19 Aug 2021
The Australians' Drug Use: Adapting to Pandemic Threats (ADAPT) Study is exploring the short and long-term impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the experiences of Australians who use illicit drugs. Findings will be used to ensure drug-related issues during COVID-19 are better understood and more accurately represented, so as to better inform drug treatment and harm reduction in Australia.
Australians who regularly (i.e. at least once a month) used illicit drugs in 2019 were invited to complete an online survey initially and follow-up surveys in 2 months, 4 months and 12 months. Participants could opt to complete the Wave 1 survey only.
This bulletin outlines preliminary findings from the 197 participants who completed ALL surveys from Waves 1-4, describing changes in drug use and behaviours, health ratings and drug/mental health treatment access and engagement pre- and post-COVID-19 restrictions (i.e., since March 2020).
Acknowledgements:
- The participants who contributed their valuable time to share their experiences.
- The Australian Injecting & Illicit Drug Users League (AIVL) for their support and advice in developing the project.
- All those who gave advice and shared information about the project.
- The National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre and the Australian Government Department of Health for funding support.
Resources
Illicit drug reporting system
Baillie, G., Peacock, A., Hammoud, M., Memedovic, S., Barratt, M., Bruno, R., Dietze, P., Ezard, N., Salom, C., Degenhardt, L., Hughes, C. & Sutherland, R.
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