Annie Madden and Professor Carla Treloar have dedicated much of their lives to working in taboo fields of research: blood borne viruses and drug users. These two brilliant minds bring a wealth of expertise, knowledge and insight to real world subjects in SpeakEasy, holding engaging conversations with very special guests each episode.
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S5 SpeakEasy Ep 9: Family Matters in the Context of BBVs
To coincide with the release of their ground-breaking new report, in this our second to last episode of SpeakEasy for 2020, Carla and Annie speak with the totally amazing Assoc. Profs Christy Newman and Myra Hamilton about their work on the 'my health, our family' project – an ambitious and important multi-year research project documenting stories of family life in the context of HIV, hepatitis B or hepatitis C. It’s a ‘must hear’ show as we roll ever closer to the holiday season and encounters of the family kind…
Related links
- my health, our family project page
- Literature review on families affected by blood borne viruses
- How families matter in the context of a stigmatised viral infection
- Viewpoint article on queer families
S5 SpeakEasy Ep 8: Making legitimacy and other PhD stories…
In this episode of SpeakEasy, Annie & Carla take a deep dive into the ‘PhD journey’ with Carla interviewing Annie about her recently published paper, the first from her PhD research, focusing on issues of drug user representation and political legitimacy in UN drug policy settings over the past three decades.
S5 SpeakEasy Ep 7: When is a hallway not a hallway?
In celebration of International Drug Users Day on 1 November, in this episode, Annie & Carla have a chat with Jake Agliata from the International Network of People Who Use Drugs (INPUD) all the way from Philadelphia in the US about being young and political in the States, about the true racist history behind global drug policy and about how a group of young people turned a UN hallway into ‘a corridor of power’. Oh… and we also do a special shout-out to Jake’s mum for being so excited about him being on SpeakEasy!
Related links
For INPUD International Drug Users Day campaign, go to www.inpud.net and www.facebook.com/INPUD
S5 SpeakEasy Ep 6: Of Pride, Othering and Other Things…
In this episode, Annie & Carla speak with legendary drug user activist and all-round amazing woman Jude Byrne about the early days of drug user organisations in Australia, the importance of peer involvement in research and why she is so damned proud of her community.
Related links
INPUD documentary: Taking Back What's Ours! A documented history of the movement of people who use drugs:
S5 SpeakEasy Ep 5: Doom scrolling, murder mysteries and silver linings
Annie and Carla are back in the salubrious surrounds of the SpeakEasy after an enforced hiatus due to a big deal with a little name called “COVID”. In this return episode, Annie and Carla catch up on what they’ve been doing during “the Rona”, hot topics that are exercising their minds and the value of a good murder mystery in #iso.
Related links
- NUAA/NADA resource - Language Matters
- INPUD resource - Words Matter
- INPUD COVID-19 Survey Research reports on the Health & Human Rights Of People Who Drugs in a COVID-19 Environment
S5 SpeakEasy Ep 4: What’s Religion Got to Do with It?
Religious freedom or smokescreen for bigotry? In this episode, Annie and Carla dive into the ‘hot mess’ that is the draft Federal Religious Discrimination Bill and speak with Jonathon Hunyor (PIAC) and Daniel Comensoli (LGBTI Health Alliance) about their organisations’ work and views on this super important topic for the Australian community.
Related links
- PIAC
- National LGBTI Health Alliance
- Research: The Impact of Institutional Discrimination on Psychiatric Disorders in Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Populations: A Prospective Study
Submissions and resources to get involved
- Equality Australia - freedom from discrimination
- National LGBTI Health Alliance - submission: religious discrimination bill second exposure draft
- PIAC - religious freedom
- Australian Human Rights Commission - religious freedom bills
Find your electorate and MP
S5 SpeakEasy Ep 3: The Sex (& Drugs) Lecture 2020
In this episode, Carla and Annie speak with Dr Kerryn Drysdale from the UNSW Centre for Social Research in Health about the recently presented 4th annual Sex Lecture drawing on insights from the Crystal Pleasures and Sex between Men research project on gay, bisexual and queer men who use crystal methamphetamine for sex. The lecture was co-presented by Dr Max Hopwood with an introduction from Emeritus Professor Gary W. Dowsett and included an expert panel of discussants.
Related links
Crystal, pleasures and sex between men project page (which includes links to papers from the study)
- Sex (and Drugs) Lecture
S5 Extra Easy Ep 1: COVID-19 & Harm Reduction Special
In times like these, we all need good information to guide us and sometimes what we need goes beyond the general advice to something a little more specialised... In this episode, we talk with NUAA Deputy CEO Charles Henderson about the most recent harm reduction info and advice for people who are using drugs in a COVID-19 environment.
Related links
Full disclosure: Our guest for this episode - Charles Henderson is in an ongoing relationship with Annie Madden.
S5 SpeakEasy Ep 2: Poverty, it's not that complex – with Cassandra Goldie
Staying hot on the trail of the ‘big issues’, this episode Annie & Carla get some quality time with the amazing Dr Cassandra Goldie, CEO of the Australian Council of Social Service (ACOSS) and tireless advocate for tackling poverty and inequality to reflect on a recent Report into Poverty in Australia by ACOSS & UNSW and to ‘crack the code’ on some of our biggest social issues including “Raising the Rate” of Newstart and how to make housing more affordable. We also talk about why the topic of Superannuation is REALLY interesting… really ☺
Related links
S5 SpeakEasy Ep 1: The standard of human dignity with Louise Chappell and Rosemary Kayess
Carla and Annie are kicking off season 5 with a ‘deep dive’ into human rights – What are they? Where do they come from? Who gets them? And how can they help us to think about issues of health and rights more broadly? With two stellar guests (Louise Chappell and Rosemary Kayess) who are genuine legends and experts in the field, we are in good hands to have a cracker first show that is guaranteed to make ya think!
Related links
- Learn more about Louise’s work at the UNSW Human Rights Institute
- Learn more about Rosemary’s work with the UNSW Disability Innovation Institute
- Learn more about the human rights charters of the ACT, Victoria and Queensland
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S4 SpeakEasy Ep 16: It's a Wrap for 2019 and an Exciting Announcement!
In what’s become an annual tradition, Annie and Carla wrap up the year that’s been, reflect on the amazing guests that have joined them in the “SpeakEasy Lounge” in 2019 and announce an exciting new SpeakEasy venture commencing in early 2020.
Enjoy the episode and thanks for listening in 2019!
Related links
- Published paper linked to interview with Joanne Byrant on her presentation to the 2019 Australasian Viral Hepatitis Elimination Conference (AVHEC): Making sense of ‘side effects’: Counterpublic health in the era of direct-acting antivirals (2019), International Journal of Drug Policy
S4 SpeakEasy Ep 15: Stuart Loveday: Thank you and farewell
After 25 years at the helm of Hepatitis NSW, Stuart Loveday takes his final bow as CEO. Annie and Carla chat with Stuart about what’s happened during his time leading the organisation and what’s left to do in this valedictory episode.
Related links
S4 SpeakEasy Ep 14: The welfare drug testing debate with Alison Ritter
Carla and Annie sit down with Professor Alison Ritter, Director of the Drug Policy Modelling Program at the Social Policy Research Centre, UNSW Sydney, to discuss the recurrent threat in Australian politics to drug test welfare recipients and why this makes for bad drug policy.
Related links
- How philosophy 101 could help break the deadlock over drug testing job seekers
- ASPC 2019 Keynote by Professor Alison Ritter
- The Drug Policy Modelling Program
S4 SpeakEasy Ep 13: AVHEC19 with Felicity Sheaves and Louise Maher
It’s our final AVHEC19 episode! This week Felicity Sheaves, Blood Borne Viruses Coordinator, and Louise Maher, Hepatitis C and Senior Health Promotion Officer, both of the Nepean Blue Mountains Local Health District, sit down with Carla and Annie to chat about the good ol’ days of the SIC Project and the beauty of not knowing how to navigate the health system (and doing it anyway).
Related links
- Sheaves, F., et al. (2001). 'That's SIC: mobilising youth for hepatitis C prevention'. Health Promotion Journal of Australia 12(3): 217-222
- Evaluation of the Deadly Liver Mob program: insights for roll-out and scale-up of a pilot program to engage Aboriginal Australians in hepatitis C and sexual health education, screening, and care (2018), Harm Reduction Journal
- Deadly Liver Mob project page
S4 SpeakEasy Ep 12: AVHEC 2019 with James Ward and Chris Cunningham
Associate Professor James Ward, a Pitjantjatjara/Narungga man and a national leader in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander research on STIs, health and wellbeing, and Professor Chris Cunningham, of the Ngati Toa and Ngati Raukawa tribes of New Zealand and Professor of Maori Health, join Annie and Carla in our second AVHEC19 special episode. The awesome foursome join heads to discuss how viral hepatitis elimination is going in Australian and New Zealand Indigenous communities and where there's room for improvement.
Related links
S4 SpeakEasy Ep 11(2): AVHEC19 with Joanne Bryant and the Cairns Hepatitis Action Team
It's Australasian Viral Hepatitis Elimination Conference time, and once again, Carla and Annie are ‘in the mix’ chatting to an assortment of keynote speakers and other amazing people at the forefront of hepatitis elimination across Australia & NZ. First up, Annie & Carla talk ‘counter-publics’, ‘lay experts’ and power dynamics in health promotion with A/Prof Joanne Bryant. Next up, a change of pace with the Cairns Hepatitis Action Team talking about their “surprise” at winning the 2018 HCV Health Promotion Resource Competition and what they did with the loot!
Related links
- Making sense of ‘side effects’: Counterpublic health in the era of direct-acting antivirals (2019), International Journal of Drug Policy
- Evidence-making interventions in health: A conceptual framing (2019), Social Science & Medicine
- “Doing the devil’s work”: Emotional labour and stigma in expanding Needle and Syringe Programs (2015), Drugs: Education, Prevention and Policy
- UNSW Newsroom article 'Hepatitis C prevention still essential despite advances in treatment'
- Technical review of hepatitis C health promotion resources
S4 SpeakEasy Ep 11(1): World Hepatitis Day 2019 With Margaret Hellard and Tanya Applegate
For this very special 2019 World Hepatitis Day episode, Annie and Carla talk with Australian researchers Dr Tanya Applegate from The Kirby Institute and Professor Margaret Hellard AM from The Burnet Institute about the ‘awesomely massive’ “Accelerating the elimination of viral hepatitis: a Lancet Gastroenterology & Hepatology Commission” and discuss the power of collaboration in the global fight against viral hepatitis.
Related links
S4 SpeakEasy Ep 10: Jules Kim
Carla Treloar and Annie Madden welcome Jules Kim, Scarlet Alliance CEO, to the SpeakEasy lounge to do some sex work myth busting and discuss the importance of Scarlet Alliance, the national peak body for sex workers organisations that pursues equity and justice in the sex work industry.
Related links
Harm Reduction International 2019 Special EpisodesAnnie and Carla attended the Harm Reduction International Conference 2019 in late April, mingling with bright minds and courageous members of the harm reduction scene. They tapped their favourites, found some quiet(ish) corners and got down to the nitty-gritty of what's really happening in harm reduction around the world.
S4 SpeakEasy Ep 9: Graham Brown and Andrew Scheibe
It’s our final HR19 episode. First up, Carla steps outside (literally) with Graham Brown to discuss the ‘spaghetti and meatballs’ project on peer-led programs, also known as What, Works and Why or W3. Our final guest of the special HR19 episodes is Andrew Scheibe from Cape Town, South Africa. Andrew is a harm reduction implementer with a focus on implementation science that is valid in local contexts.
Related links
S4 SpeakEasy Ep 8: Zoe Dodd: Fighting to win
As part of a series of interviews from HRI19, in this episode, Annie and Carla speak with legendary activist Zoe Dodd about setting up a ‘pop-up’ SIF (safe injecting facility), her Master's research and life and politics on the frontlines of the Canadian OD crisis.
Related links
S4 SpeakEasy Ep 7: Carol Strike and Gillian Kolla: where research and frontline service delivery meet
In this second episode from the Harm Reduction International Conference 2019, Carla and Annie catch up with Carol Strike and Gillian Kolla -legends from the frontlines of the overdose crisis in Toronto, Canada- about police and their attitudes to safe injecting facilities, setting up an unsanctioned safe injecting site in a public park in Toronto and issues in doing research with highly criminalised communities.
Related links
- Creating and sustaining cooperative relationships between supervised injection services and police: A qualitative interview study of international stakeholders (2018), International Journal of Drug Policy
- A scoping review of harm reduction training for police officers (2019), Drug and Alcohol Review
- Canada's overdose crisis: authorities are not acting fast enough (2019), The Lancet Public Health
- Toronto Overdose Prevention Society on Twitter
- Gillian Kolla on Twitter
S4 SpeakEasy Ep 6: Garth Mullins: from the frontline of Harm Reduction International 2019
Garth Mullins, host of the Crackdown podcast (and Carla and Annie's podcast crush), landed in the SpeakEasy lounge at the Harm Reduction International Conference to discuss the frontline of the war on drugs, bringing activism and science together and punching up (not down) with his podcast about drugs, drug policy and the drug war.
The health, wellbeing and lives of people who use drugs are in crisis around the world. These issues were highlighted at the Harm Reduction Conference in Porto, where this episode was recorded. We acknowledge those who grieve for the loss of family and friends, and we call on governments across the world to respond to this crisis as a matter of urgency and move to ensure a safe drug supply, provision of low threshold emergency services, wide distribution of naloxone and decriminalisation of drug use.
Related links
S4 SpeakEasy Ep 5: Emma Rafferty: Talking treatment, talking journeys
Annie and Carla chat to Emma Rafferty, who is a Systemic Advocacy Lead at the Association of Participating Service Users (APSU) in Victoria. Emma gives SpeakEasy a ‘backstage pass’ to APSU’s new podcast series “Straight to the Source” and takes us through how the show is working to empower treatment consumers, increase the impact of people's own voices and create sustainable change at the system level.
Related links
S4 SpeakEasy Ep 4: Mary Harrod and Jessica Murray from NUAA and Dancewize
The issue of pill testing at music festivals has literally filled the media this summer and is shaping up as a key issue in the upcoming NSW election campaign. To get the lowdown on this issue from the peer perspective, SpeakEasy sat down with Mary Harrod, NUAA CEO and Jessica Murray, one of the coordinators of NUAA’s Dancewize peer education and harm reduction program.
Related links
S4 SpeakEasy Ep 2: “Not My Family, never My Child” – an interview with Tony Trimingham
Annie and Carla speak with the awesome Tony Trimingham OAM, CEO of Family Drug Support, founder of the Damien Trimingham Foundation and co-founder of Harm Reduction Australia, about supporting families affected by alcohol and other drug issues, International FDS Day and how he became a leading advocate for drug law reform.
Related links
- Family Drug Support website
- International Family Drug Support Day 2019 (Sunday 24 Feb)
- Sydney – International Family Drug Support Day 2019 (Tuesday 26 Feb)
- Harm Reduction Australia website
- Tony Trimingham's book Not my child, never my family
S4 SpeakEasy Ep 1: “Go hell for leather and publish and be damned” – a chat with Jenny Valentish
And we’re back with Season 4 of SpeakEasy! In our first episode for 2019, Carla and Annie speak with writer, author and ‘woman of substance’ Jenny Valentish about her 2017 book, about what it’s like to ‘go public’ about your own drug use, about publishing realities and the response to her book from the media, her family and from other “women of substances”.
Related links
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S3 SpeakEasy: 2018 it's a wrap
Annie and Carla wrap up the year that has gone by and reminisce and reflect on all of the guests that have joined them in the SpeakEasy lounge.
S3 SpeakEasy with Fiona Patten
Annie and Carla interview Fiona Patten, the leader of the Reason Party and a long-standing champion of sexual rights, sex worker rights and health issues such as HIV and AIDS. Not one to do things by halves, Fiona is also a small business owner of her own fashion label.
Related links
S3 SpeakEasy World AIDS Day Bumper Episode
In today's World Aids Day extravaganza, Annie and Carla interview Asha Persson and Christy Newman, Martin Holt and Limin Mao, covering a whole range of issues and cutting-edge research.
Related links
- “So Much Is at Stake”: Professional Views on Engaging Heterosexually Identified Men who Have Sex with Men with Sexual Health Care in Australia
- Challenging Perceptions of “Straight”
Heterosexual Men Who Have Sex with Men and the Cultural Politics of Sexual Identity Categories
- StraightMSM study: heterosexually-identified men who have sex with men project
- Sydney Gay Asian Men Survey
- Lancet HIV paper on uptake/impact of PrEP
- Stigma Indicators Monitoring Project
S3 SpeakEasy World AIDS Day Bumper Episode: Asha Persson And Christy Newman
In today's World Aids Day extravaganza, Annie and Carla interview Asha Persson and Christy Newman covering a whole range of issues and cutting edge research.
Related links
- “So Much Is at Stake”: Professional Views on Engaging Heterosexually Identified Men who Have Sex with Men with Sexual Health Care in Australia
- Challenging Perceptions of “Straight”
Heterosexual Men Who Have Sex with Men and the Cultural Politics of Sexual Identity Categories
- StraightMSM study: heterosexually-identified men who have sex with men project
- Stigma Indicators Monitoring Project
S3 SpeakEasy World AIDS Day Bumper Episode: Martin Holt
In today's World Aids Day extravaganza, Annie and Carla interview Martin Holt covering a whole range of issues and cutting edge research.
Related links
S3 SpeakEasy World AIDS Day Bumper Episode: Limin Mao
In today's World Aids Day extravaganza, Annie and Carla interview Limin Mao covering a whole range of issues and cutting edge research.
Related links
S3 SpeakEasy INHSU special: John Dillon
Live from INHSU - Strap yourself in – the revolution has arrived – John Dillon puts orthodoxy in the bin at INHSU.
S3 SpeakEasy INHSU special: Judy Chang
Carla and Annie continue to grow their INHSU collection of interviews (and friends), this time sitting down with Judy Chang, Executive Director of International Network of People Who Use Drugs (INPUD).
Related links
- INHSU Twitter
- International Network of People Who Use Drugs (INPUD)
- “Is Decriminalisation Enough? Drug User Community Voices from Portugal”
- Vancouver Declaration 2006
S3 SpeakEasy INHSU special: Michael Ninburg
Carla and Annie continue to grow their INHSU collection of interviews (and friends), this time sitting down with World Hepatitis Alliance President Michael Ninburg.
Related links
- World Hepatitis Alliance
- White paper, World Hepatitis Aliiance – Find the Missing Millions
- Hepatitis Education Project, Seattle, Washington
- Stigma Indicators Monitoring Project
S3 SpeakEasy INHSU special: Jonas Demant Hansen and Anne Øvrehus
This week we hear from Jonas Demant Hansen from a Danish NGO for people who use drugs called Brugernes Akademi (The Users Academy) and Anne Øvrehus an infectious diseases physician in Denmark. They are using working by Annie, Carla, Jo Neale and Max Hopwood on Patient-Reported Outcome Measures (PROMS) to translate this for people who inject in Denmark.
Related links
- INHSU 2018
- Beyond cure: patient reported outcomes of hepatitis C treatment among people who inject drugs in Australia
- Acceptability of Patient-Reported Outcome and Experience Measures for Hepatitis C Treatment Among People Who Use Drugs
S3 SpeakEasy INHSU special: Dr Mark Tyndall
Annie and Carla took the microphones and headed north – to the great INHSU conference in Portugal. This is the first in a series of interviews with passionate, inspiring and subversive people that we found lounging around the conference pool. Our guest today is Dr Mark Tyndall, Executive Director of the Centre for Disease Control in British Columbia, Canada.
Related links
S3 SpeakEasy Ep 7: Dr Nico Clark
Dr Nico Clark, the medical director for the recently opened medically supervised injecting facility in North Richmond, Melbourne, joins Carla Treloar and Annie Madden in the SpeakEasy lounge to discuss the progress of the service since opening and its impact on local people who inject drugs.
Related links
- Accidental Intimacy: Transformative Emotion and the Sydney Medically Supervised Injecting Centre
- International Overdose Awareness Day
S3 SpeakEasy Ep 6: World Hepatitis Day 2018 with kylie valentine
Associate Professor kylie valentine, from the Social Policy Research Centre at UNSW Sydney, joins Carla Treloar and Annie Madden in the SpeakEasy lounge to give the low down on social policy and the intersection of viral hepatitis this World Hepatitis Day, ahead of kylie's keynote at VH18.
Related links
S3 SpeakEasy Ep 5: Support Don't Punish Day
Annie and Carla have not one but two special guests for Support Don't Punish Day on Tuesday, 26 June. Sione Crawford is the CEO of Harm Reduction Victoria, with previous roles at Hepatitis Victoria and NUAA. Dr Kate Seear is at Monash University, where she is an ARC DECRA Fellow, a practising solicitor, an Associate Professor in Law and an Academic Director of the Springvale Monash Legal Service.
Related links
- Support Don't Punish Day - 26 June
- North Richmond Community Health - Medically supervised injecting room
S3 SpeakEasy Ep 4: Emeritus Professor Sue Kippax
Carla and Annie welcome long-time friend Emeritus Professor Sue Kippax to the SpeakEasy lounge. Sue is a pioneer in partnerships between research and community. With an extraordinary academic track record, Sue is internationally recognised for her contribution to the HIV response.
Related links
- Kippax, S., & Kinder, P. (2002). Reflexive practice: the relationship between social research and health promotion in HIV prevention. Sex Education, 2, 91-104. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/14681810220144855
- Socializing the biomedical turn in HIV prevention
- Emeritus Professor Sue Kippax
S3 SpeakEasy Ep 3: Dr Marianne Jauncey
In this week's episode, Carla and Annie sit down with the legendary Dr Marianne Jauncey, Director of the Medically-Supervised Injecting Centre (MSIC) in Sydney's Kings Cross. The trio discuss the latest in harm reduction, the upcoming MSIC in Richmond, Victoria, Uniting's push for drug law reform and the transformative power of treating people with dignity and respect.
Related links
- Meet the women behind the injecting clinic that changed Kings Cross
- Uniting calls for a re-think on drugs
S3 SpeakEasy Ep 2: Dr Ingrid van Beek AM
In this episode, Carla and Annie are speaking with the legendary Dr Ingrid van Beek AM, a true harm-reduction pioneer in Australia, about her longstanding passion for rights and social justice, her ground-breaking work with the Kirketon Rd Centre (KRC) and the Medically Supervised Injecting Centre (MSIC) and why reforming the drug laws remains as a key priority for her.
Related links
- Dr Ingrid van Beek AM
- NSW Drug Summit 1999: Issues and outcomes (PDF)
- Kirketon Road Centre
- New medically supervised injecting centre in North Richmond
S3 SpeakEasy Ep 1: the Hon. Michael Kirby
To kick off season three of SpeakEasy, the Hon. Michael Kirby dropped by the lounge to discuss the landmark report “HIV and the Law: Risks, Rights and Health” and what is happening five years on.
Editor's note: The quote referred to in this episode ("Nothing is more powerful than an idea whose time has come") was made by French author Victor Hugo and not Voltaire as initially thought.
Related links
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S2 SpeakEasy Ep 10: It's a wrap with Annie and Carla
In the final SpeakEasy episode for Season Two, Annie and Carla take a trip down memory lane, reviewing their guests from 2017 (and even 2016), including Dr Kari Lancaster, Professor Alison Ritter, Matt Noffs and Professor Mark Tyndall to create some insight into the changing landscape of drug policy and harm reduction in Australia and around the world.
S2 SpeakEasy Ep 9: Peter Higgs
This week in the SpeakEasy lounge, Annie and Carla chat to Dr Peter Higgs, Senior Lecturer at La Trobe University and Senior Research Fellow at the Burnett Institute, both in Melbourne. Peter is a well-regarded qualitative researcher, working for over 20 years researching risk and people who inject drugs, particularly in the inner Melbourne suburb of Footscray.
Don't forget to come and find us on our very own Twitter handle - @SpeakEasy_UNSW.
Related links
- Dr Peter Higgs
- Engagement, reciprocity and advocacy: ethical harm reduction practice in research with injecting drug users
- Twitter: follow Peter
S2 SpeakEasy Ep 8: Alison Ritter
Professor Carla Treloar and Annie Madden chat with Professor Alison Ritter, internationally recognised drug policy scholar and Director of the Drug Policy Modelling Program at the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre at UNSW. The trio discuss Alison's amazing body of work and her thoughts on carving out new frontiers in drug policy.
Related links
- National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre
- Drug Policy Modelling Program
- Professor Alison Ritter profile
S2 SpeakEasy Ep 7: Gino Vumbaca: If you stop, [the penny] will never drop
Gino Vumbaca, President and Co-Founder of Harm Reduction Australia, sits down in the lounge with Carla and Annie to discuss justice reinvestment, starting Harm Reduction Australia and pushing to get pill-testing on the Australian music festival road map.
Related links
- Harm Reduction Australia
- Justice Reinvest NSW
- Drug testing the dole queue won't help make it shorter
- Decriminalisation is the only way to arrest Australia's drug policy
- It's time to face the music on Australia's flawed drug policy
S2 SpeakEasy Ep 6: Jason Grebely for World Hepatitis Day 2017
For World Hepatitis Day 2017, we have a very special guest, the indefatigable Jason Grebely. Associate Professor with The Kirby Institute and president of the International Network on Hepatitis in Substance Users, Jason swings by the SpeakEasy studio to discuss the current state of treatment for hepatitis C.
Related links
- International Network on Hepatitis in Substance Users
- Journal: INHSU and the International Journal of Drug Policy special edition – coming Sept 2018 – keep an eye out!
S2 SpeakEasy Ep 5: 'Phenethylamines I’ve Known and Loved' and other fantastic journeys…
In this episode, Annie and Carla talk with Dr Stephen Bright about the origins of ethnopharmacology, experimental psychonauts and the quality of reporting on alcohol and other drugs (AOD) issues in the media. We find out about the recently launched "AOD Media Watch" and the amazing work that Stephen and colleagues are doing to end inaccurate and misleading reporting in the media, one article at a time.
Related links
S2 SpeakEasy Ep 4: Kate Pinnock: Jailbreak Radio: Making a 'Kinection'
Kate Pinnock, host of the weekly radio program Jailbreak, joins Carla and Annie in the studio to chat about making a radio program that appeals to inmates, as well the launch of 'Caught Up' - a musical collaboration between Aboriginal youth in prison and the award-winning Aboriginal hip-hop group The Last Kinection.
EDITOR'S NOTE: In other exciting news, SpeakEasy is now available to stream and download from iTunes. Click here to stream or download SpeakEasy episodes from Seasons 1 and 2.
Related links
S2 SpeakEasy Ep 3: Annie Madden: When too much psyche-trance is never enough
Earlier this year, Annie attended and volunteered at the Rainbow Serpent Festival – a major 5-day music festival in Western Victoria. Listen as Annie and Carla chat all things Rainbow Serpent, including the power of community and the importance of harm reduction and pill testing at music festivals.
Related links
S2 SpeakEasy Ep 2: Kari Lancaster: The hard is what makes it great
This week the newly crowned Dr Kari Lancaster talks about completing her PhD thesis: both the process and the content. Kari’s work examines the nature of “evidence” in drug policy and how she completed her thesis “by publication”. Looking to the future, what does life have in store post-PhD.
Related links
- Lancaster, K. (2016). Problematizing the 'evidence-based' drug policy paradigm
- Lancaster, K., Treloar, C., & Ritter, A. (2017)‘Naloxone works’: The politics of knowledge in ‘evidence-based’ drug policy. Health: An Interdisciplinary Journal for the Social Study of Health, Illness and Medicine.
- Lancaster, K., Seer, K., & Treloar, C. (2015). Laws prohibiting peer distribution of injecting equipment in Australia: A critical analysis of their effects. International Journal of Drug Policy, 26(12), 1198 - 1206. DOI: 10.1016/j.drugpo.2015.05.014
- Lancaster, K. (2016). Rethinking recovery. Addiction.
- Lancaster, K., Santana, L., Madden, A., & Ritter, A. (2015). Stigma and subjectivities: Examining the textured relationship between lived experience and opinions about drug policy among people who inject drugs. Drugs: Education, prevention and policy, 22(3), 224-231.
S2 SpeakEasy Ep 1: Tim Rhodes: Promise and evidence-making interventions
In the first episode of season two, we talk with the awesome Tim Rhodes from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine about his work in Kenya, where he is using qualitative methods to explore the development of harm reduction initiatives, including the recent introduction of methadone assisted therapy. His work seeks to develop a critical approach to using qualitative methods as part of implementation science. We discuss some of the emergent findings from work looking at the multiple meanings of methadone. This work is being conducted with Andy Guise and Rose Closson (London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine), James Ndimbii (Kenyan Consortium of AIDS Non-Government Organizations), Emmy Kageha (University of Nairobi), Frederick Owiti (physician) and Stefanie Strathdee (University of California at San Diego).
Related links
- Rhodes T, Closson E F, Paparini S, Guise A, Strathdee S (2016). Towards “evidence-making intervention” approaches in the social science of implementation science: The making of methadone in East Africa, The International Journal of Drug Policy, DOI: 10.1016/j.drugpo.2016.01.002
- Rhodes T, Guise A, Ndimbii J et al. (2015) Is the promise of methadone Kenya’s solution to managing HIV and addiction? BMJ Open, DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2014-007198
- Rhodes T, Ndimbii J, Guise, A et al. (2015) Navigating the poverty of heroin addiction treatment and recovery opportunity in Kenya: Access work, self-care and rationed expectations, Global Public Health, 10: 867-880, DOI: 10.1080/17441692.2015.1046385
- Crawford S. (2013) Shouting through bullet-proof glass: Some reflections on pharmacology provision in one Australian clinic, International Journal of Drug Policy, DOI: 10.1016/j.drugpo.2013.07.004
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S1 SpeakEasy Ep 12: Annie and Carla Part II – 2016 It’s a Wrap
After a whirlwind year of podcasting, Annie and Carla take a moment to review the highlights of their first season of podcasting with some very special guests.
Editor’s Note: Annie and Carla recorded this session in early November, taking advantage of a small window of time in which both of them were in the same place together. Since then, the top-secret embargo referenced throughout the episode has been lifted, and we can announce the success of not one, not two, but three NHMRC grants for projects either led by or involving the CSRH.
S1 SpeakEasy Ep 11: The power and the passion: Helen Tyrrell speaks about community organisations in viral hepatitis
Six months after “equal treatment access” was launched for new generation hepatitis C treatments, Helen Tyrrell speaks to Annie and Carla about how it all happened (and much more). Helen is CEO of Hepatitis Australia.
Related links
- Website: Hepatitis Australia
S1 SpeakEasy Ep 10: Show Me the Evidence! A conversation with Prof. Margaret Hellard about life as a public health physician
Professor Margaret Hellard is the Head of the Centre for Population Health at the Burnett Institute. Margaret has been at the forefront of developing cutting-edge public health responses to addressing the hepatitis C epidemic among people who inject drugs in Australia, including leading a new ambitious study aimed at eliminating hepatitis C as a public health concern in Australia by 2030. Margaret joins Carla & Annie in this latest episode of the SpeakEasy to talk about TAP (her latest research study - not dancing) and why she loves working in public health.
Related links
S1 SpeakEasy Ep 9: An 'Open Mic' with Jenny Kelsall: The 'Straight Dope' on the Value of Peer-2-Peer
In this episode, Annie and Carla speak with the amazing Jenny Kelsall, longstanding CEO of Harm Reduction Victoria, the peer-based drug user organisation. They talk about lots of good stuff, including the past and future of peer-based drug user orgs and harm reduction, the cutting-edge work and programs of HRVic, including 'Dancewise' and its growing base of peer educators at music festivals & events across Melbourne & Victoria.
Related links
- Website: Harm Reduction Victoria
- Website: Dancewize
- Paper: Snow, K., Scott, N., Clothier, H., MacLachlan, J., B, C., 2016. Limited provision of diagnostic services to Victorians living with hepatitis C antibodies, 2001-2012: a multi-level modelling analysis. Aust N Z J Public Health DOI: 10.1111/1753-6405.12560
- Article: Get tested, get treated, Hep C researchers urge
S1 SpeakEasy Ep 8: Matt Noffs: Breaking Through: Changing the nature of the drug debate in Australia
In this episode, Carla and Annie have the privilege of speaking with the ultra-impressive Matt Noffs - Executive Director of the Noffs Foundation about what it is like to be a member of the Noffs Family Dynasty, his personal journey, what drives him forward and his hopes for the future of drug policy in Australia.
Related links
- Book: Breaking the ice: How we will get through Australia's methamphetamine crisis
- Website: Street University
S1 SpeakEasy Ep 7: Suzanne Fraser: No assumption left unconfronted!
In this episode, Annie and Carla speak to Professor Suzanne Fraser about projects past and current. Suzanne talks about her seminal work on the methadone queue, her book on hepatitis C and her latest project on “addiction”, including the website “Lives of Substance”, which will open up an array of personal stories of drug use.
Related links
- Article: The chronotope of the queue: Methadone maintenance treatment and the production of time, space and subjects
- Book: Substance and Substitution: Methadone Subjects in Liberal Societies
- Book: Making Disease, Making Citizens: The Politics of Hepatitis C
- Website: Lives of Substance
S1 SpeakEasy Ep 6: Kate Seear: Is justice really blind?
What do 'addiction', the law, podcasting and AFL have in common? Find out by joining Annie and Carla in conversation with the multi-talented Dr Kate Seear (academic, lawyer, podcaster) to talk about research with lawyers, whether drugs & discrimination can ever 'mix' and what new media can achieve. Oh, and football - when in Melbourne...
Related links
- Podcast: The Outer Sanctum
- Article: Eddie McGuire, Caroline Wilson and when 'playful banter' goes very, very wrong
- Kate Seear's Discovery Early Career Research Award (DECRA) project: Addiction in the Australian legal system: A sociological analysis
- Research Article: Beyond criminal law: The multiple constitution of addiction in Australian legislation
S1 SpeakEasy Ep 5: Jo Neale: The PROM Queen
Dr Jo Neale from King's College London is our guest in the SpeakEasy this week. Annie and Carla speak with Jo about "patient reported outcome measures" and why it is important to build measures from the ground up, rather than only relying on what researchers and clinicians think is important. Jo also talks about her work with the Service Users Research Group that actively contributes to the research undertaken at the Addictions Department of Kings College. And, we talk about the work all of us are doing to build a patient reported outcomes measure for new hepatitis C treatments.
Related links
- King's College London - SURE: Substance Use Recovery Evaluator
- SURG - Service Users Research Group
- Paper: Neale, J., Vitoratou, S., Finch, E., Lennon, P., Mitcheson, L., Panebianco, D., Rose, D., Strang, J., Wykes, T., Marsden, J., (online) 'Development and validation of 'SURE': A patient reported outcome measure (PROM) for recovery from drug and alcohol dependence', Drug and Alcohol Dependence. http://authors.elsevier.com/sd/article/S0376871616301521
- Website: PLuS Alliance
S1 SpeakEasy Ep 4: Carla Treloar In conversation with Eileen Baldry: Prisons, health and justice
In this episode, Carla has the opportunity to speak with Eileen Baldry about her expertise in research within the criminal justice sector and her ideas about what’s needed for reform in this complex area. This is a special presentation of a seminar supported by the Centre for Social Research in Health and the Practical Justice Initiative, UNSW.
S1 SpeakEasy Ep 3: Max Hopwood: Men who have sex with men and hep C
In this episode, Max Hopwood (Research Fellow, Centre for Social Research in Health) discusses his research with men who have sex with men and the different types of responses we need to address hepatitis C when sex and drugs come together.
Related links
- Paper: Drug, sex and sociality: Factors associated with the recent sharing of injecting equipment among gay and bisexual men in Australia
- Paper: Multiple strategies are required to address the information and support needs of gay and bisexual men with hepatitis C in Australia
- Paper: Hepatitis C knowledge among gay and other homosexually active men in Australia
- Article: Network nannies, folk pharmacology and lay experts
- Project: The 3D project
S1 SpeakEasy Ep 2: World Hepatitis Day: Greg Dore: What’s happening in hep C treatment?
This episode focuses on the ground-breaking new treatments for hepatitis C, which currently affects over 230,000 Australians. Professor Greg Dore is Head of the Viral Hepatitis Clinical Research Program at the Kirby Institute, UNSW. Greg joins Annie and Carla for a special World Hepatitis Day episode of the SpeakEasy.
Editor's note: While recording this episode, we encountered some technical glitches that have shown up in our recording. While we tried our best to fix them, we couldn't get them out, so they're immortalised in this episode. We've already taken steps to reduce the risk of this happening again. Thanks for bearing with us during our early days!Related links:
S1 SpeakEasy Ep 1: We don't know what we don't know (PART I)
Get to know this new UNSW podcasting duo in a one-on-one interview episode with Annie & Carla, including ‘who the hell are they?’, what makes them tick, their hopes and dreams for the future and their plans for world domination with the SpeakEasy with Annie & Carla podcast series. NB We realised during recording that we have so much to talk about, so we plan on continuing this conversation a little later in the season. Stay tuned for more...
Related links:
- Website: Centre for Social Research in Health, Arts & Social Sciences, UNSW
- Website: Australian Injecting & Illicit Drug Users League (AIVL)
SpeakEasy with Annie and Carla is produced by Joanna Holcombe at the Centre for Social Research in Health.
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Welcome to ExtraEasy, our short, sharp sister show to SpeakEasy. ExtraEasy features hot topics of the moment and issues that have caught Annie Madden & Carla Treloar’s attention each month.
S3 ExtraEasy with Lise Lafferty
Dr Lise Lafferty (CSRH and The Kirby Institute) joins Annie Madden and Professor Carla Treloar to celebrate her participation in the NSW Inspirational Women Showcase and discusses her unconventional path to a career in research.
Related links
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Welcome to ExtraEasy, our short, sharp sister show to SpeakEasy. ExtraEasy features hot topics of the moment and issues that have caught Annie Madden & Carla Treloar’s attention each month.
S2 ExtraEasy Ep 5: INHSU 2018 recap
Carla and Annie recap on Portugal, the INHSU conference and discuss the issue of drug decriminalisation.
S2 ExtraEasy Ep 4: Look who's supporting drug law reform now
Carla and Annie discuss the latest (and biggest) names globally to get on board with drug law reform, the World Drug Perception Problem report (shoutout to Jason Reed at UKLeap podcast Stop and Search) and Canada's launch of a needle-sharing program in prison.
Related links
- Article: Royal College of Physicians backs RSPH calls on drug reform
- Report: The world drug perception problem: Countering prejudices about people who use drugs
- Podcast: LEAP UK - Stop and Search
- Article: Canada to test first needle exchange program in a North American prison
S2 ExtraEasy Ep 3: The times, they are a-changing
Step into the ExtraEasy lounge as Annie and Carla discuss The Greens' statement on legalising cannabis in Australia, as well as the new Changing attitudes, Changing lives report and recommendations on stigma and discrimination for people experiencing problematic alcohol and other drug use led by the Drug Policy Modelling Program at NDARC and published by the Queensland Mental Health Commission.
Related links
- Stigma Indicators Monitoring Project
- Legal highs: arguments for and against legalising cannabis in Australia
- Evaluation of an online injecting drug use stigma intervention targeted at health providers in New South Wales, Australia
- Reducing stigma and discrimination for people experiencing problematic alcohol and other drug use
Changing attitudes, changing lives: Options to reduce stigma and discrimination for people experiencing problematic alcohol and other drug use (PDF) - NADA and NUAA Language Matters guide (PDF)
S2 ExtraEasy Ep 2: Victorian drug law reform report - what happens next?
This week Carla and Annie discuss the tabling of the Victorian drug law reform report and recommendations, as well as biding a sombre farewell to their mentor and friend, Professor David Cooper AO.
Related links
- Report: Inquiry into drug law reform (PDF) (by the Parliament of Victoria Law Reform, Road and Community Safety Committee)
- Article: Victorian drug law reform recommendations are welcome – but must include prisoners (from The Conversation)
- Article: Vale David Cooper: Australia's pioneer in HIV research
S2 ExtraEasy Ep 1: Methadone, NSPs and the power of the pool
Listen Up! Carla Treloar and Annie Madden are back with the short, sharp and always on point ExtraEasy! In this first episode for 2018, Carla and Annie talk about the very topical issue of methadone and driving, and needle sharing programs in prisons and the positive power of the pool AKA: how to mend a broken heart.
Related links
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Welcome to ExtraEasy, our short, sharp sister show to SpeakEasy. ExtraEasy features hot topics of the moment and issues that have caught Annie Madden & Carla Treloar’s attention each month.
S1 ExtraEasy Ep 8: Drug law reform, ARTB and Twitter, oh my
Annie and Carla discuss the good stuff this episode: the greenlighting of a medically supervised injecting centre in Melbourne, the annual state of play in the Hep C space, Annie's exciting scholarship news and the launch of our very own Twitter (@SpeakEasy_UNSW - come and find us)!
Related links
- Article: Melbourne safe injecting room trial set to get the go-ahead
- Report: Annual Report of Trends in Behaviour
- Twitter: @SpeakEasy_UNSW
S1 ExtraEasy Ep 7: INHSU17 wrap
In this special length Extra ExtraEasy episode, Carla and Annie share their favourite moments and vox pops from the INHSU17 Conference held in New York (or really, across the river in New Jersey) at the beginning of September.
In order of appearance in the episode:
- Dr Mark Tyndall, University of British Columbia
- Prof Tim Rhodes and Margaret 'Mags' O'Sullivan, Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals
- Collette, Montefiore Medical Centre, New York
Related links
- Website: INHSU17
- Contact: Dr Mark Tyndall
S1 ExtraEasy Ep 6: To eradicate or to eliminate hepatitis C - that is the question
In this episode of ExtraEasy, Carla and Annie use vox pops from the recent Australasian Viral Hepatitis Elimination Conference held on 10 - 11 August 2017 in Cairns to highlight some of the key issues discussed at the conference in particular, what is ‘hepatitis C elimination’ and what it will take to achieve it?
Related links
- Twitter: #AVHEC2017 on Twitter
- Link: Cairns Hepatitis Action Team Facebook page
S1 ExtraEasy Ep 5: The Cochrane Review review and WHO and the UN back decriminalisation
The Cochrane Collaboration assessment of hepatitis C drug trials comes under review from our resident hep C expert Carla Treloar, while Annie Madden digs deeper into the drug decriminalisation debate as the World Health Organisation and the United Nations wade into the debate.
Related links
- Report: Cochrane Review
- Article: Media reporting of the Cochrane review
- Statement: UN and WHO joint statement on decriminalisation
- Report: Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission Illicit Drug Data Report
- Article: Decriminalisation is the only way to arrest Australia's drug problem
S1 ExtraEasy Ep 4: Things are not what they seem
In episode four Annie looks at the latest info to come out of the recent International Harm Reduction Conference in Montreal, while Carla has some interesting observations about the need for training doctors for real-world approaches to hepatitis C. Oh, and that time some students made out in the front row of her lecture!
Related links
- Article: Fentanyl test boosts dose-reduction rate, could lead to fewer overdoses
- Watch: Highlights from the 25th Harm Reduction International Conference in Montreal
S1 ExtraEasy Ep 3: What do jetlag, rough sleepers and drug checking have in common?
Fresh off the plane from a quick trip to London, Carla has some interesting observations about rough sleepers, pollution and the dissemination of research findings to those it impacts. Meanwhile, Annie keeps things local this week, bringing to the discussion the possibility of the first legal pill-testing trial in the ACT later this year.
Related links
- Website: PLuS Alliance
- Info: Community Reference Panel
- Article: Greens, health professionals hit back at festival pill testing rejection
- Article: Allowing pill testing at the Spilt Milk festival would be a big win for public health
S1 ExtraEasy Ep 2: Making waves in advocacy and research
In episode 2, Annie and Carla cover the recent Australia 21 report and ways in which the world of drug laws could shift and the “rock star” reception for a seminar on analysis of qualitative research given by CSRH visitor, Jo Neale.
Related links
- Paper: Neale, J. (2016). Iterative categorization (IC): A systematic technique for analysing qualitative data. Addiction, 111: 1096–1106. DOI: 10.1111/add.13314
S1 ExtraEasy Ep 1: A Mood for Change?
In this very first episode of ExtraEasy, Annie & Carla discuss drug law reform in the mainstream media, why harm reduction issues are ‘hot’ in Victoria right now and highlights from a recent visit to CSRH by Prof. Tim Rhodes, London School of Tropical Medicine, thinking about the future of NSPs.
Related links
- Article: Law changes are key to cutting drug harm
- Paper: Islam, Nazrul et al. (2016) Incidence, risk factors, and prevention of hepatitis C reinfection: a population-based cohort study. The Lancet Gastroenterology & Hepatology, Volume 2, Issue 3, 200 - 210 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S2468-1253(16)30182-0