The 2025 Australasian Professional Society on Alcohol and other Drugs (APSAD) Conference, held in Sydney, brought together leading researchers, practitioners, and policymakers from across Australia and beyond to share the latest evidence and innovations in alcohol and other drug research.

Members of the Drug Trends team from NDARC and partner institutes made a strong contribution through a series of oral and poster presentations that explored drug markets, patterns of use, and emerging harm reduction strategies.

Oral Presentations

Dr Jodie Grigg (NDRI, Curtin University) presented findings on the acceptability of prospective wearable biosensors as an overdose intervention tool among Australians who regularly use illicit drugs. This innovative research explored the potential role of technology in overdose prevention and participant attitudes toward biosensor use. View the presentation slides.

Associate Professor Amy Peacock (NDARC, UNSW Sydney) discussed a research project led by Jasmine Pearson on engagement with the Canberra fixed-site drug checking service among people who use illicit drugs. Drawing on multiple years of data, the presentation highlighted sustained uptake and the critical role of drug checking in promoting safer use and harm reduction. View the presentation slides.

Associate Professor Caroline Salom (Institute for Social Science Research, University of Queensland) shared important findings on ADHD symptomology and associated drug use among people who use illicit drugs in Australia. The analysis revealed that ADHD symptoms were common but often under-recognised, with many participants self-medicating using both prescribed and illicit substances. View the presentation slides.

Mila Sumner (Burnet Institute) presented new insights into opioid agonist therapy doses among people who inject drugs, highlighting significant variation in dosing and takeaway availability across jurisdictions and reinforcing the need for updated national treatment guidelines. View the presentation slides.

Poster Presentations

Dr Joanna Wilson (Burnet Institute) and colleagues examined trends in prescription access among people who inject drugs from 2021–2024, finding that real-time prescription monitoring had not systematically increased prescription refusals, though some participants reported turning to non-prescribed use as a result.

Michael Curtis (Burnet Institute) and colleagues explored the acceptability of overdose helplines among people who inject drugs in Australia. While more than half of participants indicated willingness to use such a service, attitudes varied by jurisdiction, with strong preferences for free-call phone access.

Dr Rachel Sutherland (NDARC) and colleagues showcased two posters. One focused on illicit tobacco use among people who use illegal drugs, finding that affordability remained a key driver of use. The second examined knowledge of decriminalisation legislation among people who use drugs in Canberra following the ACT’s reform, revealing high awareness but mixed understanding of the new laws.

Dr Nicola Man (NDARC) and colleagues presented findings from a national study investigating whether methamphetamine load in wastewater could predict methamphetamine-related hospitalisations and deaths. The results suggest that while wastewater data improved model fit, it did not substantially enhance forecasting accuracy, highlighting opportunities for further methodological refinement.

Collaboration and Impact

The Drug Trends presentations reflected strong national collaboration across NDARC (UNSW Sydney), National Drug Research Institute (Curtin University), Burnet Institute, the University of Tasmania and the University of Queensland. Collectively, these studies contribute valuable evidence to inform harm reduction, drug policy reform, and public health interventions in Australia.

NDARC congratulates all Drug Trends researchers and collaborators for their impactful contributions to APSAD 2025.

More information about Drug trends and related bulletins and publications are available here.