News & Events
- 10-06-09 : RCGP: CodeineFree Exhibitor Report on the RCGP Conference
- 08-06-09 : Library: SMMGP May Policy Update Now Online
- 21-05-09 : RCGP: 14th Conference Presentations Now Available Online
- 21-05-09 : Library: Encouraging GPs to Treat Drug Users...
- 19-05-09 : General: SMMGP Website Survey 2009 - Please Help!
- 14-05-09 : General: Calling GPs Dealing With Adolescent Substance Misuse
- 12-05-09 : Library: 26th Edition of "Network" Now Online
- 07-05-09 : Library: April SMMGP Clinical Update Now Online
- 13-04-09 : Library: Virtual SMMGP Network Newsletters
- 08-04-09 : Library: SMMGP March Policy Update Now Online
- 23-03-09 : Library: 3rd West Midlands Conference Docs Online
- 19-03-09 : Library: 25th Edition of "Network" Now Online
- 10-03-09 : Library: New Articles!
- 09-03-09 : General: Botulism Warning
- 09-03-09 : General: New NICE Guidance - Needle & Syringe Programmes
- 20-02-09 : Library: February SMMGP Clinical Update Now Online
- 19-02-09 : General: Questioning the Good Practice in Harm Reduction Report
- 06-02-09 : Library: SMMGP Policy Update - Good Practice in Harm Reduction...
- 28-01-09 : Library: More SMMGP Member Survey Results Added
- 12-01-09 : Library: Example Treatment Follow-Up Form
- 10-01-09 : General: New Release Web Site Launched
RCGP: CodeineFree Exhibitor Report on the RCGP Conference
(Posted 10th June 2009)
CodeineFree are a small self-help group set up and run by people who understand the effects of Codeine addiction first hand. They attended the RCGP 14th National Conference in Liverpool on 7-8th May 2009 as first-time exhibitors and have produced a report detailing their experiences and conclusions.
The report is available, along with presentations and other documents from the event, on the Past Reports & Presentations page in the RCGP Conference section.
Full details of CodeineFree can be found on the CodeineFree web site.
Library: SMMGP May Policy Update Now Online
(Posted 8th June 2009)
The May 2009 SMMGP Policy Update is now available in the SMMGP Clinical & Policy Updates section.
The following items are covered:
- The Global State of Harm Reduction (HR): A Definite Need for Improvement
- UN Reference Group on HIV & IDU - Recent Research Findings
- UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) Vote Against Harm Reduction
- Drugs, Harm Reduction and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child - Themes and Universal Rights
If you would like to receive these SMMGP Updates via e-mail as soon as they are released, please join the SMMGP. Membership is completely free, you can join instantly online, and there are lots of benefits - see the Free SMMGP Membership Application page for more details.
RCGP: 14th Conference Presentations Now Available Online
(Posted 21st May 2009)
The highly successful 14th National RCGP Conference ("Working with Drug & Alcohol Users in Primary Care - Family Medicine: From Cradle to Grave") was held in Liverpool on 7-8th May.
Presentations and other documents from this event are now available from the Past Reports & Presentations page in the RCGP Conference section.
Library: Encouraging GPs to Treat Drug Users...
(Posted 21st May 2009)
We are pleased to include an article from one of the presenters at the RCGP 14th National Conference ("Working with Drug & Alcohol Users in Primary Care - Family Medicine: From Cradle to Grave").
For several years GPs have been encouraged to get involved in drug treatment. Charles Cornford explores policy to try to uncover the reasons behind this.
Read the full article below in Adobe Acrobat PDF format:
Encouraging General Practitioners to Treat Drug Users:
An Analysis of the Policy of 'Shared Care' (PDF, 44K)
Dr Charles Cornford MD FRCGP (May 2009)
General Practitioner, Fulcrum Medical Practice, Middlesbrough and Honorary Senior Lecturer University of Durham
General: SMMGP Website Survey 2009 - Please Help!
(Posted 19th May 2009)
We would be very grateful if you could take one or two minutes to complete our very short and completely anonymous questionnaire to let us know what you think of the SMMGP website. The results will help us improve the site, and shape future developments.
This survey deadline is Friday 12 June 2009 ...please complete it as soon as possible!
Go to the SMMGP Website Survey 2009 >>>
We will post the results on the site once the survey is complete.
General: Calling GPs Dealing With Adolescent Substance Misuse
(Posted 14th May 2009)
The RCGP SMU have been doing some preliminary work with the NTA Youth Team to look into the sort of training that you might want in order to support this work.
It has become very clear that, while there are a number of you out there doing it, you are quite isolated from each other.
The RCPsych Young Peoples' Substance Misuse Psychiatrists Group are working on a "parameters of good practice" for working with this group, and the NTA "Clinical management Guidance for Secure Estates and Community for Young People" are due to published shortly so there is the potential to link this new development in with the publication of these documents.
The SMU would be interested to hear from any of you already doing this work, and maybe set up an e-mail group for you to have an opportunity to link in with each other, us to share the work we have done to date, and generally find out how this is working in "real terms".
Dr Charlie Lowe from Plymouth has been part of the preliminary meetings we have had with the NTA, RCPsych, RCN, ANSA and a couple of other practitioners and would be happy to coordinate this network.
If you'd like to be part of that network let us know at the SMU and we'll put you in touch with them.
Library: 26th Edition of "Network" Now Online
(Posted 12th May 2009)
Issue 26 of "Network", the SMMGP Newsletter, is now available to read online, download in Adobe Acrobat PDF format, or browse as a "digital publication" from the Newsletters section in the Resource Library.
If you would like to receive copies of Network via post and/or e-mail as soon as they are released, please join the SMMGP. Membership is completely free, you can join instantly online, and there are lots of benefits - see the Free SMMGP Membership Application page for more details.
Library: April SMMGP Clinical Update Now Online
(Posted 7th May 2009)
The April SMMGP Clinical Update is now available in the SMMGP Clinical & Policy Updates section in both online and downloadable versions.
If you would like to receive these Updates via e-mail as soon as they are released, please join the SMMGP. Membership is completely free, you can join instantly online, and there are lots of benefits - see the Free SMMGP Membership Application page for more details.
Library: Virtual SMMGP Network Newsletters
(Posted 13th April 2009)
All past editions of the SMMGP Network Newsletter can now be read online as "digital publications" in the Newsletters section of the Resource Library.
Reading the digital publications is a bit like reading the printed versions because you can literally "turn the pages" on screen (just click on the corners). You can also zoom in simply by clicking where you'd like to look more closely, then zoom back out by clicking again. There are many other useful features available, such as content searching, book-marks and notelets which you can attach to the pages.
If you prefer the standard web page Newsletter versions, or downloadable PDFs, then they are still available in addition to the new virtual versions.
If you would like to receive copies of Network via post and/or e-mail as soon as they are released, please join the SMMGP. Membership is completely free, you can join instantly online, and there are lots of benefits - see the Free SMMGP Membership Application page for more details.
Library: SMMGP March Policy Update Now Online
(Posted 8th April 2009)
The March 2009 SMMGP Policy Update is now available in the SMMGP Clinical & Policy Updates section.
The following items are covered:
- The Primary Prevention of Hepatitis C (HCV) Among Injecting Drug Users (IDU)
Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD), February 2009 - Needle & Syringe Programmes: Providing People Who Inject Drugs with Injecting Equipment
NICE PH18, February 2009 - Cannabis: Classification & Public Health
Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD)
If you would like to receive these SMMGP Updates via e-mail as soon as they are released, please join the SMMGP. Membership is completely free, you can join instantly online, and there are lots of benefits - see the Free SMMGP Membership Application page for more details.
Library: 3rd West Midlands Conference Docs Online
(Posted 23rd March 2009)
Presentations from the 3rd West Midlands SMMGP, RCGP & NTA Conference ("Primary & Secondary Care: Partners into the Future"), held on 27th February 2009, are now available in the Conference Reports & Presentations section of the Resource Library.
Library: 25th Edition of "Network" Now Online
(Posted 19th March 2009)
Issue 25 of "Network", the SMMGP Newsletter, is now available to read online or download in Adobe Acrobat PDF format from the Newsletters section in the Resource Library.
If you would like to receive copies of Network via post and/or e-mail as soon as they are released, please join the SMMGP. Membership is completely free, you can join instantly online, and there are lots of benefits - see the Free SMMGP Membership Application page for more details.
(Posted 10th March 2009)
We are excited to publish two articles that appear in shortened versions in Network 25 (available soon). Jim McVeigh and Michael Evans-Brown give a detailed account of anabolic steroid use in the UK, and the associated risks and harms, and Linda Harris Clinical Director of the RCGP Substance Misuse Unit provides a response to the NTA regarding the criminal justice questions on the Treatment Outcome Profile.
Read the full versions below in Adobe Acrobat PDF format:
- Anabolic Steroid Use in the UK (PDF, 101K)
- RCGP SMU Response to the NTA (PDF, 36K)
(Posted 9th March 2009)
Possible contaminated heroin at risk of causing wound botulism in injecting drug users.
The Health Protection Agency (HPA) has advised the Department of Health that in the week between 22/02/09 and 02/03/09, five heroin injecting drug users (IDUs) (four males and one female) have been reported to the Health Protection Agency Centre for Infections (HPA CfI), from London, East of England and the South East with clinically diagnosed wound botulism.
The Department of Health will be making information directly available through the NHS, National Treatment Agency for Substance Misuse and drug user networks. The Home Office is also alerting police networks in the UK of the current position. More information is available on the HPA website (see links below).
General: New NICE Guidance - Needle & Syringe Programmes
(Posted 9th March 2009)
New NICE guidance published at the end of February 2009 aims to reduce the transmission of blood borne viruses through the optimal provision of needle and syringe programmes (NSPs). With an estimated 150 000-200 000 injecting drug users within the UK, this guidance highlights the important role these programmes can play in tackling the spread of viruses, including Hepatitis C and HIV, and helping drug users to access further treatment.
Needle and syringe schemes have been provided throughout England for over 20 years with the majority being run by pharmacies and other drug services. By highlighting the importance of needle and syringe programmes and explaining how they can operate effectively - for example by increasing the accessibility of schemes in terms of opening times, locations and the services they provide - this guidance aims to encourage their use amongst existing injecting drug users.
Recommendations include:
- Encouraging people who inject drugs to use services which aim to reduce the harms associated with injecting drug use; encourage them to stop using drugs or to switch to non-injecting methods (for example, opioid substitution therapy); and to address their other health needs.
- Advising local authorities on how to develop plans to ensure NSPs meet local need and offer integrated care pathways for people who inject drugs.
- Helping NSP providers develop plans for needle and syringe disposal.
- Guidance on the provision of needles, syringes and other injecting equipment to people who inject drugs.
- Ensuring people who use NSPs are provided with sharps bins and advice on how to dispose of needles and syringes safely.
Further information is available on the NICE website.
Library: February SMMGP Clinical Update Now Online
(Posted 20th February 2009)
The February SMMGP Clinical Update is now available in the SMMGP Clinical & Policy Updates section in both online and downloadable versions.
If you would like to receive these Updates via e-mail as soon as they are released, please join the SMMGP. Membership is completely free, you can join instantly online, and there are lots of benefits - see the Free SMMGP Membership Application page for more details.
General: Questioning the Good Practice in Harm Reduction Report
(Posted 19th February 2009)
The following points were raised by an SMMGP member in response to the January SMMGP Policy Update about the NTA report "Good Practice in Harm Reduction". We asked for comment from the NTA, and their reply is also provided below:
Question from SMMGP Member
I would respectfully point out that the claim regarding reduction in drug related deaths fails to acknowledge the fact that there was an increase between 2003-4, largely accounted for by deaths involving heroin/methadone and morphine(1).
Your Update also disregards the fact that drug related deaths are at their highest for 5 years(2). In fact, as you should be aware, the total number of drug poisoning deaths in 2007, including a staggering 16 per cent rise in deaths involving heroin and morphine compared to 2006, increased to 2,640.
It is even more regrettable that you chose not to point out that deaths from heroin and morphine appear to be increasing year on year, or the fact that in 2007 there were 196 deaths involving cocaine, the highest recorded number of deaths involving cocaine since the ONS database began in 1993.
A further notable omission are the deaths relating to methadone, which increased by a wholly unacceptable increase of 35 percent over 2006 to 325 and once again the highest level since 1999.
An even more glaring omission is the fact that in males no less than 67 per cent of drug poisoning deaths were attributable to 'drug misuse'.
In the light of the foregoing, I have to consider whether your Update 'Good practice in Harm Reduction' is being unrealistically optimistic or, like the title, misleading. I will reserve judgement pending your comments.
(1)Office of national Statistic in 2007s: April 2007.
(2)Office of national Statistics: Health Quarterly Statistics autumn 2008.
Official Response from NTA
Dear SMMGP
Your correspondent may be confusing the timing and purpose of different reports. "Good Practice in Harm Reduction" was written before the autumn 2008 ONS figures were released and was intended to highlight common themes of good practice in partnerships that performed well in the NTA/Healthcare Commission review of harm reduction in 2006-7.
We share his concern that drug-related deaths are high and rose in 2007. Since 2007 the NTA has been working on the Department of Health action plan to reduce drug-related harm. This plan, set out in the document "Reducing Drug-Related Harm: An Action Plan", includes government action on campaigns, improving delivery and surveillance. More specifically, the NTA has made available a range of harm reduction materials as part of the "Harm Reduction Works" campaign, will be issuing updated guidance on local confidential enquiries into drug-related deaths, and is about to run a pilot on providing naloxone to users and carers.
While drug-related deaths are an important issue deserving of this greater attention, we do not think it is either "optimistic" or "misleading" to draw attention to examples of good practice from which other partnerships might learn and which, if copied, might help to prevent some drug-related deaths.
Regards,
Tim Murray
Policy Officer
National Treatment Agency for Substance Misuse
Please feel free to discuss the points raised above on the SMMGP Online Forums.
Library: SMMGP Policy Update - Good Practice in Harm Reduction...
(Posted 6th February 2009)
The January SMMGP Policy Update is now available in the SMMGP Clinical & Policy Updates section.
Good Practice in Harm Reduction Report, NTA (October 2008)
January's Policy Update is dedicated to the NTA's "Good Practice in Harm Reduction Report" (October 2008). The aim of the report is to highlight good practice in harm reduction based on interviews with local drug partnerships that performed well in the 2006/07 National Treatment Agency (NTA) and Healthcare Commission (HCC) service reviews, and to identify good practice in interventions to reduce drug-related harm related to blood- borne virus and overdose.
Drug-related deaths have gone down in recent years but by 2004 government targets had not been met. Harm reduction was selected as a priority for the 2006/07service review because of concerns about the increasing incidence of blood-borne viruses being recorded by the Health Protection Agency (2007) and failure to reach the government targets on drug related deaths.
If you would like to receive these SMMGP Updates via e-mail as soon as they are released, please join the SMMGP. Membership is completely free, you can join instantly online, and there are lots of benefits - see the Free SMMGP Membership Application page for more details.
Library: More SMMGP Member Survey Results Added
(Posted 28th January 2009)
The following survey results are now available in the SMMGP Member Survey Results section of the Resource Library:
UKDPC Consensus Statement on Recovery Consultation
- Oct 2008
In July/August 2008, SMMGP conducted a consultation of its membership on their views on the UKDPC Consensus Statement on Recovery and its relevance to treatment services in General Practice. The results of the consultation are presented here.Green Paper Consultation
- Oct 2008
SMMGP wanted to put forward a response to the Green Paper "No one written off: reforming welfare to reward responsibility", including the comments and views of members. Comments were therefore gathered in relation to the key questions regarding the proposal for drug users that are asked in the consultation. The comments are presented here.
Library: Example Treatment Follow-Up Form
(Posted 12th January 2009)
Dr Steve Ryder, of the Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, has kindly provided an example of a helpful chart used in Nottingham to monitor the side-effects of hepatitis C treatment.
The document is available in the Other Resources section of the Resource Library.
General: New Release Web Site Launched
(Posted 10th January 2009)
Release is the national centre of expertise on drugs and drugs law - providing free and confidential specialist advice to the public and professionals.
Release also campaigns for changes to UK drug policy to bring about a fairer and more compassionate legal framework to manage drug use in our society.
Release has recently launched a completely re-vamped web site with new branding and logo. Visit the site at Release.