Background

Novel public health interventions are needed to address the toxic drug supply and meet the needs of people who use drugs amidst the overdose crisis. Safer supply – low-barrier distribution of pharmaceutical grade substances – has been implemented in some jurisdictions to provide safer alternatives to the unregulated drug supply, yet no studies to date have explored professional stakeholder perspectives on this approach.

Methods

We used purposive sampling to recruit professional stakeholders (n = 17) from four locations in British Columbia, Ontario, and Nova Scotia, including...

BACKGROUND:

A close relationship between a parent and a child and parental acceptance can mediate the appropriate self-acceptance of an adolescent, which is an important variable related to personality and a pillar of emotional health. In the paper we present the conclusions of a research study about the quality of the attachment towards parents and self-acceptance of adolescents at Czech secondary schools.

AIMS:

The aim of the study was the exploration of the relation between the attachment style and self-acceptance.

SAMPLE:

The research sample consists of 3,239 adolescents aged 15–19 in...

BACKGROUND:

In many countries families have rarely been involved in addressing treatment and interventions for family members with substance use disorders (SUDs). The aims of this study were to measure the influence of substance use on users’ family members and to evaluate what and if any interventions were conducted by and with family members in the three countries of Kazakhstan, Pakistan, and Ukraine.

METHODS:

A convenience sample approach was used to identify the involvement of families in the treatment and recovery process of a subject using substances and to provide country specific...

BACKGROUND:

Leisure can be a context that can promote positive adolescent development, but it can also be a context that contributes to adolescents engaging in risk behaviours.

AIMS:

The aim of this study is to determine the extent to which sociodemographic characteristics, the frequency of adolescent participation in structured leisure activities (SLA), and the type of SLA contribute to adolescent alcohol use and to examine the moderating effects of gender, age, and type of SLA on the relationship between the frequency of adolescent participation in SLA and adolescent alcohol use.

METHODS

This paper explores the experience of posttraumatic growth in families who have lost a family member to a drug-related death.

Seven family units (17 participants) were interviewed, and interviews were analysed.

Analyses revealed themes that reflected positive adaptation and growth, including

(a) reframing the loss,

(b) open dialogue and social support, and

(c) reclamation of purpose.

Themes are presented in this paper for their importance in understanding how best to manage adaptation through complicated grief.

The paper concludes that posttraumatic growth can occur once families begin...

Background

Although several studies have found a high incidence of coexisting mental health problems among adolescents with substance use problems, follow-up studies addressing how these conditions change over time are rare. The study will describe and analyse indications of mental health problems and how various risk factors predict outcomes 1 year after initial treatment contact. In addition, gender-specific risk factors are explored.

Methods

A clinical sample of 455 adolescents (29% girls, median age 17 years) answered a structural interview at baseline and were followed up using...

Background

Beginning in the 1990s, non-medical use of prescription opioids (POs) became a major public health crisis. In response to rising rates of opioid dependence and fatal poisonings, measures were instituted to decrease the prescription, diversion, and non-medical use of POs including prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs), pain clinic laws, prescription duration limits, disciplining doctors who prescribed an excessive number of POs, and the advent of abuse deterrent formulations of POs. This paper explores the unintended effects of these policies in the descriptions of why...

The connection between homelessness and substance use is well recognised and an issue that impacts countries around the world. People who experience substance use related issues and homelessness are extremely vulnerable to a range of harms and can find it challenging to access appropriate support that will adequately meet their needs.

In order to address the often-complex issues this population experience, it is important the workforce has appropriate knowledge about the challenges people are facing, the different forms of support and targeted interventions that are available, and means of...