ drinking behaviour. While much emphasis has been given to the negative aspects, we are interested also in how alcohol may be used in a positive way such as using it as a tool for widening a person’s range of life experience. It is anticipated that your responses will enable us to develop a greater understanding of the motives behind drinking in young adults and the way personality factors may influence these motives.
Participants need to be between the ages of 18 and 30 and drink alcohol. If you fit these criteria it would be greatly appreciated if you considered completing this questionnaire and being a part of our study.
The questionnaire will be completed online at http://opinio.online.swin.edu.au/s?s=4269 and should take approximately 30 minutes to complete. Your participation is completely voluntary and if you choose to take part, you may discontinue at any time. If you do take part, please answer the questionnaire honestly, to the best of your ability. All answers are completely anonymous, as there is no way for anyone to trace the identity of those who complete the survey.
If you are interested in completing the questionnaire please rip off a copy of the link. Alternatively if you know someone else who you think may be interested please direct them to the appropriate link.
Thanks for your time and for considering this study!
Sara Allen (Student Researcher)
Dr. Roslyn Galligan (Supervisor)
Jobs board success
I’m really pleased that our jobs board is growing in popularity, with a handful of Australian ATOD jobs on there. If you’re an organisation looking for another avenue to promote positions, do take the time to use the board, It’s free and my stats show a not insignificant number of people are browsing the jobs advertised.
If you’re someone looking for a job in the alcohol, tobacco and other drugs sector, then just bookmark the jobs board and check back intermittently. As it grows I’ll feature a ‘job of the week’ here as well.
How many Europeans use cannabis?
About 1 in 5 adults according to this report by the European Monitoring Center for Drugs and Drug Addiction.
It was estimated that more than 13 million Europeans had used it in the past month. Coming in at nearly 400 pages it’s a comprehensive read. Has anyone had a good peruse of the entire contents? If so, would love to hear your thoughts.
News of substance - drugs in the worldwide news
1. Townhall.com (USA) - Pot Potency Peril. “According to federal drug czar John Walters, the marijuana available in the United States is better than ever. Well, that’s not quite the way he put it, but it’s closer to the truth. Last week, as part of its ongoing effort to convince baby boomers that today’s “Pot 2.0″ is much more dangerous than the stuff they smoked when they were young, Walters’ Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) announced that “levels of THC — the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana — have reached the highest-ever amounts since scientific analysis of the drug began in the late 1970s.”
2. The Vancouver Sun (Canada) - A home for a drug pillar orphan. “Strange as it may sound, British Columbia Supreme Court Justice Ian Pitfield’s decision concerning Insite could spell the end of harm reduction as a separate modality for addressing substance abuse in Vancouver. Stranger still, that could prove beneficial for both the city and for people struggling with drug addiction. Pitfield held that the possession and trafficking sections of the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (CDSA) are unjustifiable infringements of Insite users’ rights under s. 7 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which guarantees “the right to life, liberty and security of the person and the right not to be deprived thereof except in accordance with the principles of fundamental justice.”
3. The Peninsula (Qatar) - Ministry organises anti-drug campaign. “Qatar joined the world in observing World Drugs Prevention Day yesterday with an exhibition organized by the Permanent Committee on Drugs and Alcohol Affairs of the Ministry of Interior. Staff Major-General Saad bin Jassem Al Khulaifi, Director of General Security, formally opened the exhibition at the Villaggio mall.”
4. VietNamNet - Vietnam launches crackdown on drug abuse. “A national campaign was launched in Hanoi on June 17 to encourage the entire community to engage in preventing drug abuse, help drug users quit the habit, and reduce the rate of relapsed addicts. The drive is seen as one of the country’s practical approaches to tackling drug abuse in the country, comes in response to the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking which falls on June 26.”
5. About.com - Psychological Trait in Boys Could Be Indicator of Drug Abuse Risks. “A psychological trait known as neurobehavioral disinhibition found in boys aged 10 to 12 could be a screening tool for those who will develop substance abuse disorders by age 19 as well as predict criminal activity, violent behavior and injuries. Neurobehavioral disinhibition symptoms include a decrease in behavior control, modulation of emotion and higher-level thought.
The study examined 278 boys when they were between 10 and 12 years old and again evaluated when they were 16 and 19 years old. For those boys who had the neurobehavioral disinhibition trait at age 10 or 12, were significantly more likely to have substance abuse problems by age 19. The trait was also a strong predictor of a a history of arrests, violent behavior, and concussive injury.”
6. Times of Oman - Seminar discusses steps against drug abuse.”Hussein bin Ali Al Hilali, prosecutor-general, opened the second national seminar on anti-narcotics at Crowne Plaza Hotel yesterday. The seminar, organised by the National Committee for Drugs and Psychotropic Substances, was held as part of the Sultanate’s celebration of World Anti-Narcotic Day under the theme ‘Protection against drugs is the responsibility of all’. In a statement to reporters, Al Hilali said the “Sultanate’s joining the world in marking the occasion, which falls on June 26 each year, mirrors the great interest shown by the Sultanate’s government in such issues which affect society, both citizens and expatriates”. The slogan of the celebration for this year adds a new dimension to the international efforts to limit and eradicate the problems of drug abuse. The Sultanate has undertaken strenuous efforts to combat the drug and psychotropic substances issues which have become more common recently.”
7. Science Daily - Popular Stimulant’s Role In Brain Function Deterioration Is Cause For Concern, According To Researchers. “Concerned by the growing numbers of people using stimulant medications such as methylphenidate (MP)–either legally or illegally–to improve attention and focus, researchers used positron emission tomography (PET) imaging with the radiotracer fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) to assess the effects of the drug on brain function in the normal human brain.”
8. News.com.au - ‘Choosing to use’ drug booklet scrapped. “Health service booklet that tells teenagers what to do if they choose to experiment with drugs will be scrapped. The booklet, aimed at high school students in years 9 and 10, was produced by the Sydney West Area Health Service. The Choosing to use … but wanna keep your head together? booklet suggests young people should not experiment until they are over 18, know their family medical history and “use only small amounts and not too often”.
9. Science Daily - ‘Hazardous Drinking’ May Be A New ‘Check Stop’ On The Way To Alcohol Dependence. “Current diagnostic guides divide alcohol-use disorders into two categories: alcohol abuse/harmful use and alcohol dependence. Some researchers and clinicians believe this is insufficient, that there should be a third, preceding diagnosis known as “hazardous drinking,” defined as drinking more than guidelines recommend. A Finnish study has found that hazardous drinking is quite common.”