The Australians' Drug Use: Adapting to Pandemic Threats (ADAPT) Study is exploring the short and long-term impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the experiences of Australians who use illicit drugs. Findings will be used to ensure drug-related issues during COVID-19 are better understood and more accurately represented, so as to better inform drug treatment and harm reduction in Australia.
Australians who regularly (i.e. at least once a month) used illicit drugs in 2019 were invited to complete an online survey initially and follow-up surveys in 2 months, 6 months, 12 months, 2 years and 3 years. Participants could opt to complete the Wave 1 survey only.
This bulletin outlines preliminary findings from the 308 cohort participants who completed both the Wave 1 and Wave 2 surveys, describing changes in drug use and behaviours, harm reduction behaviours, health ratings and drug/mental health treatment access and engagement pre- and post-COVID-19 restrictions (i.e., since March 2020).
Acknowledgements:
- The participants who contributed their valuable time to share their experiences.
- The Australian Injecting & Illicit Drug Users League (AIVL) for their support and advice in developing the project.
- All those who gave advice and shared information about the project.
- The National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre and the Australian Government Department of Health for funding support.
Recommended citation:
Sutherland, R., Baillie, G., Memedovic, S., Hammoud, M., Barratt, M., Bruno, R., Dietze, P., Ezard, N., Salom, C., Degenhardt, L., Hughes, C. & Peacock, A. (2020). Key findings from the ‘Australians’ Drug Use: Adapting to Pandemic Threats (ADAPT)’ Study Wave 2. ADAPT Bulletin no. 2. Sydney: National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, UNSW Sydney.