DRUG OVERDOSES TO RISE AS TRAVELLING OPENS UP

OVERDOSES will put extra pressure on hospitals when the borders open as Queenslanders who couldn’t access drugs over lockdown return to their habit, addiction specialists warn.

Decreased availability, increased prices, banned festivals and social gatherings in 2021 have seen less consumption of party drugs in the state.

“When people return to their previous levels of drug intake they will have much less tolerance and have a greater physical risk of an overdose,” Dr Christian Rowan, Banyan Addiction Medicine specialist, said.

The doctor is urging Queenslanders to employ reduction strategies if returning to drugs.

“Drugs can be a coping mechanism and with increased levels of mental health problems there is a danger,” Dr Rowan said. “In Queensland we are seeing polysubstance use where drugs are mixed with other drugs and ingredients added that can be full of chemicals. Any drug use is like Russian roulette but this makes them much more dangerous.”

New data released by the Drug Trends program at the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre shows a decline in the use of ecstasy in Queensland in 2021.

But the data shows almost a 10 per cent rise in cocaine use in the state and a 12 per cent spike nationally in the past six months compared to 2020.

This is the highest rise in the country since monitoring began.

“Cocaine is no longer just the party drug, used only by celebrities and the wealthy,” said Ruth Limkin from the Banyans Healthcare Group, which runs treatment programs.

“Its use is becoming more popular with a more diverse group, despite its cost, and treatment needs to be multifaceted to reflect that change.”