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Better data needed on drug use in ethnic groups, says ACMD
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Timely and useful’ data on drug use in ethnic groups should be gathered to feed into the next drug strategy, says a report from the ACMD. Cultural competence and diversity also needs to be enhanced in drug services across the country, according to Drug use in ethnic minority groups: a review and recommendations.
There is an‘ inconsistent and fragmented’ picture of the prevalence of drug use across minority groups says the report, which forms part of a series of ACMD documents on drug use in vulnerable populations. Structural barriers – including‘ stigma, mistrust, cultural insensitivity, and negligible service visibility’ – have all been found to limit engagement with treatment, adds a covering letter from the ACMD to policing minister Sarah Jones. More research is needed to understand the differences in harms, engagement and treatment outcomes in different groups and the factors that influence them, it continues. Workforce planning, meanwhile, should define the competencies
THE GOVERNMENT HAS LAUNCHED A CALL FOR EVIDENCE to shape its forthcoming‘ once-in-ageneration’ mental health strategy which will signal a fundamental shift from crisis intervention to prevention, DHSC states. Demand for mental health services has been increasing exponentially, especially among younger people, with many facing long waiting times to access support. The government wants to hear from frontline workers, clinicians and others on how care can be transformed,
ACMD RECOMMENDATIONS
1 Timely and useful data on drug use in ethnic groups should be collected to feed into the next UK drug-strategy refresh and associated funding rounds.
2 Appropriate calls for funded research projects to understand the differences in harms, treatment engagement, treatment outcome and recovery in different ethnic groups and the factors which influence each of these metrics.
3 Special services and specialist workers from different ethnic groups should be included in service planning across the UK.
4 Workforce planning should define competencies needed for a culturally sensitive service to include stigma and shame. It should also focus on workforce representation from ethnic groups across all levels from frontline staff through to board and trustee levels.
necessary to develop culturally sensitive services that are able to properly understand the issues of stigma and shame that deter people from accessing support.
According to last year’ s Adult Psychiatry Morbidity Survey,‘ all drug’ use in the previous year was highest for White respondents, at 26 per cent, followed by‘ mixed / multiple / other ethnicities’( 22 per cent), Black / Black British( 12 per cent) and Asian / Asian British( 2 per cent). Drug dependence, meanwhile, was highest in the mixed / multiple / other ethnicities
it says, with NHS spending on mental health projected to top £ 16bn this year. However, the current system remains‘ reactive, fragmented and inconsistent’, with levels of support largely a postcode lottery and many people only getting help when they reach crisis point.
The strategy will consider the role of the voluntary sector, schools, workplaces and local government in promoting positive mental health, DHSC says. According to NDTMS figures, around three quarters of people starting drug and alcohol group at 22 per cent, followed by White( 15 per cent) and Black / Black British( 6 per cent). Adopting the report’ s recommendations would help to develop a clearer, more robust evidence base, ensure better targeting of policies and funding, improve service uptake and engagement, and reduce levels of stigma and inequalities, said ACMD chair Professor David Wood.
Drug use in ethnic minority groups: a review and recommendations available at www. gov. uk
Government consults on mental health for ' once-in-a-generation ' strategy
treatment also have a mental health treatment need.‘ What matters now is delivery,’ stated chief executive of Rethink Mental Illness UK, Mark Winstanley.‘ We need rapid improvements in access to timely, appropriate treatment, urgent action to ensure inpatient settings are safe and therapeutic, and support that is properly joined up across health, housing and community services.’
Open call for evidence: informing the mental health strategy for England available at www. gov. uk until 10 July
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