New research shows Australians are becoming more open to less punitive responses to drug use.
If NSW takes on the coroner’s recommendations, it will be among the most innovative and evidence-based states in Australia on drug policy.
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Most drug use among Australian festival goers appears to be occasional and isn't problematic. But a small group experience higher rates of drug-related harms.
Festival goers bring their phones. So why not use them to receive tweets about high-dose drugs in circulation, as the UK is doing?
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New research shows some festival goers are willing to take a dodgy pill regardless of the test result. So, let's use pill testing to educate them and others about reducing their risk.
Can you be sure which pill is which? It can be difficult to tell if you’ve picked the correct medication.
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The technology to identify pills is getting cheaper and smaller. That means it could also be used to test the make-up of illegal pills at festivals and other events.
Billboard outside St Andrew’s Presbyterian, Murwillumbah, NSW 2018.
Louise Moana Kolff
Originally designed to display service times or bible quotations, church signs are becoming a site of political commentary, tackling everything from pill testing to refugee rights.
The use of drug dogs leads to riskier drug-taking at festivals.
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People who use party drugs say it gives them energy to dance and socialise, reduces their inhibitions and enhances their feelings of connection to others.
When considering harm to the user and to wider society, alcohol is much more of a problem than MDMA.
Krists Luhaers
With several music festival patrons dying this year the pill testing debate is in full swing. Yet people can already purchase legally available test kits. Do they work?
Pill testing is a rare opportunity to speak to drug users about their drug use.
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Victorian Police Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton said conducting on-site drug tests at public events "safely and quickly is not really a practical option". But the technology is available.
Drug consumers are using DIY kits in an attempt to find out what substances they’re ingesting – but these rudimentary kits won’t paint a full picture.
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Not only are our drug policies not working, we're falling behind the rest of the world and what evidence says is best to ensure we have fewer deaths from illicit drugs.
This has been one of the worst starts to the music festival season ever, in terms of harm from overdoses.
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Testing drugs at music festivals not only means we can assess whether they contain anything unexpected, but it's an opportunity to try to change the behaviour of users.
Associate Professor, Program Leader for Research and Statistical Support Service and Program Leader for Substance Use and Mental Health, Centre for Health Services Research, The University of Queensland